May 28, 2024 • 33 mins
In May of 1993, 18-year-old student Charlotte Childs was eagerly anticipating her high school graduation in Holly Hill, South Carolina. She was busy attending all sorts of pre-graduation celebrations in the lead-up to the big day, including a get-together for her fellow high school seniors the evening before. But after dropping her best friend home in the early hours of graduation day, Charlotte never made it home. Instead, her parents were woken by a call in the dark early hours that their daughter was in the hospital, fighting for her life.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE RESOURCES:
Researched and written by Gemma Harris
Additional writing by Erica Kelley
Original Graphic Art by Coley Horner
Original Music by Rob Harrison of Gamma Radio
Edited & Mixed by Brandon Schexnayder & Erica Kelley
Sources: https://www.southernfriedtruecrime.com/charlotte-childs
This episode is brought to you by:
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE RESOURCES:
- US National Domestic Violence Hotline: 800-799-7233
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: thehotline.org
- Canada: visit this website to find the hotline in your area
- UK Domestic Abuse Hotline: 0808 2000 247
- For resources in other countries, visit this website
Researched and written by Gemma Harris
Additional writing by Erica Kelley
Original Graphic Art by Coley Horner
Original Music by Rob Harrison of Gamma Radio
Edited & Mixed by Brandon Schexnayder & Erica Kelley
Sources: https://www.southernfriedtruecrime.com/charlotte-childs
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:01):
Southern Fried true crime covers cases thatare not suitable for young listeners, and
there may also be some explicit languageused. Listener discretion is advised. Graduating
from high school is one of thosepivotal milestones that brings with it a mix
of competing emotions excitement for what's comingnext, uncertainty for the future, sadness
(00:24):
at leaving some things behind, orperhaps relief to be moving on to adulthood.
Most of all, to use awell worn cliche, there's the knowledge
that the world is your oyster.Whether you're straight off to college, heading
into the workforce, or traveling tosee a bit of the world. Knowing
the rest of your life is aheadof you is incredibly liberating, if a
(00:46):
little scary. And that sounds likesuch a long time the rest of your
life. At that age, thedecades yawned before you. It felt like
it took forever to grow up,so you have no idea how fast the
next years will fly. In lateMay of nineteen ninety three, eighteen year
old Charlotte Childs was standing at thisgreat starting line of life. As the
(01:11):
eldest of her siblings, she wasthe first to graduate high school and was
already a mature young woman, jugglingher studies with a busy social life and
her job at a bank. Shewas also a young woman who was probably
feeling some relief to leave part ofher life behind. She had just made
a big change, breaking up withher toxic boyfriend. But Charlotte wasn't down.
(01:34):
She was buoyant, enjoying being sweptup in all the pre graduation events
being held for her alma mater,Holy Hill Academy. She was especially looking
forward to the big day and celebratingwith her friends. The thought that she
might never make it to the podiumto receive her diploma was the furthest thing
from her mind. Welcome to Episodetwo seventeen, The Murder of Charlotte Child's.
(02:04):
It was a cloudy but pleasant latespring evening on May twenty seventh,
nineteen ninety three, one high schoolsenior Charlotte Child's hopped into her red Chevy
Geo Storm. She was heading offto a pre graduation get together and the
small town of Holly Hill, OrangeburgCounty and South Carolina, which was home
to around fifteen hundred people. Theeldest of three children, Charlotte Caroline Childs
(02:29):
was born January thirty first, nineteenseventy five, and Simpsonville, South Carolina.
In May of ninety three. Heryounger sister was fourteen and her little
brother was around eight years old.By her eighteenth birthday, Charlotte and her
family were living on Root one inthe hamlet of Vance, just eight miles
north of Holly Hill, where Charlotteattended school. The tiny town of Vance
(02:54):
where she lived, was first incorporatedin eighteen ninety one, and in the
early nineteen nineties it had about twohundred residents. It's down to around one
hundred and fifty these days. Everyonein Charlotte's life knew her as a sweet,
cheerful young woman with a strong workethic. She was popular and vibrant
(03:15):
and committed to her Baptist faith.She was also a very ambitious young woman,
involved in the South Carolina organ ProcurementAssociation, as well as working after
school at the First National Bank inHolly Hill, and she attended the teen
class of Emmanuel Free Baptist Church ofSantee. When it came to their oldest
(03:37):
daughter's social life, John and JuneChilds completely trusted Charlotte. She was mature
and responsible, and by now herparents didn't wait up for her. She
had her own transportation and they wereconfident she would get home safely after a
night out. By this time,Charlotte was enjoying being single again. A
(04:00):
few weeks earlier, she had brokenup with her boyfriend of two years,
twenty year old Scott Atkinson. Charlottehad things to do and was too young
to be tied down then, andshe had darker reasons for ending the relationship
that not everyone knew about. Whenthe pregraduation party ended, Charlotte and her
(04:20):
best friend jumped in her Geo Stormto go home. She was giving her
friend a ride that night. Afterdropping her friend off around one thirty am
in the tiny nearby town of Utahville, Charlotte headed for home. It was
only six miles away. She shouldhave been home in about ten minutes,
(04:41):
but hours later, as dawn wasbreaking, John and June were awoken by
the phone ringing Charlotte was in thehospital at the Regional Medical Center in Orangeburg
and she was hurt bad. Shewas unconscious. The person calling said they
weren't sure how Charlotte had come tosustain her injury. At four fifty five
(05:02):
am, a young man had walkedinto the emergency room department carrying a naked,
bloodied, and unconscious Charlotte over hisshoulder, locating an empty wheelchair,
he sat Charlotte down and went towalk out of the hospital, but he
was stopped by security. Why wouldanyone abandon a young woman like that without
(05:25):
alerting medical staff and explaining what hadhappened? Obviously, there's no good reason,
and this young man was pretty shorton details. When he spoke to
security, he told them she wasjust an acquaintance of his and that he
had been driving home that night whenhe found her lying by the side of
the road naked and beaten. Heclaimed he had no idea what had happened
(05:47):
to her. As doctors continued theirassessment of the young woman, it became
clear that she had not been insome kind of accident. She had been
violently beaten, and not just withsomeone's fists, but with a hard object.
