It had been a little over seven years between court appearances when Bronson Shelley, 38, formerly of Forrest Park, Ga., returned to the Colleton County Courthouse on Dec. 19. In mid-November of 2012, after a two-day trial, a General Sessions Court jury found Shelley guilty on two counts of attempted murder and a single count of possession of a weapon in the commission of a violent crime. After the guilty verdict, 14th Circuit Court Judge Perry Buckner sentenced Shelley to 25 years in prison. Shelley returned to the courthouse on Dec. 19 to have the case revisited. Shelley was convicted in 2012 following a high-speed police chase on July 12, 2011 that ended in Colleton County. Near the end of the multi-county chase, Shelley, a passenger in the stolen car, emerged through the vehicle’s sunroof and fired shots at pursuing Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office deputies. The bullets did not injure any of the law enforcement officers or hit their cruisers. After the conviction, Shelley petitioned the appeals court for and received post-conviction relief. Shelley’s attorney in the appeal argued that during the trial, a member of the jury became ill. Because there were no alternates available, the trial went forward with only 11 jury members. After the post-conviction relief was granted, the solicitor’s office consulted with the law enforcement officers involved in the case and they indicated that rather than retrying the case, they would be satisfied if Shelley entered a guilty plea and agreed to a sentence of at least 15 years on the attempted murder charge. On Dec. 19, Shelley pled guilty to charges of attempted murder and possession of a weapon in the commission of a violent crime. After hearing the plea, visiting Circuit Court Judge Brooks Goldsmith gave Shelley 15 years on the attempted murder charge and a concurrent five-year prison term on the weapon charge. The judge also gave Shelley credit for the time already served in the previous conviction.
