No jury trials delays Decota Brown case

The South Carolina chief justice decision to again cancel jury trials means the remaining co-defendant from a Seneca homicide case must wait indefinitely for his day in court.  Chief Justice Beatty’s recent decision was influenced by spikes in deaths and cases of COVID-19.  Decota Brown is accused of fatally shooting his grandmother, Geraldine Castle, in March 2019. Brown’s co-defendant, Hunter Lee Hunnicutt, pleaded guilty last month.  But the sentence that Hunnicutt will receive for voluntary manslaughter and burglary first degree was postponed amid indications that he will cooperate with prosecution at Brown’s trial.  When that trial will take place is unknown as Lindsey Simmons, deputy solicitor, says she has no idea when the state will again allow juries.