Murder suspect will remain in custody until death penalty trial

A Florence man facing the death penalty in connection with the 2008 death of Willie Mae Hayes will remain in custody until his trial, 12th Circuit Solicitor Ed Clements III said.

Bond for the release of 22-year-old David Gerrard Johnson was denied Wednesday during a court hearing in Florence, Clements said. Prosecutors said in September they would seek the death penalty against Johnson.

The state Supreme Court has appointed 12th Circuit Court Judge Ralph King Anderson Jr. to preside over the case. Robert E. Lee and Jim Hoffmeyer will be representing Johnson, Clements said.

Hayes, 69, was found dead Aug. 27, 2008, after she was reported missing by her family two days earlier. An autopsy showed she died of multiple stab wounds to her upper body, Florence County Coroner M.G. “Bubba” Matthews said.

Johnson of 419 W. Sumter St., and Rashawn Jerome Bailey, 19, of 114 Liberty St., were each charged with first-degree murder, first-degree burglary, armed robbery and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime, Florence Police Chief Anson Shells said during an Aug. 29, 2008, press conference.

Both men are convicted felons whose criminal records include burglary charges, according to State Law Enforcement Division arrest reports.

Bailey had been released from the Florence County Detention Center in Effingham on Aug. 21, 2008, on a $20,000 surety bond for second-degree violent burglary and assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature

Rakeem Floyd, 14, and Anthony Wilson, 15, also face first-degree burglary, armed robbery and murder charges in connection with Hayes’ death.

Family members last spoke with Hayes about 7:30 p.m. Aug. 25, 2008. Her family suspected something was wrong when they couldn’t reach her and she didn’t show up to work at a day-care center the following day, Florence Police Maj. Carlos Raines said in a previous report.

Police began to investigate soon after Hayes was reported missing, Raines said. When officers arrived at her home in the 200 block of West Liberty Street, it looked like someone had forced his or her way inside.

Several items, in addition to Hayes’ car, were stolen from her home. Officers later found Hayes’ vehicle backed into a parking space at an apartment complex on Roughfork Street, which is about a block from her home. Raines said it appears people other than Hayes had been in the car recently.

Hayes’ body later was found in a ditch on Malloy Street, a dirt road that meets with Wilson Road. Her body had been wrapped in a bedspread from her home and concealed by weeds, investigators said.