South Carolina Highway Patrol, South Carolina
End of Watch Friday, June 8, 1979
Add to My HeroesWillie Edward Peeples
Patrolman Willie Peeples succumbed to wounds he received when he was shot during a high-speed pursuit of a motorcyclist on I-95 near Walterboro.
Due to some problem with the motorcycle, the man was forced to stop at SC 61 and US 15. As Patrolman Peeples got out of his car, the suspect shot him three times and then ran into nearby woods. Officers, with the use of bloodhounds, apprehended the suspect a few hours later.
The 24-year-old suspect was convicted of murder and sentenced to death. He was granted a new trial after the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled his first trial was mishandled. The suspect who claimed he shot Patrolman Peeples because he shot at him first was acquitted and released from prison on November 10, 1981.
On August 26, 1987, he beat a 16-year-old boy at his home in Walterboro, leaving him in critical condition. He then forced a woman into his car and drove away in a very intoxicated condition. Minutes later, he hit a car head-on occupied by three women, leaving one in critical condition. The 38-year-old woman died in a hospital a month later. The suspect was convicted of kidnapping, manslaughter, and deadly assault and sentenced to life without parole. In 2021 he was still in prison.
Patrolman Peeples had served with the South Carolina Highway Patrol for five years. He was survived by his wife, five daughters, his mother, two sisters, and three brothers.
Bio
- Age 30
- Tour 5 years
- Badge Not available
Incident Details
- Cause Gunfire
- Incident Date Thursday, June 7, 1979
- Weapon Handgun; .357 caliber
- Offender Acquitted
Most Recent Reflection
View all 25 ReflectionsI was a young nurse working the day Officer Peeples was brought into the hospital and went to surgery. I still remember when the surgeons came out and announced that Officer Peeples had died. Everyone was crying. It was devastating for the whole county.
I followed the trial and the retrial and remember thinking Michael Linder would kill again when he was released after the second trial.
I was working the ER when Michael Linder kidnapped a woman, clawed out the back of a young man's head and fled the scene traveling into traffic the wrong way causing death and destruction again.
I have recently begun researching "life from my past", and think I would like to honor Officer Peeples.
It is an honor to review all the comments on this site realize that Officer Peeples legacy still lives on.
DALE D BENNETT, LPN
Lpn
May 21, 2025
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