Conway Area Crossfire Victims Reflect One Year Later

HORRY COUNTY, SC (WMBF) – It’s been more than a year since Shawn and Monica Williams found a burning cross in front of their Conway area home over Thanksgiving weekend.

A symbol of hatred etched into their memories that still makes them afraid to call Corbett Drive their permanent home.

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“It was very traumatic, and it was very mentally and emotionally disruptive,” Shawn said.

“The house itself, inside we are family, but outside there are still triggers,” Monica added.

The Williams family said the crossfires were just the tip of the iceberg and that a property line dispute with their neighbors sparked the flames.

These neighbors, Worden Butler and Alexis Hartnett, were each arrested and charged with second-degree harassment following the burning of a cross.

Worden Butler, Alexis Hartnett(J. Reuben Long Detention Center)

Both men were released on bail less than 24 hours later.

SURVEYS

Shortly after the arrests, further investigations were opened into the couple.

The NAACP launched an investigation the same day WMBF News broke the December 2023 crossfire story.

The FBI then launched its own federal civil rights investigation as agents showed up at the home and collected evidence.

The agency did not arrest or charge the couple, but documents later revealed that officers took a piece of charred wood wrapped in cloth from the home along with a crossbow, a pellet gun and several phones .

However, nothing considered illegal was found on the property.

COURT BATTLES

In January, the 15th Circuit Solicitor’s Office filed a request for a temporary injunction to evict Butler and Hartnett.

It sparked a months-long legal battle and revealed new allegations against the couple.

Unsealed court documents detailed a nearly two-year history of alleged harassment by Butler and Hartnett toward their neighbors and others.

A year later, neighbors came forward to WMBF News for the first time to share their experiences.

They asked to remain anonymous, fearing reprisals.

A neighbor claimed Hartnett often threatened them and their children.

“The one time the girl said she was going to come take the kids. It really made us tired of them,” the neighbor said. “It was a terrifying experience.”

Other allegations include Hartnett walking around naked and screaming. Butler, meanwhile, is accused of digging a trench around the house, blocking other people’s mailboxes and putting up a “shooting on site” sign to intimidate nearby workers.

“Filmed on location” sign(15TH CIRCUIT ATTORNEY’S OFFICE)

“You just feel an uneasy feeling about doing things in general,” the neighbor said. “Like getting ready for work or always looking outside to see what the neighbors are doing.”

A judge granted prosecutors’ request in March, deporting the couple for a year and calling the burning of the cross a “profound act of racial hatred.”

The ruling only allowed the owner, Janet Butler, to access the property with permission from the Horry County Police Department.

Since then, neighbors say it’s like a whole new world.

“It was peaceful,” a neighbor said. “You notice more people walking with their children in the neighborhood. People walk with their dogs. We didn’t encounter any problems that were out of the ordinary.

However, a dark cloud still hangs over Corbett Drive. A judge finally heard Janet Butler’s appeal in late October and agreed to let her return to the home. His son and Hartnett remain banned from the property.

That could change when the injunction expires in March 2025. It’s something the Williams family says keeps them up at night.

“It just causes an uneasy feeling,” Shawn said. “It’s a challenge.”

The 15th Circuit Solicitor’s Office and the Horry County Police Department both confirmed they will keep a close eye on the neighborhood once the injunction expires.

THE FIGHT FOR CHANGE

Meanwhile, the Williams family turns their fear into a fight.

They have since turned their attention to urging South Carolina lawmakers to pass a statewide hate crimes law.

As of December 2024, South Carolina is still one of only two states without such state-level protections in place.

The latest version of a hate crimes bill died in May after the South Carolina Senate failed to bring it back for debate.

WMBF News contacted Governor Henry McMaster’s office, asking if he would sign such a bill. His office instead highlighted comments the governor made when signing the state’s “anti-Semitism defining bill” in May:

“We can clearly make an act illegal. But that’s really where most researchers have approached it, saying it’s an area of gray area and perhaps danger.

The most recent version overwhelmingly passed the House in 2023, but lawmakers will now have to start from scratch when the new session begins in January.

However, the Williams family doesn’t let that bother them.

“We’re going to continue to move forward in hopes that the state of South Carolina will look at this and say it’s time,” Shawn said.

Despite roadblocks in Columbia, hate crime protections have gained traction at the local level in South Carolina.

More than a dozen cities and towns across the state have passed hate intimidation ordinances, including Myrtle Beach, Conway, Florence and Lake City.

Most of these orders add fines and prison sentences for people convicted of a crime based on race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability.

Although no South Carolina county has similar rules, Horry County Councilman Bill Howard said he would be interested in making Horry County first on that list.

“I think it would be the right thing to do,” Howard said. “I was very saddened that things like this still continue today. It was very upsetting.

The Williams family plans to lobby lawmakers when they return to Colombia in January, but that’s not all.

Shawn and Monica are working on a project called “Peace After Fire”: teaching people how to move forward after traumatic events.

They also hope to educate others about the history of crossfire and hatred.

“The phoenix will rise from the ashes,” Monica said. “And we plan to be the phoenixes of it all.”

WHERE THINGS ARE

As of December, criminal charges and prosecutions against Hartnett and Worden Butler were still pending.

WMBF News attempted to contact them for this story, but did not receive a response.

Stay with WMBF News for updates.