After less than two hours of deliberation, a former deputy of the Kershaw County, South Carolina Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) was found guilty of second degree assault and battery and misconduct in office for permanently disfiguring a constituent nearly four years ago.
On the afternoon of Friday, September 6, 2024, Johnathan Lewis Goldsmith was booked into the South Carolina Department of Corrections (SCDOC) following a four-day trial in which he and his former employer, Kershaw County sheriff Lee Boan, appear to have misled the jury.
While prosecutors from the office of S.C. fifth circuit solicitor Byron Gipson maintained Goldsmith was “one bad actor,” they made no mention of five civil lawsuits accusing Boan of openly condoning and endorsing the former deputy’s excessive use of violence.
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“We were very clear about keeping [civil verdicts] outside of this courtroom,” Gipson said after Goldsmith was escorted from the Kershaw County courthouse without handcuffs. “That could have been prejudicial to a jury. So we spoke only about what happened on October 15, 2020.”
Having referenced only one of Goldsmith’s myriad bludgeonings, S.C. circuit court judge Robert Hood sentenced the former deputy to one year of incarceration with one day of credit for time served — a dozen years shy of the maximum punishment requested by his victim.
“He’s honorably served his country… three times,” Goldsmith’s attorney said during sentencing. “He served so well that sheriff [Boan] decided to hire him. Virtually every law enforcement officer in this courtroom has walked up to him and offered him support.”
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“HE TOOK ALL THE BEATING…”
As the jury effectively determined, Goldsmith assaulted Tony Sims at around 11:30 p.m. EST on October 15, 2020. The former deputy encountered the civilian after being dispatched to a suspicious vehicle parked outside of Abney Baptist Church on Bethune Highway.
“[Sims] immediately exited his vehicle,” Goldsmith wrote in his official report of the incident. “The suspect began stating he was on his way home. I could clearly tell the suspect was under the influence. The suspect was unsteady on his feet, swaying back and forth.”
After observing damage to Sims’ 2017 Ford Focus, as well as a firearm holster in his passenger seat, Goldsmith conducted a pat-down search of the sluggish individual. Despite finding nothing illegal, he proceeded to detain Sims without probable cause for an arrest.
As body-worn camera (BWC) expressly revealed, Sims questioned Goldsmith when his left wrist was placed in handcuffs. “What did I do wrong,” said the civilian as he slowly turned his body towards the deputy—prompting Goldsmith to pummel Sims towards the ground.
“I then delivered a closed fist strike to the head and neck area attempting to incapacitate the suspect,” continued Goldsmith in his official report. “The first strike was ineffective. I delivered a second closed fist strike to the suspect which rendered [Sims] unconscious.”
Notwithstanding the official report, nearby surveillance video captured Goldsmith delivering multiple closed-fist punches towards Sims’ face. The civilian’s jawbone was thereupon fractured in two places — with multiple teeth either dislodged or broken during the process.
“I’m out with him,” reported Goldsmith to dispatch after knocking Sims unconscious. “He’s taking a little nap now… he’s out cold,” continued the officer as he meandered to his patrol car and back to Sims.
After declining backup, Goldsmith called for emergency medical services (EMS) while ordering Sims to regain consciousness. Rather than wait for an ambulance to arrive, the former deputy forced Sims onto his feet — at which point the civilian collapsed onto the concrete.
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“What do you want me to do for you!” exclaimed Goldsmith while ordering the disoriented civilian to stand up for a second time. “Stand up, man! Stand up… where’s the gun at? You got a gun holster sitting on your seat… you were driving intoxicated and you fought me!”
Upon reaching his patrol car, Goldsmith shoved his blood-stained detainee into the back seat. Sims thereupon failed to place his legs inside the vehicle, prompting Goldsmith to deploy a drive-stun taser into the civilian’s neck for upwards of nine seconds.
After screaming in agony while pleading with the deputy to “please stop,” Goldsmith shoved Sims back inside the patrol car. He then slammed the detainee’s feet into the door, followed by shooting oleoresin capsicum (OC) pepper spray into both of his eyes at point-blank range.
