FLORENCE, SC (WBTW) – The 7th Circuit Solicitor’s Office will take over a 2018 Florence constable-involved shooting case due to a conflict.

Solicitor Ed Clements confirmed that Brandon Fludd’s case will be taken over due to a conflict.

The shooting happened on March 25, 2018 around 11 p.m. in the area of Waverly Avenue and Sunset Drive in Florence, according to a letter from the Attorney General’s office. Constable Christopher Bachochin was riding with a Florence police officer, Officer Edward Sieban. 

The police officer initiated a traffic stop on a white Cadillac after they noticed the car cross the center lane, the letter said. The officer positioned his car behind the Cadillac and requested the suspect’s driver’s license, bill of sale, and insurance. The driver, Brandon Fludd, provided the officer with his driver license and an envelope of paperwork.

The officer also noticed the smell of marijuana coming from the car, according to the letter. Fludd reportedly stated that a friend had been smoking in the car earlier. Officer Sieban asked Fludd to exit the vehicle several times, but Fludd reportedly started the car, put it in reverse, and backed into the officer’s car, almost hitting another officer and the constable. The constable then pushed himself away from the car and fired multiple shots, resulting in four gunshot wounds to Fludd, said the letter. Fludd then backed the car into Officer Sieban’s patrol car and drove away. 

According to the letter, the vehicle was located shortly after stopped in the middle of a road with the driver’s side door open. Fludd was not in the vehicle. It was later discovered that Fludd’s wife took him to the hospital where he was treated for gunshot wounds to his chest, right shoulder, left forearm, and left knee. A urinalysis found cocaine, opiates, and cannabinoids in Fludd’s system, the letter said.

The letter also stated that under the “Stand Your Ground” provision of the Protection of Persons and Property Act, a “person who is not engaged in an unlawful activity and who is attacked in another place where he has a right to be, including, but not limited to, his place of business, has no duty to retreat, and has the right to stand his ground and meet force with force, including deadly force, if he reasonably believes it is necessary to prevent death or great bodily injury to himself or another person.”

The letter further said that “any person who uses deadly force in a manner permitted by the provisions under the Act is immune from criminal prosecution for the use of deadly force.” 

According to the letter, immunity is “a pretrial issue to be raised by the defense and which acts as a bar to prosecution.” For a person to qualify for immunity, a “valid case of self-defense must exist, and the trial court must necessarily consider the elements of self-defense in determining a defendant’s entitlement to the Act’s immunity.” 

The constable “subjectively believed that he and his fellow officer were in actual imminent danger,” the letter also claims.

According to records obtained by News13 from the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy, Bachochin worked for the Darlington Police Department from 1998 to 2003. In one of the body cam videos, a police officer said the constable had been riding with Florence police on Saturdays for weeks.

Mayor Wukela said the constable was riding along with a Florence police officer so we could maintain his certification. “The city of Florence isn’t in a supervisory position. The constable’s not in the chain of command in the city of Florence in any way.”

News13 asked SLED whether the mayor’s statement about supervision was true. SLED spokesperson Thom Berry directed News13 to two SLED policies for constables.

One of the policies said, in part, “An agency requesting the assistance of a State Constable is fully liable and responsible for the supervision and actions of the constable and for injuries to, or damages resulting from, actions by the constable.” City manager Drew Griffin told News13 he doesn’t think this policy applies to the situation in Florence because the constable was training and on a ride-along.

READ MORE ABOUT WHAT THE LETTER SAID HERE.