Weldon Boyd admits he followed man killed in Horry County shooting, but not aggressively

HORRY COUNTY, SC (WMBF) - One of two men at the center of a road-rage shooting and a related lawsuit took the stand Thursday and admitted he followed the man who was killed, but said he did not follow him aggressively.

The long-awaited stand-your-ground hearing over a lawsuit in the deadly shooting of Scott Spivey in Horry County began Tuesday morning.

South Carolina’s stand-your-ground law applies when the use of deadly force is deemed lawful.

Thursday marked the third day of the hearing. Attorneys said they expected to wrap up the hearing on Friday.

Authorities said Weldon Boyd, the owner of Buoys on the Boulevard in North Myrtle Beach, shot and killed Scott Spivey in September 2023 along Camp Swamp Road in the Longs area following a road-rage incident.

Boyd and his passenger, Kenneth Williams, have never been charged in the case.

What is at stake in this hearing

This multi-day hearing in Conway is to review Boyd and Williams’s self-defense claims.

While this review will focus on the civil case against the two, its implications extend to criminal law.

If the judge grants immunity under the stand-your-ground law, it would end any civil or potential criminal cases against Boyd or Williams.

Day 3

Weldon Boyd takes the stand

Weldon Boyd took the stand Thursday morning.

He started by saying he had never known Spivey and did not intend to hurt him.

Boyd’s upbringing

Boyd spoke about his upbringing, saying he was adopted.

His adoptive father was a direct man, and Boyd tried to embody his values.

Boyd met Williams in school in his later years, after being home-schooled for a long time.

After school, Boyd joined the National Guard and was activated at one point to provide armed escorts. He clarified that he was not a combat veteran but was deployed to a high-risk area.

Boyd said he did not see combat during his service, never shot at anyone and did not receive sharpshooting training.

Boyd reminisced about his start in the restaurant business, saying he and his adoptive father invested in a new East Bay Deli location in North Myrtle Beach; the chain is based in Charleston.

Because he was still under contract with the Guard, an agreement was worked out for an honorable discharge.

He said that to leave the Guard, he had to undergo testing to see if he was ready to return to society, and no red flags came up.

The East Bay Deli restaurant ultimately failed, with Boyd admitting he was not experienced enough.

Similar incident

Boyd said he had an incident 10 years ago when a drunk man came in and started scooping food from the salad bar into a duffel bag.

The man almost hit someone as he drove away in the parking lot. Boyd called 911 and followed the man while staying on the phone with dispatch.

Boyd mapped out the route he took to follow the man for the judge, but said it did not exceed 15 or 16 mph.

At one point, Boyd had blocked the man in, but dispatch told Boyd to stay back. He said he then left the man alone.

As the restaurant was failing, Boyd jumped ship and put what money he had left into Buoys on the Boulevard in North Myrtle Beach, which is still running.

Ex-fiancée

Boyd got emotional talking about his ex-fiancée. He said that he will have to defend himself because of things the ex gave the plaintiff.

He said his ex was pregnant when they separated, and he felt they were in a good place co-parenting.

But ultimately, Boyd believes his access was very limited.

After a meeting with both Boyd and the ex’s parents went poorly, Boyd said he got an attorney and began to record interactions with his ex-fiancée and her family, which ultimately helped in mediation.

Now, he said things have gotten better and better between him and his ex, and they ended up taking a trip to the mountains together.

Boyd said that Tinsley reached out to help in the custody battle, with the ex saying that she needs Boyd in prison.

Those phone calls between Tinsley and the ex were subpoenaed, but Boyd said they did not receive all of those communications.

Boyd describes days before shooting

Boyd said that days before the shooting, two items were put up for sale: an engagement ring and a new four-runner.

When the separation happened, he wanted to get the four-runner back because it had been bought with business funds.

But in a list of “demands” he got from his ex’s family when the parents met, it was included that the family wanted to keep the four-runner.

The ex agreed to give the items, and Boyd then wanted to use them to help fund the custody battle.

He said there was no relation from any of those sales or anything with Spivey.

Moments before the shooting

On the day of the shooting, Boyd and Williams were going to the farm, getting ready for a cookout to celebrate the construction of a barn at the farm.

Boyd said that before seeing Spivey, he heard Williams say “what the [expletive].”

At first, Williams thought that Spivey’s erratic driving might be a prank, Boyd said.

But the swerves followed an intense brake check that almost caused the two trucks to collide.

