Derrick Gathers, 40, was sentenced to the years in federal prison after about an hour in a Matthew J. Perry Courthouse courtroom.
About a dozen law enforcement officers joined South Carolina Highway Patrol Lance Cpl. B.A. Frazier, the trooper shot in the face during the incident, to watch the sentencing unfold. Frazier has returned to duty since the incident and been awarded a Medal of Valor from the state Sheriffs' Association.
He said to reporters after the hearing that he was satisfied with the results and appreciated his colleagues' support.
"With this support is why I'm where I'm at today," Frazier said. "Just the opportunity to get back in this uniform, man, it made me brand new all over again."
Gathers in 2025 was convicted in state court of attempted murder, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, and failure to stop for a blue light. He was sentenced to 38 years in state prison and is already serving out that term.
In February, Gathers pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. He had already spent time in prison outside of South Carolina for offenses involving rape and assault.
U.S. District Court Judge Mary Geiger Lewis sentenced Gathers to the additional time in prison, but he will not spend an entire extra 15 years incarcerated. Just 80 months, or almost seven years, of the time will be served after his state sentence. The other 100 months of his federal sentence will be served concurrently with his state sentence.
Lewis said the crime stood out even in all her 14 years as a judge.
"I see a lot of bad things in this courtroom, but this is impressive,” Lewis said. “It really is.”
Frazier pulled Gathers over at 3:30 a.m. in Bamberg County for speeding at 35 mph more than the speed limit, according to court documents. When the trooper returned to Gathers' vehicle following a driver's license check, Gathers shot Frazier and drove away from the scene. The flee turned into an 11-minute pursuit.
He then — with a passenger in the car — crashed into the yard of a home.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lamar Fyall, the prosecutor in the case, argued that Gathers' actions and criminal history warranted consecutive serving of the state and federal sentences. He noted that even in prison, Gathers found ways to break protocol; Gathers was found with a weapon when incarcerated at the South Carolina Department of Corrections.
Public defender and Gathers' attorney Jeremy Adam Thompson argued that the state sentence was plenty of time in prison. He wanted the sentences to run concurrently.
Lewis essentially met the pair in the middle. She said her decision was meant to keep law enforcement and the public safe.
U.S. District Attorney for South Carolina Bryan Stirling spoke to reporters after the hearing. He said the sentencing should serve as an example to people who may seek to injure law enforcement officers.
"This is also notice to anybody who wants to harm our law enforcement or be a felon in possession. Not only will you face state charges and state prosecution, you will face federal prosecution," he said.
