Man Charged with Hate Crime for Shooting Near LGBTQ Club
Police say the suspect fired multiple shots outside Pulse Ultra Club in Myrtle Beach, damaging a vehicle but causing no injuries.
Timothy James Truett, Jr., of Clover, S.C., is facing a hate crime charge after allegedly firing a gun outside Pulse Ultra Club, an LGBTQ nightclub in Myrtle Beach.
The 37-year-old Truett was later arrested and charged with hate intimidation, possession of a weapon during a violent crime, discharging a firearm into a dwelling, discharging a firearm within the city, and damaging property, according to Myrtle Beach-based NBC affiliate WMBF.
A Myrtle Beach Police Department spokesperson told CBS affiliate WBTW that Truett is the first person arrested under the city’s hate intimidation law, which passed in 2024.
Under the statute, anyone convicted of a crime targeting a victim based on their actual or perceived “race, color, creed, religion, ancestry, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical or mental disability, or national origin” can be sentenced to up to 30 days in jail and fined up to $500, in addition to any penalties for the underlying crime.
The law also requires that any sentence for violating the hate intimidation statute run consecutively to the sentence for the underlying offense, unless a court explains on the record why the sentences should run concurrently.
According to the Myrtle Beach Police Department, officers responded to Pulse Ultra Club around 11 a.m. on April 1 after reports of shots fired in the 2700 block of South Kings Highway.
In an affidavit, the nightclub’s owner, Ken Phillips, said he discovered that a window and the windshield of his SUV had been shattered by bullets when he went outside. An SUV with blue plastic covering one window was left at the scene.
Phillips said he heard five or six gunshots before heading to his car. Police reviewed surveillance footage showing a silver-colored vehicle stopping in the middle of the road outside the nightclub, according to WMBF. The footage appears to show muzzle flashes coming from the passenger-side window.
According to the affidavit, an officer later pulled over a vehicle matching the description and driven by Truett, finding spent shell casings in the back seat, along with a gun.
Police say Phillips’ vehicle sustained about $5,000 in damage.
The affidavit does not detail why Truett was charged under the hate intimidation law.
Adam Hayes, vice chair of Myrtle Beach’s Human Rights Coalition, which pushed for passage of the hate intimidation law, said the shooting has left some community members shaken.
“The day it happened, I got about 10 to 12 text messages from people saying, ‘Do you know what happened? Can you tell us what this is?'” he recalled. He added that he’s glad to see law enforcement using the hate intimidation statute to prosecute cases where they believe bias played a role.
“It’s nice to see that something we put into policy is not just a piece of paper, that it’s actually being used,” he said.
Phillips told WMBF that he doesn’t know what the alleged shooter’s motivations were, and said that while he thinks more damage would have been caused in a hate crime, he doesn’t know for sure.
“I have mixed feelings about that,” he said. “Whether they know I’m gay and it’s a gay hate crime that way, or it’s a community thing and mine was the only vehicle in the parking lot. Either way, it still gives me great concern, more so now than ever.”
Phillips said he has ordered a new security camera system for his nightclub, citing concerns about the safety of his customers.
“It’s given me great concern…as to how far people will go,” he added.
Truett is being held at the J. Reuben Long Detention Center on bonds totaling more than $313,000, according to Horry County public records. His next court appearance is scheduled for June 5.
Police are asking anyone with additional information about the shooting to call Myrtle Beach police at 843-918-1382.
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