Kesha Luwan Lucille Tate was 42 when she was fatally struck by a gunshot on the evening of Saturday, August 27, 2022, in her home on Songbird Lane in rural Gaffney, South Carolina. Tate, a Black mother of nine, was cooking dinner for her children when repeated gunshots outside drew her to a kitchen window. A bullet entered the home and struck her in the chest; she died at the scene while her children called 911.

Neighbors identified 30-year-old Nicholas Skylar Lucas as the man firing a .45-caliber handgun in his backyard. He was intoxicated and reportedly engaging in target practice. Lucas was arrested and initially charged with involuntary manslaughter and shooting under the influence after saying the shot was a tragic accident and suggesting the bullet had ricocheted off a satellite dish he was using as a target. Forensic examiners later reported that the bullet recovered from Tate was in pristine condition, a finding investigators said made a ricochet unlikely and suggested the shot had been fired toward Tate’s home.

At a bond hearing Lucas said he couldn’t believe anyone would think he would intentionally kill his neighbor and described the shooting as a complete accident. Did anyone in Gaffney see activity in that neighborhood around Songbird Lane on the night of August 27, 2022?