In the late evening of June 5th, the Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting incident at a residence in Big Estates Circle. Two gunshot victims were in the residence when deputies arrived.

Deputies were able to locate the shooting suspect, Joseph Brown, 35, who was still armed, according to a release from Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office.

Two males who were the victims of the shooting were found on the porch. One who appeared dead was had a handgun in close proximity to him. The other was wounded but conscious.

EMS treated and transported the wounded man, who suffered at least two gunshot wounds, to Beaufort Memorial Hospital and confirmed the other male was dead.

The deceased male was identified as 61-year-old Ronnie Black.

The residence was secured and a search warrant was obtained.

Brown was taken in for an interview along with other witnesses who were present at and around the time of the shooting. Investigators were able to determine that a dispute took place between the two shooting victims, Brown, and a woman. All those involved are related by blood or marriage, the press release states.

With evidence collected at the crime scene and witness interviews, it was determined that the Ronnie Black was armed and the wounded male was unarmed at the time they were shot by Brown, who resides at the incident location.

Brown was charged with attempted murder in the shooting of the unarmed male but no charges in the shooting of the Black have been made.

The incident remains under investigation and anyone with information is encouraged to contact Sergeant Angela Boland at 843-255-3707. Additional information will be released as the investigation progresses.