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The driver in a fatal 2018 car wreck pleaded guilty in late July.
Brian Michael Gibson, 23, of Barnwell, was charged with one count of felony driving under the influence (DUI) resulting in death and two counts of felony DUI resulting in great bodily injury after a car wreck claimed the life of a local teen.
In the early morning of July 14, 2018, Gibson, who was 17 at the time, was driving a 2005 Chevy Avalanche on Ehrhardt Road in Bamberg County with four other passengers. The collision occurred when the vehicle ran off the roadway and struck a building.
The front seat passenger, Matthew Steven Renew, an 18-year-old recent Barnwell High School graduate, was killed in the wreck. Renew’s death led to Gibson’s charge of felony DUI resulting in death.
The other two charges relate to the injuries sustained by passengers Brittin Ray, who was 20 at the time, and Luke Pickering, who was 18 at the time, both of Barnwell. A third passenger, a juvenile male, was also injured.
According to previous reporting by The People-Sentinel, defense attorneys believed a local convenience store sold alcohol to minors in the vehicle prior to the accident.
In April 2023, the case went before the Bamberg County Grand Jury where Gibson was indicted, meaning the Grand Jury found there was probable cause and enough evidence to lead to a conviction for all three charges.
Partly due to the backlog of court cases created by the COVID pandemic, Gibson was sentenced on July 29, 2024 – over six years after the car wreck and over one year since the indictment.
Gibson was sentenced to 10 years. This sentence will be suspended upon serving two years at the S.C. Department of Corrections (SCDC), followed by 48 months probation for the first charge resulting in death. He was sentenced to 12 months each for the remaining two charges, to run concurrently, or at the same time, to the first charge.
Due to the charge of felony DUI being deemed a violent and most serious crime, Gibson will serve 85 percent of his two-year sentence, and receive one strike.
Gibson was granted a $25,000 personal recognizance bond by a Bamberg magistrate judge on August 13, 2018. Since this hearing, Gibson has spent 60 months on pretrial house arrest leading up to his July 2024 sentencing.
Gibson must also pay a $43,304.81 fine; $21,701.59 for the charge of felony DUI resulting in death, and $10,801.61 for each charge of felony DUI resulting in great bodily injury.
Part of Gibson’s probation includes 200 hours of community service, speaking publicly to local youth about the impact of alcohol and drug use, and random drug and alcohol testing.
With the conviction of felony DUI, Gibson’s drivers license is suspended. After serving the allotted time at SCDC, he will have to attend an alcohol use class, obtain an SR-22 proof of insurance, and purchase and install an ignition interlock on any vehicle that he drives for the next five years to potentially regain a driver’s license.
Read about the 2018 coverage by The People-Sentinel here: https://www.augustachronicle.com/story/news/local/the-people-sentinel/2018/08/15/barnwell-teen-charged-as-adult-in-fatal-ehrhardt-road-wreck/10987704007/
