A South Carolina man was sentenced to 45 years in prison after fatally shooting his fiancée’s father during a domestic argument, prosecutors said.
Joshua Scott-Lee Butler, 29, was convicted of murder by a jury for the May 2023 slaying of 53-year-old Earl Goodwater.
The deadly confrontation occurred outside Goodwater’s South Carolina home, according to prosecutors.
According to prosecutors, Butler and his then-fiancée had been arguing earlier that night before the confrontation became physical.
Butler struck the woman in the face, cutting her mouth and causing swelling, prosecutors said.
The physical assault took place directly in front of the couple’s daughter, prosecutors said. The woman then went inside her parents’ home and called for help.
That was when the 53-year-old father stepped in to protect his daughter, prosecutors said.
Goodwater reportedly told his daughter to “leave that boy alone.”
The two men then began fighting outside the residence, prosecutors said.
Family members managed to separate Butler and Goodwater, potentially ending the confrontation. But prosecutors said Butler was not finished.
Butler went to his vehicle, retrieved a 9 mm handgun and returned to the confrontation, prosecutors said.
Another struggle erupted near the porch between the two men, prosecutors said.
During that confrontation, Butler placed the 53-year-old father in a headlock while still holding the handgun, prosecutors said.
A single round was then fired into the father’s face, according to prosecutors.
Goodwater was struck in his right cheek and died almost immediately, prosecutors said.
Butler then fled the scene with his 4-year-old daughter before later returning, prosecutors said.
Deputies were already waiting when the defendant returned to the South Carolina home. Butler was arrested, and the case eventually went before a jury.
The jury convicted Butler of murder, pointing a firearm and possessing a weapon during a violent crime, prosecutors said.
A judge has now sentenced the 29-year-old man to 45 years in prison for the murder.
Prosecutors described Goodwater’s actions in simple terms following the trial. They said the father “did what any good father would do” when he stepped in to protect his daughter and grandchildren.
That decision ultimately cost Goodwater his life outside his own home minutes after he intervened in the assault, prosecutors said.
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