“Dude, you need to relax… all of this is your fault,” said Goldsmith as EMS surrounded his patrol car thirteen minutes into the assault. “He’s combative as all get out. He’s been OC sprayed… he’s been fighting me the whole time. He just recently stopped.”
After making these claims about the nature of Sims’ apprehension — claims the jury clearly deemed to be false — Goldsmith told EMS he would ride with Sims to Kershaw Medical Center. Before leaving the scene, however, he exited the ambulance to brag about the bludgeoning with fellow KCSO deputies.
“I’m fine,” Goldsmith told KCSO Lieutenant Chris Boykin. “He took all the beating,” continued the former deputy while collapsing his police baton into the ground—revealing Sims’ blood on his right arm. “Yeah. All of that.”
Upon reviewing Goldsmiths’ BWC, fifth circuit prosecutors requested an investigation by agents of the S.C. Law Enforcement Division (SLED). Come November 13, 2020, approximately a month after the incident, Boan terminated Goldsmith.
Informally known as “the hammer,” Goldsmith was one of Boan’s first hires after being sworn in as sheriff of Kershaw County on January 1, 2019. The embattled deputy had worked with the department for 21 months.
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“CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS GARBAGE…”
On January 13, 2021, SLED charged Goldsmith with second degree assault and battery and misconduct in office for his mishandling of Sims’ apprehension. Two days later, attorneys Brett Perry and Robert J. Butcher sued Goldsmith, Boan and his department in connection with the aforementioned assault.
Shortly thereafter, fifth circuit prosecutors requested a second SLED investigation after surveillance footage surfaced of Goldsmith punching a female detainee at the Kershaw County Detention Center on May 24, 2020.
Three months later, Perry and Butcher filed a second lawsuit against Goldsmith, Boan and the KCSO. According to the attorneys, Richard Connolly, Sr. was assaulted by Goldsmith at a DUI checkpoint in Lugoff, S.C., on November 30, 2019.
Attorneys in both cases noted Boan oversaw Goldsmith at the Camden Police Department (CPD) for upwards of two years. Through subpoenas and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, the attorneys uncovered a use-of-force review conducted by then-CPD Chief Boan on July 31, 2018.
Of the 31 use-of-force incidents evaluated by his board, 13 involved then-patrolman Goldsmith.
“The board felt none of his actions reached the level of initiating a criminal investigation,” Boan wrote at that time. “This officer will be counseled… given additional training in de-escalation of force and reassured that he is not being asked to compromise officer safety.”
While Goldsmith was recommended for de-escalation training ahead of a secondary use-of-force review scheduled for October 9, 2018, Goldsmith resigned from CPD on September 6, 2018. Four days later, he was hired by the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO).
Attorneys furthermore discovered that on July 16, 2018, Boan allegedly violated CPD policy by downloading BWC footage of Goldsmith tackling a 50-year-old citizen. He is then purported to have used the footage to create a video known as “Goldsmith’s Greatest Hits.”
Edited to “Here Comes the Boom!” by Nelly, the montage begins with depictions of extremely violent football tackles and ends with Goldsmith pummeling the citizen in slow motion. The 19-second video was retrieved from Boan’s personal iPad roughly one year into litigations.
(Click to view)
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“This video had no legitimate use other than for sheriff Lee Boan’s personal entertainment, which clearly shows his attitude toward unnecessary… and excessive uses of force against the public by law enforcement officers,” the attorneys noted in their filing.
Amid two pending lawsuits, Perry and Butcher deployed a third lawsuit against Goldsmith, Boan and the KCSO. Just as before, the attorneys accused Goldsmith of assaulting Shaun Prescott during a botched arrest on February 28, 2020.
Within days of Prescotts’ lawsuit being filed, YouTuber Jeff Mattox began releasing increments of a 47-minute recording provided by a former KCSO deputy. The hidden camera video consisted of Boan defending Goldsmith while slamming prosecutors in October 2021.