When Boyd swerved into the next lane, Spivey drove into that lane and forced him off the road, according to Boyd.

Boyd said he ended up in a ditch, and as he was getting back on the road, he saw Spivey ahead of him pointing a gun back at the truck while he was driving.

Boyd and Spivey continued to drive around each other, slowing down and speeding up, switching lanes, all while Spivey was holding his gun up in the air, Boyd said. Boyd caught up to a yellow Jeep and said he saw Spivey get behind the Jeep and aim at it.

Boyd took a photo at this time, and he said the photo shows Spivey’s face, hand and the pistol aimed straight ahead.

Attorney Ken Moss asked Boyd how fast he was going. Boyd said he did not know but admitted there were times he sped up to keep Spivey “in sight.”

He said there were times when he and Spivey were closer together and times when they were farther apart.

Boyd also said that he was never right on top of Spivey and could always see Spivey’s license plate.

At some point, Spivey and another white truck ended up speeding down the highway, but traffic slowed them, and Boyd rejoined those trucks.

More photos taken by either Boyd or Williams show Spivey with the pistol pointed toward the sky outside the truck.

Boyd claims that Spivey kept trying to get Boyd to drive off the road or stop.

The court then heard experts from Boyd’s 911 call.

“If he keeps this up, I’m going to have to shoot him,” Boyd said in the call.

He said he did not want to harm Spivey and just wanted 9-1-1 to get there.

In the call, Boyd said that he and Williams had their guns out, but he said that in the moment, he had misspoken, and the guns were not actually out and visible.

He said that the dispatcher seemed uninterested and was not fully grasping the situation.

“I did not mess with him; I followed,” Boyd said in court. “...I know the guy has aimed guns at me, he’s driven aggressively towards me, he’s a danger to multiple people, I’ve witnessed him aim a gun at other people. He is a danger. This guy is a threat.”

During the 9-1-1 call, Boyd said they were over the speed limit, but not 100 miles per hour. He also said that at this point, Spivey started breaking down and closing the gap between them.

Boyd added that if he had been driving 100 miles per hour, some items in his trailer, which was hitched to his truck, would have fallen out.

However, the plaintiffs later argued that Boyd had to be driving near or around Spivey’s speed to keep up with him. Boyd replied that there are many variables, and he could still be near Spivey without driving that fast.

Boyd said he only intended to shoot Spivey if Spivey shot at him. If Spivey did not shoot at him, Boyd said he would not have shot, and he was not trying to stop Spivey.

Once Boyd turned onto Camp Swamp Road, both trucks stopped, and Spivey exited his truck, according to Boyd.

Boyd claims he was not holding a gun at this time, contrary to witness Frank McMurrough’s deposition. He said that McMurrough could have mistaken Boyd’s attempt to shift his truck’s gear for a gun.

Boyd said he wanted to move the truck back, but he got confused in the moment and then saw Spivey yelling.

At this point, Boyd claims he did a “Matrix move,” pulling the gun from his side and racking it before pointing it at them and firing.

This also goes against McMurrough’s deposition, as McMurrough claims that Spivey never pointed the gun at Boyd’s truck.

“There is no doubt in my mind that he shot at us first,” Boyd said.

Boyd said he believes that Williams fired before he did because Boyd got caught in a seatbelt before pulling his gun out and shooting.

According to Boyd, he did not know if his gun’s magazine was fully loaded prior to shooting or not.

His gun could hold 16; two were left.

When asked about his choice to shoot, he said if he hadn’t, “one of us would not be here today.”

Boyd said his only plan was to follow Spivey until an officer arrived, claiming that Spivey ambushed him.

He said the reason for following was to relay Spivey’s location.

Scene

Boyd said he did not refuse any question from law enforcement about the shooting and followed directions at the scene.

He also said he told witnesses to stay put.

Afterward, Boyd said he called his attorney, Moss, his mom and former Horry County Police Department Deputy Chief Brandon Strickland.

Boyd recalled former HCPD Sgt. Paul Vescovi, who was fired in 2025, flashed a clipboard at him and Williams. A video shows the written note on the clipboard that reads, “Act like a victim. Camera.”

He said he did not know Vescovi or any officer at the scene. Boyd said he wished Vescovi had never flashed the note because it made him look guilty.

Boyd does not know why Vescovi did this; the only reason he could think of was to calm Boyd down, since his adrenaline was still going.

