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Stephen B. Swears

Age : 56

Gender : Male

Race : White

Date : 04/15/2021

Location : US Highway 15 near Fox Run Road

City : St. George

County : Dorchester

State : South Carolina

Agency : St. George Police Department

Officer(s) :Police Chief and two officers — names not disclosed

Cause of Death : Vehicle

Event : Driver killed by police chase crash

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

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REASON FOR CHASE: Kidnapping warrant
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NARRATIVE:
On 04/15/2021, Stephen B. Swears, 56, of Boynton Beach, Florida, was traveling north through South Carolina in a 2013 Ford Mustang. Law enforcement notified St. George police that the U.S. Marshals Service was looking for Swears in connection with a kidnapping charge from West Palm Beach, Florida. Authorities reported that he had already passed Yemassee and was traveling north toward Walterboro.
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A St. George police officer located Swears on Interstate 95 near mile marker 74. Police attempted to stop the Mustang shortly before Exit 82, and Swears continued driving. The pursuit lasted approximately 20 minutes and involved the St. George police chief and two St. George police officers, traveling into Orangeburg County and then back into Dorchester County on U.S. Highway 15.
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On Highway 15 near Fox Run Road, police said Swears' southbound Mustang ran off the roadway, lost control, crossed into the northbound lanes and collided head-on with a 2012 Ford Fusion. Swears was wearing a seat belt and was pronounced dead at the scene at approximately 1:30 p.m.
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The driver of the Ford Fusion survived and was transported to a hospital. The available reporting did not characterize that driver's injuries as critical. The South Carolina Highway Patrol and Dorchester County Coroner's Office investigated the fatal collision, and Coroner Paul J. Brouthers ordered an autopsy at the Medical University of South Carolina.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND:
St. George Police confirmed that its police chief and two officers participated in the approximately 20-minute pursuit, but the contemporaneous public reporting did not name the three officers.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.live5news.com/2021/04/16/coroner-identifies-kidnapping-suspect-killed-head-on-collision-dorchester-co-during-chase/ https://www.live5news.com/2021/04/15/troopers-driver-being-chased-by-police-killed-after-crashing-into-motorist-dorchester-co/