“Use of force and excessive force are two different things,” Boan said on the video. “Talking about Goldsmith? Knocking [Sims]-knocking his teeth out? Oh, I could have defended that. You don’t know where a gun’s at. He’s out there breaking the law!”
According to Boan, the solicitor’s office “wasn’t right” for dropping every charge against Sims. He appears to have furthermore accused prosecutors of overreacting to Goldsmith’s BWC — and suggested that one incident wasn’t enough to compromise the former deputy’s credibility.
“I get so tired of this constitutional rights garbage… y’all keep hiding behind that,” Boan said. “Okay, look, bitch, if we’re not doing it, who will? Do you not think we need some type of law and order around here…? I hate it for Goldsmith.”
Despite Boan’s alleged disdain for constitutional rights, Sims’ lawsuit settled for $1.5 million in April of 2022. Ten months later, SLED charged Goldsmith with third degree assault and battery for pummeling the female detainee four years earlier.
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“FULL-BLOWN SHOCK…”
Despite years of litigation, fifth circuit prosecutors maintained Goldsmith was “one bad actor” during his four-day trial. They furthermore emphasized that his actions were not reflective of KCSO or law enforcement.
“We’ve all been in situations where we get real angry, real mad,” Boan said when called to the witness stand by Gipson. “And later on, when we calm down, we realize that we wish we hadn’t done what we done. That’s human nature. It’s tough to overcome human nature.”
Rather than question the sheriff over his categorical relationship with Goldsmith, Gipson instructed Boan to read KCSO’s mission statement, philosophy and oath of office to the jury. He then directed Boan to speak on Goldsmith’s apprehension of Sims on October 15, 2020.
“Who’s where they’re supposed to be,” continued Boan under oath. “Goldsmith was where he was supposed to be. My belief is Sims was not where he was supposed to be… and I’ll tell you something about use of force. It’s not a glamorous art form. It’s ugly.”
Having previously referred to Sims as a “loser” while defending Goldsmith’s actions on hidden camera video, Boan told the jury otherwise on September 5, 2024. He was joined by approximately 15 deputies who sat behind Goldsmith’s defense table that morning
“Once the handcuffs went on, I’d have a hard time trying to defend anything after that point,” testified Boan. “I have no problem with [Goldsmith] trying to help [Sims] up to set him in the car where it may be more comfortable… but that juice wasn’t worth the squeeze.”
During a brief cross-examination by defense attorney George McElveen, Boan reiterated handcuffs “weren’t built for comfort” and emphasized Goldsmith was a “good deputy.” He furthermore noted BWC footage of Sims’ arrest was poor quality, at times.
At 11:15 a.m. EST, McElveen called Goldsmith to the witness stand. While the former deputy testified to serving nearly 11 years in the U.S. Army (USA), he made no mention of receiving 40 days of non-judicial punishment for assaulting another soldier while deployed to Afghanistan.
(Click to view)
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During his examination on the stand, Goldsmith testified to having radio problems in the immediate aftermath of knocking Sims unconscious. He furthermore attested to having no intention of hurting the suspect — saying he only sought to gain control of a potentially life-threatening situation.
“[Sims] is a pretty big gentleman,” Goldsmith said under oath. “I believe he was actually trying to escape… his center of gravity is much lower than mine. It’s pretty much impossible, without me falling on top of him, to keep him from falling down.”
During cross-examination by Gipson, Goldsmith was instructed to read his official incident report of Sims’ apprehension. While he attested to striking the suspect four times on October 16, 2020, the defendant was confronted with ABC surveillance video capturing what appeared to be five punches.
“Oh,” said a speechless Goldsmith. “Yea… no. There’s not a fifth… no, sir. That is me reaching over. Grabbing his hand. Bringing it behind his back… I might have miscounted. But that last, what you believe is a strike, is me reaching over. Grabbing his hand… to handcuff him.”
While on the stand, Goldsmith denied using his police baton on Sims—to which the jury was provided with footage of him prodding the suspect with his baton. He furthermore attested to being elbowed while fending off charges by Sims, despite any recording or reporting of such resistance.