Security contacted the Orangeboro County Sheriff's office, and Lieutenant Grady Fulmer and Deputy
(06:08):
Randy Clark drove out to the hospital. When they arrived, they spoke to
the young man who had brought Charlotteinto the hospital. He was twenty year
old Holly Hill resident Daniel Scott Atkinson, who went by his middle name Scott.
He gave the officers pretty much thesame details he had provided to medical
staff, but right off things didn'tsit right with his story. Lieutenant Fulmer
(06:33):
and Deputy Clark were suspicious enough ofScott's story to put in a call requesting
the assistance of Sheriff's detective Larry Williams. When he arrived at the medical center
around seven to twenty am, heobserved Scott standing near Charlotte's Geo Storm,
which was parked near the entrance tothe hospital. Detective Williams did a quick
(06:54):
once over of the vehicle. Arifle lay in the trunk and the car
had obvious bloodstains and loose hairs.Scott explained to Detective Williams that the evening
before, he and Charlotte had beenhanging out at a friend's place. Scott
said he didn't stay the whole timeand took off to go have some beers
elsewhere. Around midnight, he claimedhe saw Charlotte driving around town with friends.
(07:19):
He said he then drove to herhouse and she arrived home around the
same time. And he claimed thathe and Charlotte had sex. Scott told
the detective he then left at aroundone thirty or two in the morning to
go get gas. Upon arriving backat Charlotte's house, he said he found
her sitting in the driver's seat ofthe Geo Storm covered in blood. Panicked,
(07:43):
Scott moved to Charlotte, whom henow admitted was his ex girlfriend,
and to the other seat and droveher to the hospital to Detective Williams.
Something was immediately off with Scott's story. The detective decided to take him to
the Orangeburg Calhoun Lawlaw Enforcement Complex forfurther questioning. There, Scott waved his
(08:05):
Miranda rights and gave a written statement. He nervously proceeded to tell the detective
that the previous evening he had beendrinking and was so intoxicated that he ran
his nineteen eighty seven Ford Mustang intoa ditch near Charlotte's house. Just as
Scott was wondering what to do,Charlotte came along on her way home for
the night. When he explained whathad happened, she drove him back to
(08:30):
her place to call someone. Aftera friend of Scott's was unable to help,
Scott claimed Charlotte called a wrecker whocame to pull the Mustang out of
the ditch. According to him,after driving back to Charlotte's house, the
pair then got into an argument.Things turned physical, and Scott admitted that
he lost control and struck Charlotte inthe face three times using his fist,
(08:54):
alleging that she had hid him inthe face first. Throughout the interview you,
Scott continually asked whether his ex girlfriendwas going to press charges and was
anxious about the status of her condition. He continued telling Detective Williams he didn't
fully appreciate the extent of Charlotte's injuriesat the time, but he knew he
(09:16):
had to do something. Scott saidhe put Charlotte in the car and headed
for the hospital, but on theway, as he approached the nearby town
of Santee, he saw a BestWestern motel on his right. He said
he changed his mind, hoping thatif you put Charlotte in the shower,
she would come too. Scott pulledin and got himself a room before carrying
(09:39):
Charlotte inside. He claimed that oncehe got Charlotte inside and washed her under
the shower, he not only realizedshe was still bleeding, but her condition
was much worse than he had originallythought. It was then that he placed
her back in the car and droveto the hospital. Detective Williams immediately called
bullshit on the whole thing, notjust because of Scott's completely contradictory stories or
(10:03):
the fact that the detective couldn't smellany alcohol on the young man, which
you would expect if he was asdrunk as he claimed. The evidence in
Charlotte's vehicle was proof the young womanhad been brutally beaten. In the trunk
of her car, where the riflehad been found, were more bloodstains.
Both Charlotte's geostorm and Scott's Mustang weretaken in for forensic processing by the South
(10:28):
Carolina Law Enforcement Division or sled backAt the medical center, Charlotte's head injuries
were so bad that doctors knew sheneeded more urgent care than they could provide.
She was airlifted to Richland Memorial Hospitalin Columbia, forty five miles away,
where she underwent emergency surgery and wasplaced in the neuro intensive care unit.
(10:54):
A family friend named Duncan Hall toldThe Times in Democrat that seeing Charlotte
in the hospital was horrible. Shewas so badly beaten that her head was
swollen four times its normal size.Even her hands were swollen. He said,
you could hardly tell she was ahuman being. I'm going to pause
(11:16):
now to hear a word from oursponsors. This episode is brought to you
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slash Southern Friud. There's no safelike simply Safe. That afternoon, as
Charlotte was fighting for her life incritical condition, Scott was arrested and charged
with kidnapping and assault and battery withintent to kill. Orangeburg County Magistrate Peggy
(13:48):
Davis released Scott on a twenty thousanddollars personal recognizance bond, citing the fact
that he didn't have a criminal record, he had the support of his parents,
and she didn't consider him a flightrisk. According to The Times and
Democrat, Scott was instructed to abideby a ten pm curfew, not leave
South Carolina, turn up to court, and keep seeing his psychologist. Scott
(14:13):
Atkinson had graduated from Hollyhill Academy himselfin nineteen ninety one and had just finished
his sophomore year of college at FrancisMarion College in Florence, South Carolina,
but he was home for the summerwith his parents, Daniel and Cathy until
classes resumed. As I mentioned earlier, Scott and Charlotte had dated for around
(14:37):
two years before the attack, whenshe ended the relationship not long after the
couple attended the Hollyhill Academy's junior seniorprom Charlotte seemed to be okay with things,
but Scott, who felt the childswere like his second family, didn't
want to let go. In thedays before the attack, he had been
(15:00):
calling and harassing Charlotte at work,which her coworkers noticed. He had also
taken to following her around in hiscar as she drove, trying to run
her off the road on multiple occasionsin an attempt to talk to her.
