On the heels of three guilty verdicts, Augusta Circuit District Attorney Jared Williams took a moment Wednesday to praise his office’s Major Crimes Division and report an 80% success rate in its prosecutions.
Last week was a “perfect example of the office we aspire to be,” Williams said at a news conference.
Friday, the Special Victims Unit of the Major Crimes Division secured a guilty verdict and life sentence for Kendrick Dante Evans, 39. Evans was accused of the 2021 aggravated molestation of a 12-year-old, who he groomed online and raped in his home.
Led by veteran prosecutor Deshala Dixon, the unit was established in December 2021 to address crimes against women and children, sex trafficking and crimes against the vulnerable and elderly.
The unit had another court victory in July with a life-plus-100-year sentence for David Wesley Campbell, 40. Campbell was accused of 25 counts of child sexual abuse against two girls.
Last week, the Violent Crimes and Gang Unit of the Major Crimes Division secured guilty verdicts of two men accused of gunning down 18-year-old Brian Harris Jr. in 2019 at a Gordon Highway gas station.
Chief Assistant District Attorney G. Kevin Davis and ADA Cedric James prosecuted Keshun Carswell and Artavius Ward, now 30. Superior Court Judge John Flythe sentenced them both to life without parole.
Led by ADA Keagan Waystack, the Violent Crimes and Gang Unit prosecutes offenders such as the motorcycle gang members who engaged in a violent May shootout.
“Our office is too busy to stop and tell the community every time we successfully litigate a case,” said Williams, whom Columbia County prosecutor Amber Brantley is challenging in the May Democratic primary.
“Ever since one of our employees takes on the weight of the world as they attempt to protect our entire community from the few that mean to harm it,” Williams said.
The office has changed substantially since 2021, when Williams took office and Columbia County split from the Augusta Circuit. Former Augusta District Attorney Natalie Paine is now chief ADA in Columbia, and several Augusta ADAs transferred there as well.
Williams said overall, the Major Crimes Unit had led to an increase in successful prosecutions from 48% in 2019 to 80% last year.
