|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
by JENN WOOD
***
South Carolina’s prosecution of Alexander Devonte Dickey — the career criminal accused of murdering 22-year-old Logan Hailey Federico in Columbia on May 3, 2025 — has become a very public dispute between the Palmetto State’s top prosecutor and the elected solicitor entrusted with handling the case.
Just one day after Logan’s father Stephen Federico delivered blistering testimony before a U.S. House Judiciary subcommittee in Charlotte, N.C., South Carolina attorney general Alan Wilson sent a letter (.pdf) to S.C. fifth circuit solicitor Byron Gipson urging him to seek the death penalty against Dickey.
Wilson’s letter argued the case contained clear statutory aggravating factors — most notably that the murder occurred during the commission of a burglary — and cited Dickey’s decade of convictions and repeated failures under probation and incarceration.
“His past history, as well as his current violent crime charges show an appropriate candidate for the ultimate punishment,” Wilson wrote.
Wilson gave Gipson until next Friday (October 10, 2025) to indicate whether his office would pursue death — and warned that if Gipson was “unable to proceed,” the attorney general’s office stood ready to assume responsibility.
***
RELATED | ‘YOU WOKE UP A BEAST’
***
GIBSON PUSHES BACK
In response to Wilson’s letter, Gipson fired back with a letter (.pdf) of his own. He acknowledged Wilson’s supervisory authority related to all prosecutions in the Palmetto State, but called the imposed deadline “reckless, irresponsible, and unethical.”
“To make such a determination a mere four months into the case, without investing the due diligence necessary to conduct a thorough analysis of all facets of the evidence, would set a dangerous precedent,” Gipson wrote.
According to the solicitor, forensic analyses are still pending – one of the reasons his team is not yet in a position to ethically decide whether to seek death.
Gipson also noted most of Dickey’s long history of arrests occurred outside his jurisdiction. Of approximately 40 prior charges across multiple counties since 2013, only one — a 2022 arrest — fell within the fifth circuit’s purview.
“The remaining offenses all occurred in other jurisdictions which would make any prosecutorial decisions related to those offenses the responsibility of other prosecutorial agencies,” Gipson wrote.
Still, he pledged to keep the Federico family informed and stressed that Dickey would remain in pretrial confinement without bond.
***
RELATED | ‘THE SYSTEM FAILED LOGAN’
***
A FATHER’S CRUSADE
The prosecutorial drama comes as Logan’s father continues pressing for accountability. Before Congress this week, Federico denounced South Carolina’s “decade of cascading failures” that allowed Dickey — arrested 39 times and charged with 25 felonies — to remain on the street.
“He should’ve been in jail for over 140 years,” Federico said. “You know how much time he spent in prison? A little over 600 days in 10 years.”
FITSNews has reported how many of Dickey’s charges were mislabeled, pled down, or never properly entered into the state’s fingerprint-based “Citizens Access to Criminal Histories,” or “CATCH” report system – thus allowing him to escape repeat-offender sentencing enhancements.
For Federico, the fight isn’t about politics.
“Stop protecting the people that keep taking our children from us,” he told lawmakers. “You have the power … do your job.”
The dueling letters underscore a deeper rift over how South Carolina handles its most serious prosecutions. Wilson’s move signals impatience with perceived inaction, while Gipson insists rushing a death penalty decision would compromise justice.
Either way, Logan’s case has forced South Carolina’s judicial system into the center of a national debate over criminal records, prosecutorial accountability, and whether the state’s courts are capable of handling repeat violent offenders before tragedy strikes again.
For now, Dickey remains behind bars. The question is whether the state will seek the ultimate punishment — and which prosecutor will ultimately make that call.
***
UPDATE |
Wilson has assigned his top death penalty lawyer to Gipson’s office…
***
ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
As a private investigator turned journalist, Jenn Wood brings a unique skill set to FITSNews as its research director. Known for her meticulous sourcing and victim-centered approach, she helps shape the newsroom’s most complex investigative stories while producing the FITSFiles and Cheer Incorporated podcasts. Jenn lives in South Carolina with her family, where her work continues to spotlight truth, accountability, and justice.
***
WANNA SOUND OFF?
Got something you’d like to say in response to one of our articles? Or an issue you’d like to address proactively? We have an open microphone policy! Submit your letter to the editor (or guest column) via email HERE. Got a tip for a story? CLICK HERE. Got a technical question or a glitch to report? CLICK HERE.
1 comment
All this trial needs now is a rope, tree and wobbly stool.