Man dies in collision

A West Columbia man died in a collision on US 1 Friday afternoon.

Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher said the man died in a motor vehicle collision in the 2900 block of Augusta Road at approximately 4:30 pm.

Cody Dean Laux, 26, of West Columbia was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Fisher.

Laux was traveling east on Augusta Road when he lost control of his vehicle, crossed the center line, and collided head-on with an oncoming vehicle.

Laux was wearing a seat belt at the time of the incident, and no other injuries were reported.

The collision is under investigation by the West Columbia Police Department.

2 men charged in Swansea shooting

Lexington County deputies have arrested and charged 2 men in a shooting in Swansea that injured a woman last week.

Xavier Marquis Golson, 23, and Jose Cedeak Antonio Haygood, 25, are charged with 2 counts of attempted murder, attempted armed robbery and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, according to arrest warrants.

Detectives determined Golson and Haygood tried to rob a man and a woman from their car parked in the 800 block of Bachman Dykes Road, Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon said.

Golson and Haygood fired multiple shots at the car as it drove away.

A female passenger was struck in the head, according to Koon. The woman continues to receive care at the hospital for what her medical team describes as a serious injury.

Both men are being held in the Lexington County Detention Center.

New charges in boat crash deaths

A Newberry man is facing additional charges in connection with a fatal boating accident that occurred in August.

Dylan Yancey Steele, 26, has been charged with homicide and reckless homicide with a boat.

Steele was originally charged with 2 counts of felony BUI causing death or injury and operating a vessel with no running lights after sundown.

According to officials, on Aug. 1 three boats were out together on the Broad River in Newberry County.

As they headed back to Heller’s Creek Landing, one of the boats collided with 1 other boat, killing 2 people on board.

27-year-old Jamie Lindler, of Chapin, and 28-year-old Andrew Bunnell, of Irmo, were killed.

Steele was taken into custody and later bonded out.

SCDNR is continuing to investigate.

iPhone users win $113M settlement

Tech giant Apple, Inc. has settled a $113 million suit that it intentionally slowed iPhone speeds.

SC Attorney General Alan Wilson and 30 other attorneys general allege that in 2016, Apple discovered battery issues were leading to unexpected shutdowns in iPhones.

Rather than disclosing these issues or replacing batteries, Apple concealed the issues from consumers.

Apple’s concealment ultimately led to a software update in December 2016 that reduced iPhone performance in an effort to keep the phones from unexpectedly shutting down.

The attorneys general allege that Apple’s concealment of the battery issues and decision to throttle the performance of consumers’ iPhones led to Apple profiting from selling additional iPhones to consumers whose phone performance Apple had slowed.

Under the settlement, Apple will pay South Carolina $1,815,511.36 and provide truthful information to consumers about iPhone battery health, performance, and power management.

If the settlement is approved by the court, consumers who are affected will be contacted about how to get compensation under that separate class action lawsuit. Approximately 1,378,000 iPhones in South Carolina were affected.

22 years for Lexington home invasion

Brandon Thompson, 33, of Columbia, was sentenced to nearly 22 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery and being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

On December 30, 2017, Thompson and co-defendent Quintrell Morris robbed at gunpoint a woman and her 2 children on Maple View Drive.

Thompson and Morris tied up the family and attempted to steal money from the homeowner’s safe.

Thompson was prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition based upon prior state convictions for armed robbery, assault with intent to kill, and carjacking. At the time of the federal offense, Thompson had just been released from state prison nine months earlier after serving a 14-year sentence.

US District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis sentenced Thompson to 262 months in federal prison, to be followed by a 3-year term of supervised release.

Co-defendant Morris previously plead guilty to his role and was sentenced to 272 months imprisonment with a 5-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.