A West Columbia resident was sentenced to 45 years in prison for murder.

On June 23, Trevor Anthony Irvin, 30, was convicted by a Lexington County jury  after an hour and a half of deliberations, for the murder of Daniel Demetrius Jones, 33. The trial lasted over a week and ended with Irvin being sentenced to 45 years in prison without eligibility for parole.

According to a release, Irvin shot and killed Jones on June 24, 2021 in the Capitol Square Parking lot, located at 469 Sunset Blvd. in West Columbia, across from the House of Raeford chicken plant.

The release states that the shooting took place around 7:07 a.m. and that the West Columbia Police Department responded very quickly. Jones was pronounced dead at the scene despite having a pulse when officers arrived.

According to the release Irvin was not on the scene when police arrived, though he returned, stating that he shot in self defense. During the trial, Irvin told the jury he was in fear for his life at the time of the shooting.

The release states that during the trial evidence and testimony revealed that Irvin worked as a line lead at the plant, saying that he and Jones worked in the same section during the night shift. Jones and his girlfriend were no longer working on the line Irvin primarily worked on due to prior disagreements.

According to the release, testimony revealed that on the day of the shooting, Irvin confronted Jones after their lunch break, leading to a verbal altercation on the line Jones was assigned to. A witness testified that he had to move Irvin off the line to get him away from Jones. Further testimony revealed that Irvin has disrespected Jones and his girlfriend.

The release states that as Irvin threatened to kill Jones saying he would “F*** [him] up in the parking lot.”

According to the release, the shift ended around 6:30 a.m. when the two workers ended up in the parking lot across the street and eventually at a gas station behind the shopping center where the altercation ensued.

The release states that investigators with the police department obtained video surveillance from the gas station, The video showed that around 6:38 a.m. Irvin could be seen pulling out his firearm and/or showing it to Jones approximately seven times.

The release states that Irvin threw a punch at Jones and others intervened to separate the two. After the gas station altercation the workers were back in the parking lot across from the plant. Testimony from trial indicated Irvin was standing on cars and taunting Jones, and video surveillance from the parking lot supported this.

The release states that after Irvin left the general area of the parking lot he continued to talk about the incident at the gas station and wanted to get Jones to engage in a fight with him, telling Jones to hit him and throwing air punches.

According to the release, once Jones engaged Irvin shot him 15 times as Jones ducked and attempted to run away. Irvin continued to shoot once Jones was on the ground. The autopsy revealed that Jones sustained gunshot wounds to the head, abdomen, hand and back.

“During sentencing family members addressed the Court expressing that this was a ‘senseless’ killing and that ‘nobody wins here,’” the release states. “Jones was a loving father, friend, brother, and son who did not deserve to lose his life in such a brutal killing.”

The release states that Senior Assistant Solicitor Sutania A. Fuller and Deputy Solicitor Rhonda Patterson with the 11th Circuit Solicitor's Office handled the case. The investigation was conducted by tWest Columbia Police with the assistance of the state Law Enforcement Division with assistance from SLED.

Irvin will be transported to the South Carolina Department of Corrections to begin serving his sentence, the release states.