aN COURT OF GENERAL SESSIONS NINTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT STATE OF SOUTH ®” ¥495...._EMORANDUM OF DISMISSAL CAROLINA Arrest Warrant #2021A1010200158 vs. Arrest Warrant #2021A 1010200160 Arrest Warrant #2021A 1010201474 DEFENDANT ALLEN MOUNT, Indictment #2022-GS-10-03236 Indictment #2022-GS-10-03241 DEFENDANT. Indictment #2022-GS-10-03242 I. BACKGROUND Defendant Ashley Allen Mount was charged with Murder and Possession of a Weapon during the Commission of a Violent Crime as a result of the shooting and death of Victim Jaylyn Kinloch-Williams. He was later directly indicted for Burglary in the First Degree. The witnesses on scene with the Defendant were Robert and Jamie. Savannah Maggelet was present on scene prior to the shooting, but had departed shortly prior to the arrival of the Defendant, Robert, and Jamie. Savannah is Jamie’s daughter. Savannah and the Vietim were in a relationship and shared an infant child in common. Savannah asked Jamie, Robert, and the Defendant to come over to the apartment to assist with retrieving the infant child and a car seat. Robert was later charged by the North Charleston Police Department with Murder and Burglary in the First Degree under the theory of accomplice liability. U. FACTS On January 8, 2021, at 1:14am, NCPD responded to the Ashton Woods Apartments in North Charleston regarding a domestic disturbance. Officers met with Savannah at the Spinx Gas Station nearby on Ladson Road. She stated that she and the Victim had recently been arguing due to infidelity by both parties, but they shared a child in common and still lived together. They had been arguing the whole week prior because she left over the weekend and did not come home until Page 1 of 4that Sunday. Savannah was woken up that night/early morning by the Victim hitting her in the face one time with an open fist and asking about a person in her phone messages. He then threw her phone to the ground shattering the screen. She left the apartment. The child in common remained inside with the Vietim. She had no injuries and declined to press charges. Savannah slept in her car that night. Early in the afternoon later that day Savannah went back up to get her child from the Victim who initially refused to return the child. She called the police to help and also called her mom, Jamie, to bring the car seat over to the apartment. Jamie was with Robert and the Defendant. The Victim had handed over the child to Savannah by the time police arrived. Savannah again declined to press charges. ‘The police told her to go to the magistrate court for a temporary restraining order against the Victim before it closed, so she did. Jamie, Robert, and the Defendant drove to the apartment and arrived after police and Savannah had already left. Savannah failed to call them to advise them that the child had been retrieved and that she was no longer at the apartment complex. When Jamie, Robert, and the Defendant arrived, Robert and the Defendant immediately headed to the apartment. According to them the urgency was to make sure Savannah and the baby were safe, while Jamie waited in the car and installed the car seat. According to them, they knocked on the door which was slightly ajar, and a male voice said “yo”, so they entered. There were no signs of forced entry. ‘There is nothing showing that they broke in or were not invited into the apartment. Jamie's sister who was on the apartment lease as a cosigner but lives out of state, called Jamie to tell her that the child was with Savannah and that they were no longer at the apartment. Jamie then ran up to the apartment to get Robert and the Defendant. At that point, Robert and the Victim were in each other's faces, with Robert saying stuff like “you like to put your hands on women why don't you put your hands on me,” while the Defendant remained separated from the two, in the kitchen. Victim was also on FaceTime on his phone with his mother. Verbal arguments ensued, and ultimately Jamie pulled Robert away from the Victim and they attempted to depart the apartment. As Robert turned to walk away gun shots Page 2 of 4rang out. The Defendant, Jamie, and Robert report that as Robert turned around and began walking away, the Victim shot Robert, so the Defendant then pulled out his gun and shot the Victim. Jamie, Robert, and the Defendant then went to Trident for Robert’s wounds. Defendant called 911 immediately and admitted to shooting the Victim, saying if he didn’t shoot the Victim, the Victim would have killed all three of them. He told them to send EMS to the Ashton Woods apartments because he just shot someone. He consented to a post-Miranda interview and confessed, again insisting it was in defense of Jamie, Robert, and himself. The Defendant said multiple times, “he would have killed all of us if I didn’t shoot back.” The Defendant admitted that he brought the gun to the apartment as a safety measure because the Victim was in a gang, sold drugs, and posted pictures of himself holding various guns and pointing guns at the camera. He was also aware of the abusive physical treatment by the Victim towards Savannah, On scene, two 10mm shell casings were found and four 9mm shell casings were found. The Victim had a 10mm Glock in his possession when EMS and police arrived. The Defendant stated his firearm was a Imm and directed police to his vehicle to retrieve the gun while at the hospital. Robert’s medical records and pictures from the hospital show he was shot in the side and back, corroborating their statements that he was turning around or had turned around when the Victim opened fire on him. The Victim was shot in the front side of his body. Ill. ANALYSIS ‘The Defendant's story remained consistent throughout the investigative process, from the initial 911 call he made immediately after the shooting through the interview with police hours later. His statement aligned with statements from the two living witnesses and the evidence obtained by the North Charleston Police Department. There is no evidence of forced entry into the apartment and witness statements indicate that it is likely that at the very least, the Victim initially Page 3 of 4acknowledged their presence at the door and indicated they could enter. The Defendants were invitees and had a lawful right to be in the apartment after they knocked and entered only once the Victim responded with “yo”. Furthermore, Savannah, who lived at the apartment, invited the Defendant, Jamie, and Robert to the apartment. In short, the Defendant had a lawful right to be in the apartment. According to the witnesses, the Victim shot Robert first. As a result, the Defendant was allowed to meet force with force, including deadly force, since he reasonably believed it was necessary in order to prevent death or great bodily injury. His reasonable belief is obvious based on the fact that the Victim was actively shooting Robert when the Defendant shot the Victim. Additionally, given the fact that they were lawfully in the apartment, the Defendant could not retreat as Robert was already being shot by Victim. If he did retreat rather than meet deadly force with deadly force, Robert, Jamie, and Defendant could easily have been killed instead. IV. CONCLUSION The State is not able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the Defendant was not acting in self-defense. 2 \ S25 | a: lu = 28 =] 2 RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED, g 7s wos a8 g 2° - LEMUEL C. ZEIGLER ASSISTANT SOLICITOR NINTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT Qecember L , 2028 Page 4 of 4