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A 2015 murder case concluded nine years later with a plea deal for involuntary manslaughter.
On Sept. 24, 2024, Demontay Markeith Payne, 35, of Barnwell, pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter in the May 23, 2015 shooting death of DeVante Quintell Odom in the area of Emerald Lane and Wingo Estates Road in Barnwell. This followed a September 2017 trial where Payne received a 35-year sentence after a jury found him guilty of Odom’s murder; however, the S.C. Court of Appeals overturned that conviction in 2021.
“The entire basis of the appeal was that the original trial judge did not give the jury the option of finding him guilty of voluntary manslaughter. The Court of Appeals opinion was that Judge Early should have charged voluntary manslaughter rather than just murder,” said Second Circuit Deputy Solicitor David Miller.
S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson petitioned the S.C. Supreme Court to review the Appeals Court’s decision.
“The Supreme Court agreed to hear the case. I have no idea why, but a year and half after they agreed to hear it, they said they didn’t want to,” said Miller.
This left the solicitor’s office looking to take a nine-year-old case back to court for a new trial.
“From day one there’s never been any question he shot DeVante Odom and there’s never been any question he killed DeVante Odom. It’s just been a question of the circumstances surrounding that shooting and whether or not a jury would find him guilty of voluntary manslaughter rather than murder,” said Miller of Payne. “The difference is the circumstances surrounding the incident.”
With Odom’s family having already been through the trial and appeals process, the solicitor’s office wanted to provide them closure without enduring another trial. The solicitor offered Payne a cap of 20 years in prison if he pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter. Defense attorney Wallace Alves sought 15 years. Ultimately, Judge Brian Gibbons set the number at 18 years with credit for the 3,405 days Payne already served.
TWO SIDES
During the Sept. 24 court, Miller started by listing Payne’s previous charges of theft of electric current, trespassing, pointing and presenting a firearm, several driving under suspension charges, and malicious injury to property.
“Mr. Payne has not been a productive member of society; he’s been a problem,” said Miller. “Maybe at the end of doing his work, Mr. Payne will be better.”
Going back to May 23, 2015, Miller said there was a disagreement between Payne and Odom.
“Mr. Payne was sitting at the house when DeVante Odom walked up,” said Miller.
Eventually, Odom walked away. Testimony at Payne’s Stand Your Ground hearing stated witnesses told Payne to “let it go, don’t go after him (Odom).” But, shortly after, Payne drove away in his car, said Miller.
A witness said Payne was “calm” when he left the house, said Alves.
Payne and Odom encountered one another again at the end of the road. This is where the shooting happened and where Odom lost his life.
“When Odom turned to run, he (Payne) shot him. That’s when he fell down in this yard,” said Miller.
Witnesses provided various versions of the story, but only one matched the evidence, said Miller. That evidence included the shellcasings belonging to one gun.
While Payne declared the shooting was self-defense, Miller said the locations of the casings and Odom’s body state otherwise. He also said there was no gun found on Odom. There were also no bullet holes in any of the houses, vehicles, or on Payne.
Alves said the photos of the scene taken by law enforcement have been lost. Since the houses in the neighborhood have changed, she said it’s impossible to know whether there was any damage from bullets.
“The solicitor and I differ somewhat on the facts of this case,” said Alves.
She said Payne was defending himself from Odom, who pulled a gun after a physical altercation. She said a witness saw the shooting.
“I don’t know where Odom’s shots went,” said Alves.
She said witnesses saw Odom’s gun after the shooting, but it later disappeared as people came to the scene.
“No pun intended, but there’s holes in the state’s case and there’s holes in the defense’s case,” said Judge Brian Gibbons.
“Those holes are why he’s pleading,” said Alves of her client. “He maintains he didn’t do this with malice aforethought. He did it because he feared for his life.”
Alves acknowledged her client has made mistakes and isn’t perfect, but he’s “tried to do positive things to enrich his life” since being incarcerated. This includes completing classwork for his CDL, signing up to be a tutor, signing up to be a clerk in the law library, attending Bible classes, sharing his experiences with younger inmates, and taking Pathway to Achieve classes to work on his GED and “keep his mind active and hopefully stay out of trouble,” said Alves.
While she said that’s not always easy for her clients to do, Payne is “motivated to do what he can to stay out.” This is particularly true because of his 15-year-old son.
FAMILY STATEMENTS
Families from both sides were allowed to speak before Judge Gibbons made his ruling.
Kenneth Odom, father of DeVante Odom, said the loss of his son has impacted their whole family. He said nothing done by the court or anyone else can bring back his son.
“It’s not easy to say, but my heart goes out to Mr. Payne. I wish Mr. Payne the best, but know he has a long road to travel. At some point in life, we have to learn to be accountable,” said Odom.
Michael Payne, a former law enforcement officer and Demontay Payne’s uncle, was the one who told Payne to turn himself in to authorities in 2015.
“He is regretful about this situation. His time incarcerated has changed him,” said Michael Payne. “This has been a heartbreaking thing for both families.”
Michael Payne said he is prepared to get his nephew a job once he’s released and will “be by his side.”
Demontay Payne also apologized during court and asked for forgiveness.
“This was not a situation where I did this out of spite or anger,” said Demontay Payne, maintaining he was defending himself. “I’m not the same person I was when I was 20-something. I’m still on the journey God has me on.”
Just as he still deals with pain from being stabbed in prison, Demontay Payne said he hopes the Odom family can heal from the loss of their son.
SENTENCING
Judge Gibbons sat from the bench wearing his black robe, which he said is a “symbol of justice” because black is a neutral color.
The judge acknowledged the Odom family’s pain and grief, plus how they were “blindsided” by the justice system after the Appeals Court’s actions.
“There will always be a hole in your heart. I wish I could make that go away,” said Gibbons.
The judge also acknowledged Payne’s lack of prior violent charges and how he took ownership of his actions.
“There’s a lot of grace by you accepting a plea and not putting the family through another trial,” said Judge Gibbons.
As a judge of man’s law, Gibbons said his job is to “weigh vengeance with compassion and mercy. Somewhere in between is what justice is supposed to be.” Putting someone in jail for the maximum time would be the easy thing but is not the right thing to do, he said.
“It appears you’ve done well,” said Judge Gibbons to Payne. “I believe you’ve established a good foundation, but you’ve got to pay for what you did.”
Judge Gibbons sentenced Payne to 18 years in the Department of Corrections with credit time given for the 3,405 days served.