Back at Richland Memorial, Charlotte haddeteriorated despite surgery. That evening, her
(15:22):
classmates in Holly Hill were graduating,but the celebration was overshadowed by the incredible
sadness that had engulfed the senior classand the school faculty. The academy principal
set a special prayer for Charlotte andher family Sadly at eight forty three pm
on May twenty eighth, the eighteenyear old passed away. Charlotte never regained
(15:46):
consciousness, so police weren't able tointerview her about what really happened. The
following morning, Scott Atkinson was chargedwith murder and taken to the Orangeburg Calhoun
Detention Center to await a new bondhearing. At Charlotte's autopsy in Charleston,
Orangeburg County Corner Semwhat, a marshalfound that some of the blunt injuries looked
(16:08):
like they had been inflicted by thebutt of a rifle, the same type
of weapon which was found in thetrunk of Charlotte's car after Scott had driven
her to the hospital. The youngwoman had been struck at least fourteen times
in the head, resulting in multipleskull fractures, but it was impossible to
tell how many of those blows wereinflicted by the butt of the rifle.
(16:33):
Charlotte also had genital bruising consistent withsexual assault. Her cause of death was
cerebral edema, or swelling of thebrain, according to the Times in Democrat.
At Charlotte's funeral in Holly Hill onMemorial Day, the Reverend Hermannheimann spoke
fondly of the young woman and thehappy memories she would leave with her loved
(16:55):
ones, describing her as a sweetchild, a special child, and the
hearts of her family and loved ones. He went on, we like to
remember the good things, the thingsthat are dear to our hearts. She
was later buried in Forest Hill's MemorialPark in Elberton, Georgia. Two days
after her funeral, on June second, Scott was denied bond by Circuit Judge
(17:18):
William Howitt, though he could requestanother hearing after thirty days. As Detective
Williams and team continued the investigation,they learned more about Scott's threatening behavior towards
Charlotte in the lead up to herdeath. Earlier in the week, he
had followed her to her best friend'shome in Utahville, confronting her by saying
(17:40):
she had destroyed his life, sohe was going to destroy hers. The
night of the pregraduation party, Scottturned up uninvited in front of Charlotte's friends.
He grabbed her by the arm,saying, Charlotte, You're never going
to get rid of me. I'mgoing to fuck your world up. Despite
how discerning Scott's behavior was, accordingto Charlotte's friends, she wasn't worried about
(18:03):
him actually doing anything. Charlotte felther ex was all talk, that he
was just pressuring her to convince herto get back together with him. She
never dreamed he would actually physically hurther. Authorities had also contacted the Best
Western and santi where Scott had checkedin before taking Charlotte to the medical center.
(18:26):
The amount of blood found in theroom by housekeeping staff, including a
bloody tennis shoe print, indicated thatrather than Scott taking Charlotte there to try
to help her, he instead subjectedher to a brutal beating. The motel's
night manager told police that around threefifteen am, a man matching Scott's description
(18:47):
and with traces of blood on him, paid for a room. She then
saw Scott pulling a woman out ofthe trunk and carrying her inside. The
manager says she reported what she saw, but there was no record of her
with the Sheriff's department. Law enforcementhad also spoken to a Utahville woman whose
daughter had previously dated Scott. Thewoman told investigators she had observed Scott pushing
(19:11):
and shoving her daughter, whom hewas stalking. She later testified it was
just a very nervous time for allof us because I saw extreme jealousy and
threats. On July twentieth, Scottwas denied bond for a second time,
much to the overwhelming relief of Charlotte'sfamily. The defense presented a clinical psychologist
(19:34):
who testified as to a battery oftests Scott had undergone. According to Scott's
parents, since the age of twelve, their son had made multiple suicide attempts,
suffered from alcohol abuse, and wasbeing treated for depression, but he
wasn't in therapy or taking medication atthe time of the assault. Tensions ran
(19:56):
high during the proceedings, with afamily friend of the child's, Duncan Hall,
being removed from the courtroom for shouting. He was the same man who
served as the family spokesperson for thepress. One report said the protective man
had jumped in front of two TVreporters who were trying to get to Charlotte's
family at the hospital. The followingday, at Scott's preliminary hearing before Magistrate
(20:21):
Peggy Davis, First Circuit Solicitor WalterBailey announced that the state would be pursuing
the death penalty in contrast to Scott'sversion of events. Prosecutors believed that after
he left the pre graduation party,he had been driving around and decided to
stop on the side of the roadalong the route he knew Charlotte would take
(20:42):
to get home. Furious that shewouldn't take him back, and consumed by
anger, he was going to destroyher life, just like he had promised
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the guise of needing help with hisMustang in a ditch, true to her
nature, Charlotte stopped to help.When she got out of her car,
Scott attacked his ex girlfriend, viciouslybeating her unconscious before putting her in the
trunk of her own car and hoppingin the driver's seat. He drove to
the motel in Santy, where hechecked in and carried Charlotte inside there,
(24:51):
he continued viciously beating her with hisfists and the butt of the rifle.