“I, frankly, have never seen anybody that took the beating that Mr. Sims took,” said judge Hood while sentencing Goldsmith on September 6, 2024. “I was in… full-blown shock that a man was handcuffed and partially inside of a car and was tased and pepper sprayed after he was clearly knocked unconscious.”
In addition to his sentence in the Sims’ case, Goldsmith faces a maximum of 30 additional days for allegedly assaulting the female detainee in May of 2020, according to Assistant Solicitor Paul Walton.
“We are pleased with the jury’s decision to hold Johnathan Goldsmith accountable,” Walton said after sentencing. “Law enforcement works very hard… every day to serve and protect the community. This officer’s actions are not reflective of what law enforcement stands for.”
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
(Dynal Nolan/FITSNews)
Andrew Fancher is a Lone Star Emmy award-winning journalist from Dallas, Texas. Cut from a bloodline of outlaws and lawmen alike, he was the first of his family to graduate college which was accomplished with honors. Got a story idea or news tip for Andy? Email him directly and connect with him socially across Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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5 comments
All cut and dried, eh? First off, Sheriff Boan is head and shoulders above the guy he replaced. As a citizen of Kershaw County, it is nice to have a Sheriff again, rather than a reputed former G-Man who really had disdain for citizens and our rights, as well as the rights of his deputies. I understand Sheriff Boan’s frustration with the way things are now, where every use of force a policeman deploys has the potential to be not only a career ender, but to finish your life of by sending you to prison.
I believe the church where the main incident covered here occurred, or one in its area, had been the victim of several auto breakings not long before the incident with Deputy Goldsmith and the Sims man. I believe this sentence by the author was in error. “Despite finding nothing illegal, he proceeded to detain Sims without probable cause for an arrest.” Wrong! Given past crimes against churches and/or attendees in that area, indices of public intoxication, possible hit and run damage, and other possible factors such as Sims being somewhere he likely had no business being and that holster but no visible gun, I would say that Mr Goldsmith had plenty of probable cause to detain Sims.
Media and ambulance chasing lawyers have always had a knack for exaggerating any conflict between police and criminals to the favor of the criminal and the detriment of the cop. This appears to be no exception. Regarding the female that Goldsmith allegedly struck at the jail, what might she have done to warrant that? I feel like there is much more to the story than just Goldsmith walked up to her and struck her for no reason. What is the rest of the story on that one? What was she doing prior to that incident?
Much seemed to be made of the number of times Goldsmith struck Sims and his account vs the very poor and grainy video shown. What your average citizen will never grasp or understand, is how adrenalin, fear, physical exertion, and like factors play on your perception of an incident. It is very easy to lose count of the number of punches or baton strikes that were administered during such encounters.
I have read articles by experts in self defense, of both citizens and police, telling investigators they fired one or two shots, when the empty case count or other evidence indicated six or more shots fired. This is not a willful attempt at deception, but an honest misperception brought about by adrenalin and other factors as noted above. Many of these self-defense experts caution citizens and police to not trap themselves into giving a number of shots fired to investigators, due to the appearance of deception when none may be intended, as happened here.
As to the video created by Boan, so what? Men in high stress environments have long used humour to deal with events that occurred on the job, and for good-natured ribbing regarding these events. In the same department, when they were located inside the courthouse , fifty plus years ago, there was a murder in the county of a storekeeper during an armed robbery. A KCSD Sergeant, now deceased, was part of the manhunt searching for the storekeeper’s murderer. Back then, the rules for shooting a fleeing felon were more relaxed than today, though this incident would likely have passed muster, even today. The Sergeant happened upon the murderer, who was armed. The murderer fled and the Sergeant pursued. The Sergeant fired one shot from his revolver and struck the murderer in one of his butt cheeks, bringing him down. The murderer was apprehended, eventually tried, and convicted of his crimes. The media said he was shot “in the hip”, but it was his butt cheek. The Sergeant was ragged afterward about shooting him in his buttcheek. He said he was trying to hit him in the leg, drawing the comment from others that he should have aimed for his butt, then. The next day, someone in the SO had cut a “Snuffy Smith” cartoon out of the newspaper. The cartoon involved someone talking to a stranger about taking a shortcut through Snuffy’s woods to get somewhere they were going. At some point, the traveler taking a shortcut through the woods, wound up being chased by a big vicious bear and roughed up a bit. Someone wrote the murderer’s name on the traveler’s picture and the Sergeant’s on the bear’s. It was taped to the door of the radio room for about a week and gave everyone who walked by a mild chuckle.
