🕵️‍♂️ Chronicles of Crime: A Verified History of True Crime in Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston’s layered past — from colonial port city to modern American city — has seen its share of crime. What follows is a chronological overview of documented, significant criminal events that shaped the city’s history, society, and legal system.

1820s — Early Law Enforcement & the Fisher Case

Lavinia and John Fisher (1819–1820)

• In the early 19th century, Charleston courts dealt with highway robbery and violent crime as the city grew in population and trade.

• Lavinia and John Fisher were arrested in 1819 for highway robbery and sentenced to death in 1820. While folklore later exaggerated them as “serial killers,” actual historical records only document robbery as the crime of conviction under South Carolina law at the time. Insufficient evidence existed to convict them of murder, though legends grew over time.

Historical significance: This case shows how early criminal justice operated before modern investigative standards and how lore can outpace documented history.

1878–1912 — Recorded Violence in a Growing City

Homicide & Assault Records (1878–1912)

Data collected from Charleston homicide, coroner, and indictment records reveal documented killings, assaults, and violent crime as the city expanded in the post‑Reconstruction era, providing a quantitative baseline of documented felony assaults and homicides.

1919 — Racial Violence

Charleston Race Riot of 1919

• On May 10, 1919, racial tensions erupted into violence when white sailors from the Charleston Naval Yard attacked Black neighborhoods, businesses, and homes.

• The riot resulted in at least six Black deaths and dozens of injuries, making it one of the most serious episodes of racial violence in the city since the Civil War. Marines and police eventually restored order, but many charges were later dropped, reflecting the limits of local justice systems of the era.

Social impact: This episode was part of the broader “Red Summer” of 1919 — a national wave of racially motivated violence.

1933 — Unsolved Murder

The Mysterious Death of Mary Ravenel

• In 1933, Mary Ravenel — a well‑known Charleston resident — was found fatally shot near the Battery.

• Police detectives conducted extensive interviews and theories ranged from stray gunshot to robbery, but no clear motive or perpetrator was established, and the case went cold.

Historical significance: This unsolved crime highlights early 20th‑century investigative limits before modern forensic science.

1944 — The Execution of George Stinney Jr.

George Junius Stinney Jr.

(Executed June 16, 1944)

• In Alcolu, South Carolina (served by regional courts impacting Charleston’s legal climate), 14‑year‑old George Stinney Jr. was quickly tried, convicted, and executed for the murders of two white girls in a widely criticized case marked by lack of due process, racially segregated jury, and questionable evidence.

• Decades later, in 2014, a South Carolina judge vacated his conviction, ruling the original trial fundamentally unfair.

Legacy: This case has become a prominent example of racial injustice and has influenced discussions on juvenile sentencing and capital punishment nationwide.

1958 — The Candlestick Murder

Jack Dobbins Murdered by John Mahon

• On October 31, 1958, Charleston resident Jack Dobbins was found beaten to death in his home on Queen Street.

• The murder — dubbed the “Candlestick murder” due to the weapon — and the subsequent gay panic defense offered by the accused, John Mahon, drew attention to social prejudice and legal defenses that stigmatized LGBTQ individuals in mid‑20th‑century America.

Legal significance: The case influenced later discussions around violence, prejudice, and self‑defense law.

2003 — Stalking & Murder

Mary Lynn Witherspoon (November 14, 2003)

• Mary Lynn Witherspoon, a teacher in Charleston, was murdered by an obsessive stalker who had harassed her for more than two decades.

• The tragedy highlighted weaknesses in victim notification systems and led to South Carolina’s “Mary Lynn’s Law” in 2005, improving systems that inform victims when offenders are released.

Legacy: This case strengthened protective law and victim support infrastructure in the state.

2015 — Emanuel AME Church Mass Shooting

Charleston Church Shooting (June 17, 2015)

• In one of Charleston’s most internationally recognized crimes, a white supremacist killer entered Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, a historic Black church, and murdered nine worshippers during a Bible study.

Impact:

• The attack was prosecuted as a hate crime, and the shooter was eventually given a federal death sentence.

• It sparked nationwide debates on racial violence, domestic terrorism, and the removal of Confederate symbols.

• Documentary films such as Emanuel (2019) chronicle the event and community response.

Social significance: The event remains one of the deadliest and most consequential hate crimes in recent U.S. history.

Additional Notable Cases

(Statewide but Influential)

While not centered in Charleston, several other South Carolina crimes influenced the state’s justice narrative and justice system:

Susan Smith (1994)

• In nearby Union County, Susan Smith killed her two young sons by rolling her car into a lake while falsely claiming a Black man abducted them — then confessed. Her trial and conviction drew national media attention and discussions on child murder and false accusation.

Why This History Matters

Charleston’s true‑crime history spans racial violence, systemic injustice, unsolved mysteries, domestic violence, LGBTQ bias in the legal system, and tragic hate crimes. It reflects broader American social and legal evolutions — from early justice systems, through Jim Crow and civil rights eras, to modern hate‑crime laws and victim protections.

By examining these events in chronological order, we see how crime and justice developed alongside Charleston’s growth and transformation, and how each case left a legacy in law, memory, or community action.

📚 Citations

Colonial & Early

• Fisher highway robbery and early law enforcement.

Early 20th Century

• Charleston homicide and serious assault records (1878–1912).

• Mary Ravenel unsolved death (1933).

Racial Violence

• Charleston riot of 1919.

Mid‑Century

• George Stinney Jr.’s execution and later vacated conviction.

• Candlestick murder of 1958.

21st Century

• Mary Lynn Witherspoon murder and resulting law.

• Emanuel AME Church shooting and legacy.

• Documentary Emanuel (2019).

Notable Related Crime

• Susan Smith child murder case (wider SC, media impact).