Augusta Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun Charge in Bamberg Trooper Shooting

Derrick Gathers, 40, of Augusta, Georgia, pleaded guilty in federal court to a single count of being a felon in possession of a firearm after a 2023 traffic stop on U.S. 78 in Bamberg County that left South Carolina Highway Patrol Trooper B.A. Frazier wounded. Federal prosecutors and local law enforcement tied a loaded 9mm pistol recovered from Gathers’ vehicle to cartridge casings at the scene through testing by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.

The stop began when Trooper Frazier pulled a vehicle over for speeding on Highway 78 and the driver, later identified as Gathers, provided his license and registration. “After Gathers provided his license and registration, Trooper Frazier returned to his patrol vehicle to run a routine records check. Officials said Trooper Frazier had concerns about the driver’s license and reapproached the driver’s side of the vehicle to investigate. According to statements made in court, Gathers then pulled out a firearm, shot Trooper Frazier in the face and fled the scene,” court filings and law-enforcement summaries state.

A Bamberg County Sheriff’s Department deputy and Trooper Frazier returned fire as Gathers sped away, and multiple agencies including Bamberg Police Department and the South Carolina Highway Patrol pursued the vehicle. Law enforcement located the car as the chase moved through Bamberg County into Branchville in Orangeburg County, where Gathers lost control, crashed and was taken into custody. The Dorchester County Sheriff’s Department executed a search warrant on the vehicle and “found a pistol loaded with 9mm ammunition under the brake pedal,” and SLED matched that pistol to one of the cartridge casings left at the initial stop.

Media and court accounts differ on the date of the traffic stop: the U.S. Attorney’s Office and most reports cite August 16, 2023, while a separate account from a regional outlet lists April 16, 2023, at about 3:30 a.m. The hospital and law-enforcement records identify Trooper B.A. Frazier as the injured officer; one report specifies the wound was to the right side of his face, and local reporting says Frazier has since recovered from his injuries.

Gathers’ federal guilty plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis, and sentencing will be set after a sentencing report is prepared by the U.S. Probation Office. Federal exposure for the single count was reported as up to 15 years in prison, plus potential fines and supervised release; one report cited a maximum fine of $250,000. Separate state records referenced in reporting show prior convictions: New York convictions for third-degree rape and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon that bear on Gathers’ felon status, and state convictions in May 2025 for attempted murder, possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime, and failure to stop for a blue light linked to the same Bamberg County incident.