19-year-old man charged with murder in Ladson apartment complex homicide | News

NORTH CHARLESTON — A 19-year-old man was arrested May 8 in a shooting that killed one person outside a Ladson apartment complex.

North Charleston police charged Philip Stevens Jr. with murder, three counts of attempted murder, possession of a weapon during a violent crime and breaking and entering a vehicle.

Stevens could spend life in prison if convicted of the charges.


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He was charged in the homicide investigation of Joseph Wright Jr., an 18-year-old man who was shot May 2, according to the Charleston County coroner.

An incident report provided the following details about the investigation:

North Charleston police officers responded to a shooting just after midnight that morning at the Harborstone Apartments on Ladson Road.

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Officers learned Wright and three witnesses were on their balcony and saw at least two young men outside the building.

Wright and the three other people got into a car outside the building when the two young men opened fire, striking Wright. He died later that morning at a hospital.

Officers found bullet casings in front of the 7000 building, as well as projectiles and gunfire damage to another car. A residence on nearby Raddison Lane was also damaged by gunfire.


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Police identified Stevens as one of the two suspects in their investigation, the department said. He was booked 12:18 a.m. May 8 at the Charleston County jail, according to jail records.

He waived his initial bond hearing, court records show.

The May 2 killing is one of 13 homicide cases in North Charleston this year. Fifteen homicides have been reported in total in Charleston County in 2022.

Call Olivia Diaz at 843-901-2995. Follow her on Twitter @oliviardiaz.