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South Carolina’s second-highest court has upheld the high-profile murder conviction of Nathaniel Rowland – who was found guilty three years ago of the March 2019 murder and kidnapping of University of South Carolina student Samantha Josephson.
Josephson’s case – the so-called “Fake Uber Murder” – garnered international headlines.
Josephson was last seen getting into the back of a black Chevrolet Impala she believed was her Uber ride at around 2:00 a.m. EDT on March 29, 2019 in the Five Points area of downtown Columbia, S.C.
Hours later, her body was discovered by turkey hunters approximately forty feet off of Black Bottom Road near Rowland’s home town of New Zion, S.C. Josephson’s body – which had sustained dozens of stab wounds – was found a stone’s throw away from 1313 Renegade Trail, the last listed home address for Rowland.
Rowland was arrested by police on March 30, 2019 in connection with Josephson’s murder after a city of Columbia police officer spotted him driving the same black Impala seen on surveillance videos. Less than two weeks after the murder, police located the murder weapon.
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Rowland appealed his conviction – and the life sentence imposed upon him by S.C. circuit court judge Clifton Newman. According to his attorneys, Newman erred by failing to “suppress evidence” obtained from a traffic stop in which the arresting officer allegedly “did not have probable cause that a traffic violation had occurred or reasonable suspicion that the occupants of the car were engaged in criminal activity.”
Rowland further argued Newman should have excluded testimony from a handwriting expert who tied him to a piece of paper found in the car – and testimony from a DNA analyst who linked him to the murder weapon, a “multi-tool knife.”
The court was having none of Rowland’s arguments. According to the unanimous ruling of the appellate judges, the officer who initiated the traffic stop – Columbia, S.C. police officer Jeffrey Kraft – was “acting diligently in the course of a missing person investigation and he had reasonable suspicion for the stop.”
“(Kraft’s) initial investigatory stop was justified by the exigent circumstance of attempting to find a missing person,” the court ruled. “Because Josephson’s whereabouts were unknown at the time of the stop, the circumstances would lead an officer to believe she could be in danger.”
The court also concluded Newman was correct in allowing testimony regarding a piece of paper found in the vehicle which contained handwriting deemed to be a match for Rowland’s. The paper also had Rowland’s fingerprint and – critically to the case – traces of Josephson’s blood on it.
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“The envelope was found in (Rowland)’s car, which law enforcement had already determined to be a crucial part of the crime scene,” the court concluded.
As for the DNA testimony, the judges concluded it was “probative of who murdered Josephson; a fact that was clearly at issue in this case” and its probative value “was not outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or misleading the jury.”
Prosecutors who helped secure the guilty pleas were understandably pleased with the court’s decision.
“The fifth judicial circuit solicitor’s office is grateful for the court of appeals’ decision to affirm these convictions,” deputy solicitor Daniel Goldberg said. “The court’s unanimous opinion is another step in pursuing justice for the Josephson family.”
Count on this media outlet to keep our audience updated as Rowland will likely appeal this ruling to the state supreme court.
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THE RULING…
(S.C. Court of Appeals)
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Will Folks is the owner and founding editor of FITSNews. Prior to founding his own news outlet, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina, bass guitarist in an alternative rock band and bouncer at a Columbia, S.C. dive bar. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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