ATTORNEY ADVISES SHERIFF NOT TO COMMENT

Report On Shooting Was Released Sunday

GEORGETOWN | A spokesman for the Georgetown County Sheriff's Office Monday
said Sheriff Lane Cribb would no longer comment on the 80-page SLED report
released Sunday. The State Law Enforcement Division report dealt with the
shooting death of Matthew Martin, the Georgetown man killed April 28
following a chase through a Pawleys Island neighborhood. Cribb's decision
is based on advice from Jack Scoville, the county attorney, spokesman Bill
Nichols said. Scoville advised Cribb to avoid making comments because of
pending litigation. He said Scoville advised Cribb, "Because of pending
litigation we heard about, it's off limits." Cribb had refused to make
comments on the investigation while it was ongoing, but said he would
comment once the report was released.

But Nichols Monday said Cribb's brief news release, issued Sunday with the
release of the report, would be the extent of Cribb's comments.

In it Cribb said he'd concluded deputies followed proper procedures when
they shot at Martin. Martin died the following day of a single gunshot
wound to the head. Hugh Munn, a spokesman for SLED, said the report doesn't
draw conclusions or make recommendations. Any conclusions Cribb might draw
from reading the report are his own, he said. He said he'd heard Sunday
Cribb was releasing the report even though SLED warned against it. We hope
the warning "means something," Munn said, "but there's nothing we can do
about it." Nichols said Cribb received permission from Solicitor Greg
Hembree to release the report.

But Hembree said releasing the report before decisions are made about
possible criminal indictments is "not the way I'd do it." Hembree said he'd
be meeting with Martin's family Thursday. He said he wants the family to
know he is concerned with finding out the truth about what happened.

John Hilliard, the attorney for Martin's family, said he can't understand
how Cribb could have reached the conclusions he did. "Eyewitness interviews
differ substantially from what the deputies said," Hilliard said. Deputies
interviewed by SLED said they didn't shoot at Martin until he rammed them
with his Nissan truck and they feared for their lives.

But two eyewitnesses said Martin's truck was already disabled when three
deputies fired on it with Martin inside. "One officer, the largest and
tallest in stature, kept moving toward the rear of the pickup, continually
firing into the cab until he had used his complete arsenal. ... The
shooting was spontaneous and seemed like it would never cease," said Phil
Knox, an eyewitness from Pawleys Island. Hilliard said that once the report
is digested, "There will be a lot of explaining to do. My review is
inconsistent with the sheriff's press release.

There's no question in my mind there'll be an additional investigation.
This is not complete." According to Munn, the cocaine found in Martin's
body during an autopsy was a trace amount and "not enough to quantify."