After some time, he put herback in the vehicle and drove Charlotte to
the the hospital. It seems obvioushe also sexually assaulted her in the motel
room. Not only has she shownsigns of rape in the autopsy, he
had been careful to tell the policethat they had had consensual sex that night
(25:15):
in case they found evidence of theassault. Scott maintained he had only ever
struck Charlotte with his hands and nothingelse, in what one of his attorneys
described as a crime of passion.Following a motion from the defense, the
charge of assault and battery with intentto kill was dropped, but Scott was
(25:36):
still headed to trial. That wasuntil March thirtieth, nineteen ninety four,
when twenty one year old Scott Atkinsonpled guilty to Charlotte's murder after cutting a
deal with prosecutors following consultation with Charlotte'sfamily. The last thing they wanted to
put themselves through was more delays fora death penalty trial, let alone a
(25:56):
minimum of thirteen years of appeals inthe event of a conviction, which is
what prosecutors had advised would likely happen. The kidnapping and grand larceny charges were
also dropped. This was because Scotthad entered an Alfred plea most true crime
listeners know. This is where anaccused person doesn't admit to guilt, but
(26:18):
instead acknowledges there is sufficient evidence fora jury to find them guilty. At
sentencing, Scott struggled to get throughhis address to the court and to Charlotte's
family. One of his attorneys hadto finish reading his statement, which said,
I know that nothing that I willever say or do will ever change
what has happened. For two yearsof my life, you all have been
(26:41):
like a second family to me,and I would give anything to go back
and change what has happened. Noone deserves the grief and heartache that I
have put you and my family through, and for the rest of my life
I'll have to live with the factthat I'm the cause of it. I
know I have no right to askanything from you, but I would like
you to please understand that I wouldnever had this happen in a million years.
(27:02):
I loved Charlotte very much, andas God is my witness, I'll
do everything in my power to makesome good come out of all of this.
I owe that to God, toyour family and mine, and most
of all, to Charlotte. Atthis time, I would like to say
to all of your family and toall that have suffered because of this,
I humbly beg that someday you willfind it in your heart to forgive me.
(27:22):
I am very sorry. Scott concludedhis statement by reiterating that Charlotte's death
was an accident, saying, I'msure if both of us were not drinking,
none of this would have ever happened. He denied ever stalking Charlotte or
intentionally harming her way to get afinal shot in at Charlotte, it doesn't
(27:45):
matter if she was drinking. Itdoesn't matter if he was drinking. There
is no excuse for what looks likea vicious, premeditated attack and sexual assault
of this girl he supposedly loved somuch. Judge Charles Whetstone sentenced Scott Atkinson
to life in prison. Under SouthCarolina law, he would be eligible for
(28:07):
parole after a mandatory twenty years.Despite how hollow Scott's words may ring for
some, Charlotte's parents believed his emotionalapology was genuine. Still, this didn't
diminish the gaping void that the lossof their sweet Charlotte left. Her mother
June told The Times and Democrat,he destroyed our lives, the people in
(28:33):
Holly Hill. He will never knowexactly what he did. There's no way
we will ever forget, but wecan try to start putting a little normalcy
back into our lives, especially forthe kids. Forty seven year old Daniel
Scott Atkinson was released on parole onAugust seventh, twenty twenty, after serving
(28:55):
twenty seven years of his life sentence. Today, the fifty one year old
is currently believed to be residing inColleton County, with his parole due to
end in January twenty thirty eight.It is difficult to accept that a murderer
walks free while an eighteen year oldgirl lies cold in her grave. A
(29:18):
man that age can still father childrenand have a whole other chance at life.
Charlotte would be close to my agetoday, probably married with children of
her own. The smart and ambitiousyoung woman was also on her way to
a career she was passionate about,and Scott didn't just rub Charlotte of her
(29:40):
life. He took her from herparents, her brother and sister, her
friends. They lost an aunt,nieces, nephews, cousins, grandchildren.
The loss of a young person reverberatestraumatically for generations, all of it taken
away by abusive man who intentionally hurtCharlotte. He might have brought her to
(30:04):
the hospital, but really did hethink she had a chance to live after
that beating? No, he destroyedher, just like he said he would.
As passionate as I feel, Ido very much understand why Charlotte's family
accepted the plea deal. I haveoften said, no matter how you feel
(30:26):
morally about the death penalty, theautomatic appeals process causes seemingly endless pain for
the victim's family, and I alwayssupport a family's right to be involved in
the plea decision. Ali Managacus,the founder and executive director of South Carolina
for Criminal Justice Reform, said,I don't know how anyone could say that
(30:49):
someone doesn't change in thirty years,or that someone hasn't paid their debts in
thirty years, even individuals that havebeen sentenced to death. Maybe she is
right, maybe I've become jaded,but I don't think so. I think
there are times when parole is fairtrue crimes of passion lesser murder charges.
(31:11):
I think the problem with Charlotte's storyis that Scott harassed and threatened her.
He told her he would kill her, and he fulfilled that promise. He
took away her dignity and destroyed herand her family. He was just lucky
that her family believed in forgiveness,even in their despair at losing Charlotte in
(31:33):
such a horrific way. For thesake of Charlotte's family and the broader community,
we can only hope that her killerhas learned the lessons that only having
your freedom taken away can bring.Domestic violence cases are always hard to tell,
especially when victims are as young asCharlotte, but it is so important
(31:56):
to tell these stories. I hopeother teenagers learn about the warning signs and
take them seriously. It never seemslike someone who once loved you so much
could actually hurt you, but statisticallythey are most likely to hurt you if
you are experiencing abuse. There ishelp in the US. Call one eight
(32:19):
hundred seven nine nine safe or visitthe website Theehotline dot Org. I will
have these resources as well as thosefor other countries. In today's show notes,
you are not alone. Southern FraudTrue Crime is hosted and produced by
(32:40):
me Erica Kelly. Today's episode wasresearched and written by me and Jima Harris.
