The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the 2022 conviction of Dominique Devonah Brand. He was found guilty of kidnapping resulting in death, carjacking resulting in death, and using or carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence in a manner constituting murder.
The court's decision follows a multi-day bench trial held in September 2022. During the trial, evidence showed that on March 28, 2021, Brand entered the home of Mary Ann Elvington in Nichols, South Carolina. Elvington was an 80-year-old retired elementary school teacher known for her involvement in her church and community. Prior to this incident, Brand had burglarized another nearby residence and vandalized a local church.
Brand forced Ms. Elvington to drive him from her house to Lake Waccamaw, North Carolina, and back into South Carolina while holding her at gunpoint with a stolen shotgun. Eventually, he forced her into the back seat of her car and drove to a remote location in Marion County. There, he executed Ms. Elvington by shooting her behind an abandoned grocery store. Brand then hid her car behind an abandoned club in Marion.
Ms. Elvington’s body was discovered the following evening. Despite Brand's denial of committing the murder during his post-arrest statement, his guilt was established through DNA evidence, cell phone analytics, and crime scene analysis.
“We are pleased that the Fourth Circuit has affirmed the convictions we proved beyond a reasonable doubt in the senseless kidnapping and murder of Ms. Mary Ann Elvington,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Brook B. Andrews for the District of South Carolina. “This has been a painful ordeal for her loved ones, and we send our continued support to Ms. Elvington’s family.”
United States District Judge Sherri A. Lydon presided over the trial and sentenced Brand to two concurrent life sentences for carjacking and kidnapping convictions plus ten consecutive years for using a firearm during these offenses.
Brand is currently held at USP Hazelton in West Virginia under the custody of the Bureau of Prisons.
The investigation involved multiple agencies including the FBI Columbia Field Office with significant assistance from state and local law enforcement agencies such as SLED, Horry County Police Department, Marion County Sheriff’s Office among others.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Everett McMillian and Kathleen Stoughton prosecuted alongside Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Hixson who also serves as Deputy Solicitor for the 15th Judicial Circuit.
