The case of Kingsborough vs. Laurens County ended today with a jury verdict coming just before lunch.
The jury found the Laurens County Sheriff’s Office guilty of negligence during the bond hearing of Bennie Brown, but ruled that there was no proof that his release was directly responsible for the murders of Deputy Rodger Rice, and Nicole Kingsborough.
That ruling meant that Minni Kingsborough, as Personal Representative for her deceased daughter Nicole Kingsborough and her estate, would not be eligible for any financial compensation.
The ruling of gross negligence on the part of the Laurens County Sheriff’s Office was due to certain facts being left out in the paperwork presented to the judge during the bond hearing of Benny Brown, which allowed him to be free on personal recognizance.
The plaintiff’s attorneys, Pat Knie and Albert V. Smith of Spartanburg, tried to prove that if Brown had not been let out on a bond, the murder of Nicole Brown and Deputy Rodger Rice would not have happened.
One of the points of the plaintiff was that there was additional information regarding the criminal history of Brown on the public index that was not included in the NCIC (National Crime Information Center) report, which is the only report that is required to be presented to a judge at a bond hearing.
Attorneys from Chapman, Harter and Harter in Greenville, successfully argued that while Brown was out on bail, Nicole brought their children to visit him, and that she did not show up for the bond hearing, and she also stated on the victim form, when first abused by Brown, that she did not want to press charges.