As usual, any editorial comments andopinions are my own. Southern Fred's
original music is by Rob Harrison ofGamma Radio and the original graphic artist by
Colleen Horner. Today's episode was editedand mixed by Brendan Schacksnier of Southern Gothic
and Erica Kelly. If you haveany case suggestions, please go to my
(33:00):
website, Southernfred Truecrime dot com andclick on the listener suggestion tab or email
SFTC Research at gmail dot com.This is the best way for me to
get those little known cases you'll alwayssend me. Please remember that I do
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(33:22):
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(33:45):
Amazon, Audible and YouTube. Untilnext time, thanks so much for
listening. Y'all. Take care
Southern Fried true crime covers cases thatare not suitable for young listeners, and
there may also be some explicit languageused. Listener discretion is advised. Graduating
from high school is one of thosepivotal milestones that brings with it a mix
of competing emotions excitement for what's comingnext, uncertainty for the future, sadness
(00:24):
at leaving some things behind, orperhaps relief to be moving on to adulthood.
Most of all, to use awell worn cliche, there's the knowledge
that the world is your oyster.Whether you're straight off to college, heading
into the workforce, or traveling tosee a bit of the world. Knowing
the rest of your life is aheadof you is incredibly liberating, if a
(00:46):
little scary. And that sounds likesuch a long time the rest of your
life. At that age, thedecades yawned before you. It felt like
it took forever to grow up,so you have no idea how fast the
next years will fly. In lateMay of nineteen ninety three, eighteen year
old Charlotte Childs was standing at thisgreat starting line of life. As the
(01:11):
eldest of her siblings, she wasthe first to graduate high school and was
already a mature young woman, jugglingher studies with a busy social life and
her job at a bank. Shewas also a young woman who was probably
feeling some relief to leave part ofher life behind. She had just made
a big change, breaking up withher toxic boyfriend. But Charlotte wasn't down.
(01:34):
She was buoyant, enjoying being sweptup in all the pre graduation events
being held for her alma mater,Holy Hill Academy. She was especially looking
forward to the big day and celebratingwith her friends. The thought that she
might never make it to the podiumto receive her diploma was the furthest thing
from her mind. Welcome to Episodetwo seventeen, The Murder of Charlotte Child's.
(02:04):
It was a cloudy but pleasant latespring evening on May twenty seventh,
nineteen ninety three, one high schoolsenior Charlotte Child's hopped into her red Chevy
Geo Storm. She was heading offto a pre graduation get together and the
small town of Holly Hill, OrangeburgCounty and South Carolina, which was home
to around fifteen hundred people. Theeldest of three children, Charlotte Caroline Childs
(02:29):
was born January thirty first, nineteenseventy five, and Simpsonville, South Carolina.
In May of ninety three. Heryounger sister was fourteen and her little
brother was around eight years old.By her eighteenth birthday, Charlotte and her
family were living on Root one inthe hamlet of Vance, just eight miles
north of Holly Hill, where Charlotteattended school. The tiny town of Vance
(02:54):
where she lived, was first incorporatedin eighteen ninety one, and in the
early nineteen nineties it had about twohundred residents. It's down to around one
hundred and fifty these days. Everyonein Charlotte's life knew her as a sweet,
cheerful young woman with a strong workethic. She was popular and vibrant
(03:15):
and committed to her Baptist faith.She was also a very ambitious young woman,
involved in the South Carolina organ ProcurementAssociation, as well as working after
school at the First National Bank inHolly Hill, and she attended the teen
class of Emmanuel Free Baptist Church ofSantee. When it came to their oldest
(03:37):
daughter's social life, John and JuneChilds completely trusted Charlotte. She was mature
and responsible, and by now herparents didn't wait up for her. She
had her own transportation and they wereconfident she would get home safely after a
night out. By this time,Charlotte was enjoying being single again. A
(04:00):
few weeks earlier, she had brokenup with her boyfriend of two years,
twenty year old Scott Atkinson. Charlottehad things to do and was too young
to be tied down then, andshe had darker reasons for ending the relationship
that not everyone knew about. Whenthe pregraduation party ended, Charlotte and her
(04:20):
best friend jumped in her Geo Stormto go home. She was giving her
friend a ride that night. Afterdropping her friend off around one thirty am
in the tiny nearby town of Utahville, Charlotte headed for home. It was
only six miles away. She shouldhave been home in about ten minutes,
(04:41):
but hours later, as dawn wasbreaking, John and June were awoken by
the phone ringing Charlotte was in thehospital at the Regional Medical Center in Orangeburg
and she was hurt bad. Shewas unconscious. The person calling said they
weren't sure how Charlotte had come tosustain her injury. At four fifty five
(05:02):
am, a young man had walkedinto the emergency room department carrying a naked,
bloodied, and unconscious Charlotte over hisshoulder, locating an empty wheelchair,
he sat Charlotte down and went towalk out of the hospital, but he
was stopped by security. Why wouldanyone abandon a young woman like that without
(05:25):
alerting medical staff and explaining what hadhappened? Obviously, there's no good reason,
and this young man was pretty shorton details. When he spoke to
security, he told them she wasjust an acquaintance of his and that he
had been driving home that night whenhe found her lying by the side of
the road naked and beaten. Heclaimed he had no idea what had happened
(05:47):
to her. As doctors continued theirassessment of the young woman, it became
clear that she had not been insome kind of accident. She had been
violently beaten, and not just withsomeone's fists, but with a hard object.
Security contacted the Orangeboro County Sheriff's office, and Lieutenant Grady Fulmer and Deputy
(06:08):
Randy Clark drove out to the hospital. When they arrived, they spoke to
the young man who had brought Charlotteinto the hospital. He was twenty year
old Holly Hill resident Daniel Scott Atkinson, who went by his middle name Scott.
