A press conference was held Thursday on behalf of the Racial Justice Network, a Civil Rights Organization, and the family of Tristan Vereen, who was killed by a South Carolina Highway Patrol officer on Sept. 11.
The conference was scheduled for 12 p.m. at the Horry County Government and Justice Center located at 1201 2nd Avenue, Conway.
The family said they want answers and transparency.
Vereen died on Sept. 11 around 5 p.m., at Grand Strand Medical Center as a result of a gunshot wound.
The trooper, who was also injured in the incident, was identified as Master Trooper W.B. Benton, according to Sherri Iacobelli, with the S.C. Department of Public Safety.
Iacobelli said he is assigned to Highway Patrol Troop 5 and has been with them since 2010.
Benton has been released from the hospital, but is scheduled to undergo surgery for injuries related to the incident, Iacobelli said.
In a news release, SLED officials said Benton shot a man during a confrontation while conducting a traffic stop.
Officials said Benton was patrolling on SC 905 near SC22 when he attempted to perform a traffic stop for an equipment violation on a vehicle around 3:48 p.m.
Benton initiated the traffic stop, and the vehicle sped away, traveling north on SC 905, officials said.
He began a short pursuit of the vehicle and the suspect crashed his vehicle into a utility building in a residential yard near Secondary 348 (McNeil Chapel Road), officials confirmed.
SCHP officials said that led to a foot pursuit between the driver and Benton. When Benton attempted to place the individual under arrest, a struggle ensued and Benton reportedly discharged his firearm, striking the suspect.
Benton was also injured and transported to Conway Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Benton was placed on administrative leave following the shooting, which is standard agency protocol following an officer involved-shooting, pending the outcome of the investigation.
The incident in Horry County was the 28th officer-involved shooting in South Carolina in 2021.
In 2020, there were 49 officer-involved shootings in South Carolina; two involved the SCHP.