At one point, Boyd recalled overhearing an officer at the scene say it was cut-and-dry self-defense.

Investigation

Boyd was taken to the precinct for questioning.

He said he spoke to Det. Alan Jones, the lead investigator on the case, and answered every question asked and showed all the pictures he had taken that day. Boyd said Jones had unrestricted access to his phone.

The topic of an iPad came up, as Boyd’s ex-fiancée told Tinsley that Boyd used it as a dash cam.

However, Boyd pushed back, saying the iPad was for entertainment purposes only, and that the ex knew that.

He said one video was deleted from the iPad in March 2023, but it was not connected to the shooting.

Boyd claimed the city of North Myrtle Beach tried to get involved in the investigation of the Camp Swamp Road shooting. The HCPD police chief told the city no, but Boyd was not aware of this at the time, he said.

Boyd was worried about the city’s possible involvement due to past issues with the city, which will be discussed later in this story.

As a result, Boyd requested that the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division search his phone and tablet.

Boyd said that the only things he requested to be deleted from the phone were a sexually explicit photo and nothing in relation to the shooting.

The search that Boyd consented to was for anything on the phone or tablet created on or after Sept. 9, 2023.

Boyd said that, while he did not agree to it, SLED sent the findings to Horry County police, and the findings were eventually published.

While Boyd maintains he did not know Scott Spivey, he said he realized he did know Benji Spivey and reported it to HCPD.

Aftermath

A transcript of a call after the shooting between Boyd and his grandmother was read.

Boyd admitted to what he said in the call, but claimed he did not remember the conversation.

One of the things mentioned was that Boyd told his grandmother he enjoyed it and got an adrenaline rush from it.

He also said it was sad that some parents were grieving because their son did something stupid.

Boyd also had a conversation with his mother about a video. Boyd said he asked his mother whether there was a video and whether it showed Spivey aiming at them and firing.

He testified that he was unaware that a video existed, despite accusations that he took a video of the shooting and deleted it.

Shortly after the shooting, Boyd said he had a panic attack and “broke.” Boyd said he was still “broke.”

He said he did not return to work for eight to 10 months and spent a lot of time in bed.

In another conversation with his mom, Boyd said he was thinking a lot about Spivey’s mom and wanted to tell her he was sorry, but he couldn’t because it would look like guilt.

Cross-examination

The Spivey family attorney, Mark Tinsley, began cross-examining Boyd Thursday afternoon.

It is worth noting that Boyd has filed a separate lawsuit against Tinsley, accusing Tinsley of using the case to promote himself.

Tinsley asks for clarification on when Boyd starts following Spivey. Boyd said he started following him when the gun was pointed at his friend’s head.

After this, an exchange between Boyd and Tinsley occurred, during which Boyd accused Tinsley of having access to their defense plans for this civil trial.

Boyd said that Tinsley got these plans through text messages released after SLED searched Boyd’s phone.

But Tinsley said the accusation does not make sense, because the Spiveys’ family lawsuit wasn’t filed until after that.

Boyd again claimed that Tinsley had access to communication between him and his attorney.

The earlier incident at East Bay Deli came up again as a call between Boyd and his mother plays.

In the call, Boyd pointed out that in this case, dispatch told him to stop following, but he said the dispatcher in the Camp Swamp Road shooting did not.

PTSD questions

Tinsley questions why Boyd never mentioned PTSD in his mental and physical disabilities when requested.

Boyd claims it’s due to PTSD not being a diagnosis he received in any medical records from the military that he had received.

Phone call with former HCPD deputy chief

A portion of the conversation between Boyd and Strickland the morning after the shooting was played.

Boyd asked Strickland to come to the scene of the shooting, but Strickland explained he didn’t come for Boyd’s sake because he didn’t want it to look bad to the Spivey family.

Boyd said that all the officers seemed to think it was 100 percent self-defense.

Strickland said he sent out Jones, a “good ole boy,” and that he called the captain over for the investigation and explained who Boyd was.

Strickland said he called Solicitor Jimmy Richardson and then told Boyd, “He was taken care of.”

Spivey’s family has claimed the investigation was mishandled from the start, possibly due to Boyd’s friendship with Strickland.

Strickland resigned following allegations of misconduct in the case.

An objection was raised that none of the conversation around the HCPD investigation was related to the stand-your-ground hearing.

The judge said he could distinguish between the HCPD investigation and the stand-your-ground claims.