He gave the officers pretty much thesame details he had provided to medical
staff, but right off things didn'tsit right with his story. Lieutenant Fulmer
(06:33):
and Deputy Clark were suspicious enough ofScott's story to put in a call requesting
the assistance of Sheriff's detective Larry Williams. When he arrived at the medical center
around seven to twenty am, heobserved Scott standing near Charlotte's Geo Storm,
which was parked near the entrance tothe hospital. Detective Williams did a quick
(06:54):
once over of the vehicle. Arifle lay in the trunk and the car
had obvious bloodstains and loose hairs.Scott explained to Detective Williams that the evening
before, he and Charlotte had beenhanging out at a friend's place. Scott
said he didn't stay the whole timeand took off to go have some beers
elsewhere. Around midnight, he claimedhe saw Charlotte driving around town with friends.
(07:19):
He said he then drove to herhouse and she arrived home around the
same time. And he claimed thathe and Charlotte had sex. Scott told
the detective he then left at aroundone thirty or two in the morning to
go get gas. Upon arriving backat Charlotte's house, he said he found
her sitting in the driver's seat ofthe Geo Storm covered in blood. Panicked,
(07:43):
Scott moved to Charlotte, whom henow admitted was his ex girlfriend,
and to the other seat and droveher to the hospital to Detective Williams.
Something was immediately off with Scott's story. The detective decided to take him to
the Orangeburg Calhoun Lawlaw Enforcement Complex forfurther questioning. There, Scott waved his
(08:05):
Miranda rights and gave a written statement. He nervously proceeded to tell the detective
that the previous evening he had beendrinking and was so intoxicated that he ran
his nineteen eighty seven Ford Mustang intoa ditch near Charlotte's house. Just as
Scott was wondering what to do,Charlotte came along on her way home for
the night. When he explained whathad happened, she drove him back to
(08:30):
her place to call someone. Aftera friend of Scott's was unable to help,
Scott claimed Charlotte called a wrecker whocame to pull the Mustang out of
the ditch. According to him,after driving back to Charlotte's house, the
pair then got into an argument.Things turned physical, and Scott admitted that
he lost control and struck Charlotte inthe face three times using his fist,
(08:54):
alleging that she had hid him inthe face first. Throughout the interview you,
Scott continually asked whether his ex girlfriendwas going to press charges and was
anxious about the status of her condition. He continued telling Detective Williams he didn't
fully appreciate the extent of Charlotte's injuriesat the time, but he knew he
(09:16):
had to do something. Scott saidhe put Charlotte in the car and headed
for the hospital, but on theway, as he approached the nearby town
of Santee, he saw a BestWestern motel on his right. He said
he changed his mind, hoping thatif you put Charlotte in the shower,
she would come too. Scott pulledin and got himself a room before carrying
(09:39):
Charlotte inside. He claimed that oncehe got Charlotte inside and washed her under
the shower, he not only realizedshe was still bleeding, but her condition
was much worse than he had originallythought. It was then that he placed
her back in the car and droveto the hospital. Detective Williams immediately called
bullshit on the whole thing, notjust because of Scott's completely contradictory stories or
(10:03):
the fact that the detective couldn't smellany alcohol on the young man, which
you would expect if he was asdrunk as he claimed. The evidence in
Charlotte's vehicle was proof the young womanhad been brutally beaten. In the trunk
of her car, where the riflehad been found, were more bloodstains.
Both Charlotte's geostorm and Scott's Mustang weretaken in for forensic processing by the South
(10:28):
Carolina Law Enforcement Division or sled backAt the medical center, Charlotte's head injuries
were so bad that doctors knew sheneeded more urgent care than they could provide.
She was airlifted to Richland Memorial Hospitalin Columbia, forty five miles away,
where she underwent emergency surgery and wasplaced in the neuro intensive care unit.
(10:54):
A family friend named Duncan Hall toldThe Times in Democrat that seeing Charlotte
in the hospital was horrible. Shewas so badly beaten that her head was
swollen four times its normal size.Even her hands were swollen. He said,
you could hardly tell she was ahuman being. I'm going to pause
(11:16):
now to hear a word from oursponsors. This episode is brought to you
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slash Southern Friud. There's no safelike simply Safe. That afternoon, as
Charlotte was fighting for her life incritical condition, Scott was arrested and charged
with kidnapping and assault and battery withintent to kill. Orangeburg County Magistrate Peggy
(13:48):
Davis released Scott on a twenty thousanddollars personal recognizance bond, citing the fact
that he didn't have a criminal record, he had the support of his parents,
and she didn't consider him a flightrisk. According to The Times and
Democrat, Scott was instructed to abideby a ten pm curfew, not leave
South Carolina, turn up to court, and keep seeing his psychologist. Scott
(14:13):
Atkinson had graduated from Hollyhill Academy himselfin nineteen ninety one and had just finished
his sophomore year of college at FrancisMarion College in Florence, South Carolina,
but he was home for the summerwith his parents, Daniel and Cathy until
classes resumed. As I mentioned earlier, Scott and Charlotte had dated for around
(14:37):
two years before the attack, whenshe ended the relationship not long after the
couple attended the Hollyhill Academy's junior seniorprom Charlotte seemed to be okay with things,
but Scott, who felt the childswere like his second family, didn't
want to let go. In thedays before the attack, he had been
(15:00):
calling and harassing Charlotte at work,which her coworkers noticed. He had also
taken to following her around in hiscar as she drove, trying to run
her off the road on multiple occasionsin an attempt to talk to her.
Back at Richland Memorial, Charlotte haddeteriorated despite surgery. That evening, her
(15:22):
classmates in Holly Hill were graduating,but the celebration was overshadowed by the incredible
sadness that had engulfed the senior classand the school faculty. The academy principal
set a special prayer for Charlotte andher family Sadly at eight forty three pm
on May twenty eighth, the eighteenyear old passed away. Charlotte never regained
(15:46):
consciousness, so police weren't able tointerview her about what really happened. The
following morning, Scott Atkinson was chargedwith murder and taken to the Orangeburg Calhoun
Detention Center to await a new bondhearing. At Charlotte's autopsy in Charleston,
Orangeburg County Corner Semwhat, a marshalfound that some of the blunt injuries looked
(16:08):
like they had been inflicted by thebutt of a rifle, the same type
of weapon which was found in thetrunk of Charlotte's car after Scott had driven
her to the hospital. The youngwoman had been struck at least fourteen times
in the head, resulting in multipleskull fractures, but it was impossible to
tell how many of those blows wereinflicted by the butt of the rifle.
