An inmate at Turbeville Correctional Institution is facing multiple charges after authorities said he attempted to stab two correctional officers during an incident earlier this year.
According to arrest warrants released by the South Carolina Department of Corrections Inspector General, 27-year-old Dabreon Charles Derrick was charged with two counts of attempted murder, possession of a weapon during a violent crime and prisoner carrying a concealed weapon following the Feb. 6 incident at the Clarendon County prison.
The warrants allege Derrick, while incarcerated at the institution on Clarence Coker Highway, was armed with a homemade edged weapon and threatened staff during the confrontation. Investigators said Derrick made the statement, “I am going to kill you,” before allegedly attempting to stab two officers. Officers reportedly used chemical munitions during the incident to stop the attack.
According to the warrants, the allegations are supported by incident reports, surveillance video, recorded statements from officers and the recovery of the homemade weapon.
Derrick has previously faced charges in other Midlands-area cases. In 2019, Columbia Police charged Derrick in connection with a retaliatory shooting involving an occupied vehicle on Mountain Drive. Authorities at the time charged him with two counts of attempted murder and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime.
Later that year, the Cayce Department of Public Safety also charged Derrick in connection with an Aug. 29, 2019, shooting and armed robbery at the Fountains of Edenwood Apartments. Derrick and another suspect, Tyler Jammal Grier, were charged with attempted murder, armed robbery and possession of a firearm during a violent crime in that case.
SCDC officials said the charges were among several inmate cases that came up for bond hearings in April. The agency noted that criminal charges filed against inmates are separate from internal prison disciplinary proceedings.
The South Carolina Department of Corrections reminded the public in its release that all defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
