RIDGELAND, SC (Aug. 19, 2022) – A 34-year-old Jasper County man has been convicted of shooting and killing his teenage girlfriend at a Ridgeland motel.
Brian Jamal Redding was found guilty Friday of murder, possession of a firearm by a violent felon, and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime in the shooting death of 16-year-old Cypress Noonan. A Jasper County General Sessions jury took just 30 minutes to return its guilty verdict.
Redding was sentenced to 48 years in prison. He received five years for each of the weapon charges. The sentences are to be served concurrently.
“This girl had her whole life ahead of her, but it was cut short by Mr. Redding’s controlling, violent actions,” said prosecutor Hunter Swanson of the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office.
On Sept. 6, 2020, emergency services found Noonan’s body on a motel-room bed, where she had been living with Redding for about eight months. She was slumped over, with a single gunshot wound to the forehead. Redding told authorities he left the motel at 6 a.m. and to give a ride to a relative. He called 9-1-1 at 9:46 a.m. to report that Noonan had been shot in the head and was not responsive.
“The evidence paints us a picture of a lopsided and toxic relationship, in which Redding controlled Noonan’s movements,” Swanson said. “Friends and family say she changed after moving in with Redding at the motel. She quickly became withdrawn, and he became increasingly more aggressive.”
A firearms expert testified that a specific type of 9mm shell casing and projectile were found in the motel room. Redding was later linked to the same kind of firearm in videos recovered by law enforcement.
Experts also testified that blood found inside and outside of the motel door was linked to Redding and Noonan.
Swanson called 16 witnesses during the week-long jury trial.
Redding’s criminal record includes convictions for driving under suspension in 2013, simple possession of marijuana in 2017, and possession of cocaine or methamphetamine in 2019.
Circuit Court Judge Robert Bonds handed down the sentence.
Swanson leads the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office Special Victims Unit. She also is a member of the Career Criminal Unit, which has earned convictions against 417 of the 449 defendants it has prosecuted since its formation in 2009. Swanson has been with the Solicitor’s Office since 2007.
If you, or someone you know has suffered domestic abuse, help is available by calling the 14th Circuit Victims Services Center at (843) 790-6220 or emailing [email protected].
