SOUTH CAROLINA — The Sumter County Sheriff’s Office has announced the county’s first arrest under South Carolina’s new fentanyl-induced homicide law.
Sheriff’s officials said 35-year-old Thomas Justin Barwick was arrested Tuesday on a charge of fentanyl-induced homicide. The charge stems from an investigation that began with a search of Barwick’s home on Dec. 3. Authorities later determined that 62-year-old William Karl Joseph Myers died after using drugs he allegedly obtained from Barwick.
In addition to the homicide charge, Barwick is facing multiple drug- and weapon-related charges connected to his Dec. 3 arrest. Those charges include distributing methamphetamine, trafficking fentanyl between four and 14 grams, manufacturing, distributing or possessing Schedule I and Schedule II narcotics and LSD, possession of a weapon during a violent crime, possession or sale of a stolen pistol, possession or distribution of a stolen vehicle valued at less than $2,000, and possession of other controlled substances classified under Schedules I through IV.
The sheriff’s office said Barwick is the first person charged in Sumter County under a law passed by the South Carolina Legislature near the end of the 2025 session. The law allows prosecutors to pursue homicide charges against individuals accused of supplying drugs that directly result in another person’s death.
“We are grateful for our legislature giving us this tool to use in the war on drugs in Sumter County,” Sheriff Anthony Dennis said in a statement. “To my knowledge, I believe we are the first agency to make such a charge under this new law.”
Barwick is awaiting a bond hearing on the homicide charge. Court records show he received a $137,000 surety bond for his other charges. As of Tuesday, he remains held at the Sumter-Lee Regional Detention Center.