More phone calls

Tinsley continued playing more phone calls, in which Boyd said it was messed up, but he had fun during the incident.

Boyd said he fully admits to saying this, but said he used dark humor to try to cope with everything in the aftermath of the shooting.

The judge will be able to consider all the calls and depositions submitted into the record.

Williams’s attorney examines Boyd

After Tinsley, Morgan Martin, the attorney for Williams, then examined Boyd.

Boyd said that Williams never told him how to drive; besides, at one point, Williams told Boyd to slow down.

Boyd told Martin that if they really were intent on killing Spivey, they would have closed the gaps between the trucks before the shooting.

Other parts of the testimony

Project gun

Boyd said the plaintiffs will try to make a big deal out of a project gun that was found in the back of his truck in multiple pieces.

Boyd said he was still building the gun and doing everything by the book. He said the gun was useless at the time of the shooting, essentially a paperweight.

Relationship with law enforcement

Boyd said he thinks first responders and law enforcement are underappreciated, which is why he started giving free meals to first responders in uniform.

Not many first responders took advantage of it, and many felt bad and wanted to pay, Boyd said.

Issues with the city of North Myrtle Beach

Boyd said he got into politics during COVID-19 and ran into issues with the city of North Myrtle Beach, including the former Mayor Marilyn Hatley.

Particularly, Boyd was mad that the city canceled a St. Patrick’s Day parade due to COVID, saying the event was crucial for restaurants to recover from the off-season.

Boyd then started his own events to help out Main Street businesses, including a golf cart event.

The city posted that it had not approved the golf cart event. Boyd said he posted an audio recording of the city approving it, and the city backed off.

Boyd said he continues to post issues that he and the restaurant have had with the city on the restaurant’s page, which has a following of 28,000.

At one point, the situation boiled over when an officer cited Boyd for violating the governor’s code by having tables set up outside, despite following regulations, according to Boyd.

The charge was dropped, according to Boyd. He said they were able to prove Hatley lied about the situation in court.

Boyd took to social media to talk about the situation, and his post blew up and got 100,000 views.

Questions over the transportation of Spivey’s body

An officer with the HCPD crime scene investigations unit, Det. Shellneil Tamasi, took the stand earlier in the day before Boyd.

Tamasi determined that Boyd’s and Spivey’s trucks were about 75 feet apart.

She looked in Spivey’s truck and found the rear glass was broken, bullet holes were in the back of the truck, and the passenger and driver doors were open.

The courtroom saw a photo of the back of the truck, which showed an extended magazine on the driver’s rear seat, the broken glass and a shell casing. A different photo showed a bullet casing outside Spivey’s vehicle, too.

Tamasi testified that she did not know whether the magazine was fully loaded, but it had a live bullet in it.

HCPD moved Spivey’s truck to the M.L. Brown Jr. Public Safety Building with Spivey still inside.

The officer testified that this was done because a storm was pending and could tamper with evidence.

When the officer went back to the impound lot to look at the truck, she found multiple live rounds, an extended magazine with 23 live rounds and another magazine containing 13 live rounds in the center console. She also found methandienone, an anabolic steroid.

Boyd’s truck was also taken to the impound lot, where investigators found 22 casings inside it. One casing was found outside the truck.

Tinsley said that Vescovi was assigned the job to record the truck being moved from the scene to the impound lot, but that did not happen, despite department policy.

Tinsley then pointed out that the slide window in the back of Spivey’s truck was gone, with no tape or other covering.

Tinsley asked the officer if the compartment where she found the anabolic steroid was near the slide window, to which she said yes. The officer also agreed with Tinsley that it was not known who put the drugs there.

During his testimony, Boyd denied planting the drugs.

Tinsley said that after the department collected Boyd’s car, the lead investigator in the case, Jones, told the officer to get Williams’ bag out of the truck, as Williams needed his ID. The officer said she conducted an “overall examination” of the bag and found nothing significant.

The officer said this was not typically allowed, as Boyd and Williams were treated as suspects at that point.

Tamasi also revealed that they found a tablet that was not covered by the search warrant, and Jones said it was not needed.

Tamasi said that Jones made the call to tow the truck with the body in it. She was not aware of any evidence destroyed or damaged by the tow.

Tinsley argued that the weather was not that bad, and there was no need to move the trucks to the M.L. Brown Jr. Public Safety Building. Tamasi said she saw dark clouds and heard thunder.

