Vincent Lee Carson was wanted for another hotel robbery when he hid in the breakfast room of a Days Inn in Columbia, South Carolina. The female hotel clerk who came in to prepare breakfast “was about 100 pounds lighter than Carson and stood at least a foot shorter than him.” Carson attacked and held a knife to her throat.
Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said Carson’s intent was not only to rob the motel, but also to rape the clerk. “There’s no doubt that was his intent,” said Lott. “Not only was he going to rob her, but he was going to sexually assault her. Now what was he going to do after that assault was over with, we don’t know.”
As Carson pocketed his knife and prepared to tie her up, the victim drew a .22 caliber pistol and shot him point blank in the chest.
In the previous robbery, Carson broke into the hotel room of “two elderly tourists” and took their money, cell phone, and vehicle.
This victim received permission from her employer to carry on the job after being “victimized in one of two recent robberies at the same Days Inn.”
Sheriff Lott said “Carter had a lengthy criminal record in New York and New Jersey.”
“He was a career criminal on a crime spree and would not have stopped except for what happened this morning.”
Lott concluded: “The bottom line — he is the one who caused him to get killed.”
By defending her life, this victim benefitted society by stopping future violence, too.
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