Domestic dispute ends with man killing woman and her mother, SC officials say

Weeks after the bodies of two women were found at their rural South Carolina home a man was charged with two counts of murder, according to the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office.

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Howard “Doug” Coker Jr., also was charged possession of a weapon during a violent crime and first-degree burglary, the sheriff’s office said Thursday in a news release.

The crimes are connected to the deaths of the women, who were identified by Sumter County Coroner Robbie Baker as 41-year-old Melony Johnson, and her 55-year-old mother Lola Hurt.

The women had been shot and killed, according to Baker.

The mother and daughter were dead when found at their Pudding Swamp Road home on Sept. 2, Baker said. That’s in the Lynchburg area, not far from the line separating Sumter and Clarendon counties.

Coker and Johnson were involved in an ongoing domestic dispute, the sheriff’s office said.

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Despite the arrest, the sheriff’s office said it’s continuing to investigate the double homicide. Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 803-436-2000.

“This was a heinous act of violence against two innocent parties,” Sheriff Anthony Dennis said in the release. “The sheriff’s office will continue to seek justice for these victims in this tragic case.”

Dennis called domestic violence an “ongoing issue,” and urged anyone dealing with domestic abuse to reach out for help.