(16:33):
Charlotte also had genital bruising consistent withsexual assault. Her cause of death was
cerebral edema, or swelling of thebrain, according to the Times in Democrat.
At Charlotte's funeral in Holly Hill onMemorial Day, the Reverend Hermannheimann spoke
fondly of the young woman and thehappy memories she would leave with her loved
(16:55):
ones, describing her as a sweetchild, a special child, and the
hearts of her family and loved ones. He went on, we like to
remember the good things, the thingsthat are dear to our hearts. She
was later buried in Forest Hill's MemorialPark in Elberton, Georgia. Two days
after her funeral, on June second, Scott was denied bond by Circuit Judge
(17:18):
William Howitt, though he could requestanother hearing after thirty days. As Detective
Williams and team continued the investigation,they learned more about Scott's threatening behavior towards
Charlotte in the lead up to herdeath. Earlier in the week, he
had followed her to her best friend'shome in Utahville, confronting her by saying
(17:40):
she had destroyed his life, sohe was going to destroy hers. The
night of the pregraduation party, Scottturned up uninvited in front of Charlotte's friends.
He grabbed her by the arm,saying, Charlotte, You're never going
to get rid of me. I'mgoing to fuck your world up. Despite
how discerning Scott's behavior was, accordingto Charlotte's friends, she wasn't worried about
(18:03):
him actually doing anything. Charlotte felther ex was all talk, that he
was just pressuring her to convince herto get back together with him. She
never dreamed he would actually physically hurther. Authorities had also contacted the Best
Western and santi where Scott had checkedin before taking Charlotte to the medical center.
(18:26):
The amount of blood found in theroom by housekeeping staff, including a
bloody tennis shoe print, indicated thatrather than Scott taking Charlotte there to try
to help her, he instead subjectedher to a brutal beating. The motel's
night manager told police that around threefifteen am, a man matching Scott's description
(18:47):
and with traces of blood on him, paid for a room. She then
saw Scott pulling a woman out ofthe trunk and carrying her inside. The
manager says she reported what she saw, but there was no record of her
with the Sheriff's department. Law enforcementhad also spoken to a Utahville woman whose
daughter had previously dated Scott. Thewoman told investigators she had observed Scott pushing
(19:11):
and shoving her daughter, whom hewas stalking. She later testified it was
just a very nervous time for allof us because I saw extreme jealousy and
threats. On July twentieth, Scottwas denied bond for a second time,
much to the overwhelming relief of Charlotte'sfamily. The defense presented a clinical psychologist
(19:34):
who testified as to a battery oftests Scott had undergone. According to Scott's
parents, since the age of twelve, their son had made multiple suicide attempts,
suffered from alcohol abuse, and wasbeing treated for depression, but he
wasn't in therapy or taking medication atthe time of the assault. Tensions ran
(19:56):
high during the proceedings, with afamily friend of the child's, Duncan Hall,
being removed from the courtroom for shouting. He was the same man who
served as the family spokesperson for thepress. One report said the protective man
had jumped in front of two TVreporters who were trying to get to Charlotte's
family at the hospital. The followingday, at Scott's preliminary hearing before Magistrate
(20:21):
Peggy Davis, First Circuit Solicitor WalterBailey announced that the state would be pursuing
the death penalty in contrast to Scott'sversion of events. Prosecutors believed that after
he left the pre graduation party,he had been driving around and decided to
stop on the side of the roadalong the route he knew Charlotte would take
(20:42):
to get home. Furious that shewouldn't take him back, and consumed by
anger, he was going to destroyher life, just like he had promised
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the guise of needing help with hisMustang in a ditch, true to her
nature, Charlotte stopped to help.When she got out of her car,
Scott attacked his ex girlfriend, viciouslybeating her unconscious before putting her in the
trunk of her own car and hoppingin the driver's seat. He drove to
the motel in Santy, where hechecked in and carried Charlotte inside there,
(24:51):
he continued viciously beating her with hisfists and the butt of the rifle.
After some time, he put herback in the vehicle and drove Charlotte to
the the hospital. It seems obvioushe also sexually assaulted her in the motel
room. Not only has she shownsigns of rape in the autopsy, he
had been careful to tell the policethat they had had consensual sex that night
(25:15):
in case they found evidence of theassault. Scott maintained he had only ever
struck Charlotte with his hands and nothingelse, in what one of his attorneys
described as a crime of passion.Following a motion from the defense, the
charge of assault and battery with intentto kill was dropped, but Scott was
(25:36):
still headed to trial. That wasuntil March thirtieth, nineteen ninety four,
when twenty one year old Scott Atkinsonpled guilty to Charlotte's murder after cutting a
deal with prosecutors following consultation with Charlotte'sfamily. The last thing they wanted to
put themselves through was more delays fora death penalty trial, let alone a
(25:56):
minimum of thirteen years of appeals inthe event of a conviction, which is
what prosecutors had advised would likely happen. The kidnapping and grand larceny charges were
also dropped. This was because Scotthad entered an Alfred plea most true crime
listeners know. This is where anaccused person doesn't admit to guilt, but
(26:18):
instead acknowledges there is sufficient evidence fora jury to find them guilty. At
sentencing, Scott struggled to get throughhis address to the court and to Charlotte's
family. One of his attorneys hadto finish reading his statement, which said,
I know that nothing that I willever say or do will ever change
what has happened. For two yearsof my life, you all have been
(26:41):
like a second family to me,and I would give anything to go back
and change what has happened. Noone deserves the grief and heartache that I
have put you and my family through, and for the rest of my life
I'll have to live with the factthat I'm the cause of it. I
know I have no right to askanything from you, but I would like
you to please understand that I wouldnever had this happen in a million years.
