A Richland County jury found Matthew Byrd guilty of first-degree assault and battery after a three-hour deliberation on March 10, 2026. The case stemmed from an April 28, 2022 incident in which Byrd shot a victim at an acquaintance’s apartment in Columbia and then fled. The victim was hospitalized for a month. Byrd was arrested two weeks later in Lexington County. Judge Heath Taylor sentenced him to 10 years in the State Department of Corrections. The case was investigated by the City of Columbia Police Department and prosecuted by the Fifth Judicial Circuit Solicitor’s Office.
More Info: Richland jury convicts man of assault…..