Like Sheriff Boan’s video, the cartoon did no actual harm. It wasn’t politically correct and no doubt, some would have not found it humorous, but it did no harm.
Sheriff Boan has consistently demonstrated care for citizens’ rights, such as right after our Legislature passed “Open Carry With Permit” a couple of years ago. I was pleased to see Sheriff Boan issue orders to both 911 Dispatch and his deputies, that his deputies would not respond to calls of a citizen openly carrying a firearm if that was the only reason for the call. Under that (then) new law, it was now legal for a citizen with a CWP to openly wear a firearm. Absent other suspicious factors such as lurking around the back or side of a business, brandishing the weapon, shouting or other abnormal behavior, there just really was no reason for police to accost or harass a citizen who is exercising a legal right under the law. Ditto Sheriff Boan’s handling of our newer Constitutional Carry where he said, and I am paraphrasing, “it doesn’t matter what I think or anyone else thinks of this law. It is the law and we will respect citizens’ rights”.
One more thing I have admired about Sheriff Boan’s way of doing things. He has one of the very few departments in SC that has not encrypted all of their radio traffic so citizens have no idea what is going on unless and until media finds out and tells us. A few years ago, we had an ice storm. I listened to his deputies, going beyond their job description and call of duty, getting their own chain saws and cutting up and removing fallen trees, limbs, and other debris from Kershaw County roads, for the safety and convenience of our citizens. That they were getting out of their cars in the cold and making roads passable for us, much sooner than if we had to wait on SCDOT, meant a lot. In my opinion, any Police or Sheriff’s Department that encrypts their dispatch channels, has lost any and all claims to “transparency”, which so many love to claim but do not have.
I hope Sheriff Boan continues to serve for many years to come.
An incredibly stupid and loutish comment by KC Citizen…..may s(he) someday be on the receiving end of that which s(he) so casually excuses.
Also the author Mr. Fancher should not refer to the victims of Mr. Goldsmith as “civilians”. Civilian means non-military. Yes as we descend further into a police state, there is a tendency to unofficially promote policemen and deputies to military status. But so far, at least technically, this is not the case.
Care to elaborate on your attack of Kershaw County Citizen?
Understanding your point would be helpful.
Not everyone agrees with you.
Trying to understand your point.
Whenever a thick blue liner does virtually anything that draws public scorn there always appears the loyalist who defend and excuse any action up to and including outright murder by one of their own.
As Nancy states above the fact KC Citizen refers to the indigenous population as “Civilians” is important as it shows the clear mentality that the people are the enemy or at least potential enemies of the state and should be treated as such. This attitude has become pervasive and has been further enhanced by the forever wars and those returning from combat into law enforcement. The value of human life, at least those not wearing a magic badge is diminished in war and that attitude has infected nearly every LE agency in the nation.
The Goldsmith “hanging” was a show trial just to restore a semblance of trust and cover up the fact that Boan and many others knew about Goldsmith for years and went out of their way to recruit him back to be what he has always been, the “hammer”.
In the end will this case make any difference? No.
The beatings will continue until moral improves. Any law, any order will be enforced. Just doing our jobs. Nothing to see here, please move along.
Anarchist extraordinaire Jeff.
Such a faux pax as you allege by KCC.
Seems to be absent from his or her comment.
How do you get that they used the word “civilian” in their post?
Observing this word in their post, I do not.
Likely, you are delusional.
Expedient relief might be achieved by taking your Thorazine.