Tamasi said the practice was not normal, saying that in her six years at the department, a body had never been towed in a vehicle like that.

Tinsley said the department had tarps and other equipment to preserve the scene.

Day 2 coverage:

Spivey did not point gun before deadly Horry County road rage shooting, witness says

On day one, many witnesses testified, and attorneys outlined the case.

Witnesses testified that Spivey was driving erratically and flashing a gun.

Day 1 coverage:

Witnesses say man killed in Horry Co. road-rage shooting was driving erratically, flashing gun

Background

Boyd and Williams have maintained they fired shots at Spivey in self-defense.

So far, authorities have agreed with that.

Days after the shooting, 15th Circuit Solicitor Jimmy Richardson asked the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office to get involved with the case.

In April 2024, the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office declined to charge Boyd, citing insufficient evidence.

Then, in August 2025, the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office told the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division that it believed the stand-your-ground law was applicable in the shooting death of Spivey.

The lawsuits

The shooting has spanned multiple lawsuits, with Spivey’s family filing one against Boyd and Williams.

This lawsuit claims Spivey died in a “hail of gunfire” as Boyd chased Spivey.

Spivey’s estate claims that Boyd’s 911 call proves that Boyd was chasing him.

Meanwhile, in a lawsuit filed by Boyd against the attorney for the Spivey family, Mark Tinsley, Boyd claims Spivey single-handedly initiated the road rage incident by stalking and assaulting Boyd and others on Horry County highways, and waving a gun.

Boyd’s complaint also cites 911 calls, specifically from witnesses.

Boyd said that prior to the shootout, multiple other 911 calls also reported that Spivey was acting aggressively and unlawfully and confirmed “Boyd’s evasive measures.”

The lawsuit also mentions the autopsy results, which Boyd said indicated Spivey was heavily intoxicated at the time of his death and that he was also suffering the effects of chronic abuse of anabolic steroids.

Shooting investigation

The Horry County Police Department’s investigation of the shooting has come under fire.

Spivey’s family has claimed the investigation was mishandled from the start, possibly due to Boyd’s friendship with ex-Horry County Deputy Chief Brandon Strickland.

Recorded phone calls of Boyd and Strickland speaking after the shooting notably captured Strickland speaking candidly about the case with Boyd.

Strickland resigned following allegations of misconduct in the case.

Strickland was not the only one to leave the force as HCPD conducted an internal investigation.

Body camera clips attorneys shared from the Sept. 9, 2023, shooting captured former HCPD Patrol Sgt. Paul “Damon” Vescovi flashing a written note that read, “Act like a victim. Camera,” to two men, Boyd and Williams.

HCPD fired Vescovi. Documents from the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy indicate he is under investigation, but charges have not been filed against him.

The internal investigation also found that seven dashcam videos in HCPD’s investigation of the Camp Swamp Road shooting were improperly handled and mislabeled.

HCPD sent those videos to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, which is investigating whether HCPD officers engaged in any misconduct in the case.

AG asks for review of deadly Horry County road-rage shooting investigation

These allegations against HCPD’s investigation led Attorney General Alan Wilson to ask 7th Circuit Solicitor Barry Barnette in October to look over the investigation into the shooting death of Spivey.

Wilson stated in a letter to Barnette that, once details of the HCPD’s investigation reached civil attorney Mark Tinsley and Spivey’s family amid a lawsuit filed by his estate, questions about the case arose.

Wilson wants Barnette to review the case to see if the allegations of misconduct would change the initial finding by the attorney general’s office that the shooting falls under the stand-your-ground law.

On a podcast, Wilson said that if the review brings out new information that would change the stand-your-ground analysis, Barnette can make a different call and make “whatever prosecutive decisions” Barnette feels are appropriate.

Had Spivey survived, he would have been the one charged with a felony for driving under the influence and brandishing a firearm, Wilson said on the podcast.

Grand jury review

Earlier in February, the 7th Circuit Solicitor’s Office confirmed a grand jury will review the case.

A state grand jury is typically convened so prosecutors can present the facts and findings of a case to determine whether a person should be indicted.

But it is unclear what the grand jury will be reviewing. Attorneys on both sides said there are multiple issues the grand jury could review, such as how Horry County police handled the case or the actions of Boyd and Williams.

The attorneys said none of that information will be available unless the grand jury decides to hand down an indictment.

But again, if immunity is granted in the stand-your-ground hearing, the grand jury’s review will be over.

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