A driver who “intentionally” ran over a woman and two children outside a church preschool has been charged with attempted murder, police said.
An hours-long manhunt was launched for South Carolina man Justin Collin Adams, 36, following the crash Thursday outside Sunrise Presbyterian Church in Sullivan's Island, just outside Charleston. No one was seriously hurt in the incident.
The town was on “lockdown” until Adams was found hiding out on a docked boat after police spotted him from a helicopter, according to ABC4 News.
He has been charged with three counts of attempted murder and first-degree assault and battery, according to online Charleston County Sheriff’s Office records.
Before Adams was apprehended, Isle of Palms police Sgt. Matt Storen warned the community that he was armed with a knife after ditching his car and running away.
FBI and U.S. Marshals were involved in the search, as the authorities deployed drones, helicopters and boats in the search.
“You may have felt about 25-30 minutes ago everyone on Sullivan's Island breathing a sigh of relief,” Mayor Patrick M. O'Neil said Thursday. “I think we owe a lot of thanks to all of our law enforcement officials who are here and across the way, finishing up the work over there.”
One child and the woman were taken to hospitals and the third child was treated by paramedics at the scene before being released, police said at a news conference Thursday.
The second child has since been discharged from the hospital, the Medical University of South Carolina said, and the woman was also due to be released.
“We're thankful that those injuries aren't as serious as we thought they were going to be,” Sullivan's Island Police Chief Glenn Meadow said.
The investigation is now being led by the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office.