(27:02):
I loved Charlotte very much, andas God is my witness, I'll
do everything in my power to makesome good come out of all of this.
I owe that to God, toyour family and mine, and most
of all, to Charlotte. Atthis time, I would like to say
to all of your family and toall that have suffered because of this,
I humbly beg that someday you willfind it in your heart to forgive me.
(27:22):
I am very sorry. Scott concludedhis statement by reiterating that Charlotte's death
was an accident, saying, I'msure if both of us were not drinking,
none of this would have ever happened. He denied ever stalking Charlotte or
intentionally harming her way to get afinal shot in at Charlotte, it doesn't
(27:45):
matter if she was drinking. Itdoesn't matter if he was drinking. There
is no excuse for what looks likea vicious, premeditated attack and sexual assault
of this girl he supposedly loved somuch. Judge Charles Whetstone sentenced Scott Atkinson
to life in prison. Under SouthCarolina law, he would be eligible for
(28:07):
parole after a mandatory twenty years.Despite how hollow Scott's words may ring for
some, Charlotte's parents believed his emotionalapology was genuine. Still, this didn't
diminish the gaping void that the lossof their sweet Charlotte left. Her mother
June told The Times and Democrat,he destroyed our lives, the people in
(28:33):
Holly Hill. He will never knowexactly what he did. There's no way
we will ever forget, but wecan try to start putting a little normalcy
back into our lives, especially forthe kids. Forty seven year old Daniel
Scott Atkinson was released on parole onAugust seventh, twenty twenty, after serving
(28:55):
twenty seven years of his life sentence. Today, the fifty one year old
is currently believed to be residing inColleton County, with his parole due to
end in January twenty thirty eight.It is difficult to accept that a murderer
walks free while an eighteen year oldgirl lies cold in her grave. A
(29:18):
man that age can still father childrenand have a whole other chance at life.
Charlotte would be close to my agetoday, probably married with children of
her own. The smart and ambitiousyoung woman was also on her way to
a career she was passionate about,and Scott didn't just rub Charlotte of her
(29:40):
life. He took her from herparents, her brother and sister, her
friends. They lost an aunt,nieces, nephews, cousins, grandchildren.
The loss of a young person reverberatestraumatically for generations, all of it taken
away by abusive man who intentionally hurtCharlotte. He might have brought her to
(30:04):
the hospital, but really did hethink she had a chance to live after
that beating? No, he destroyedher, just like he said he would.
As passionate as I feel, Ido very much understand why Charlotte's family
accepted the plea deal. I haveoften said, no matter how you feel
(30:26):
morally about the death penalty, theautomatic appeals process causes seemingly endless pain for
the victim's family, and I alwayssupport a family's right to be involved in
the plea decision. Ali Managacus,the founder and executive director of South Carolina
for Criminal Justice Reform, said,I don't know how anyone could say that
(30:49):
someone doesn't change in thirty years,or that someone hasn't paid their debts in
thirty years, even individuals that havebeen sentenced to death. Maybe she is
right, maybe I've become jaded,but I don't think so. I think
there are times when parole is fairtrue crimes of passion lesser murder charges.
(31:11):
I think the problem with Charlotte's storyis that Scott harassed and threatened her.
He told her he would kill her, and he fulfilled that promise. He
took away her dignity and destroyed herand her family. He was just lucky
that her family believed in forgiveness,even in their despair at losing Charlotte in
(31:33):
such a horrific way. For thesake of Charlotte's family and the broader community,
we can only hope that her killerhas learned the lessons that only having
your freedom taken away can bring.Domestic violence cases are always hard to tell,
especially when victims are as young asCharlotte, but it is so important
(31:56):
to tell these stories. I hopeother teenagers learn about the warning signs and
take them seriously. It never seemslike someone who once loved you so much
could actually hurt you, but statisticallythey are most likely to hurt you if
you are experiencing abuse. There ishelp in the US. Call one eight
(32:19):
hundred seven nine nine safe or visitthe website Theehotline dot Org. I will
have these resources as well as thosefor other countries. In today's show notes,
you are not alone. Southern FraudTrue Crime is hosted and produced by
(32:40):
me Erica Kelly. Today's episode wasresearched and written by me and Jima Harris.
As usual, any editorial comments andopinions are my own. Southern Fred's
original music is by Rob Harrison ofGamma Radio and the original graphic artist by
Colleen Horner. Today's episode was editedand mixed by Brendan Schacksnier of Southern Gothic
and Erica Kelly. If you haveany case suggestions, please go to my
(33:00):
website, Southernfred Truecrime dot com andclick on the listener suggestion tab or email
SFTC Research at gmail dot com.This is the best way for me to
get those little known cases you'll alwayssend me. Please remember that I do
not accept suggestions on social media privatemessages, but please come join our Facebook
group, Southern Fred True Crime FansDiscussion Group, where we swap recipes,
(33:22):
worship Dolly Parton, and share memes. We do, of course discuss true
crime, not just Southern Fried,but all kinds, but it is still
very much a Southern lifestyle group.Our group is a safean thun corner of
Facebook, and by god, wemean it when we say no shuit as
is allowed. It's not just amotto, it's how we run the group.
If you enjoyed today's show, don'tforget to subscribe and please tell a
friend or rate and review. I'mon all large platforms like iTunes, Iheartspotify,
(33:45):
Amazon, Audible and YouTube. Untilnext time, thanks so much for
listening. Y'all. Take care
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