COLUMBIA, S.C. — A South Carolina man has been sentenced to life in prison for the 2022 shooting death of six-year-old Winston Hunter in the Orangeburg County town of North.

First Circuit Solicitor David Pascoe announced that Michael Thomas Lloyd pleaded guilty to murder on October 14, 2025, in Orangeburg County Circuit Court. Circuit Judge Maite Murphy sentenced Lloyd to prison for the rest of his natural life.

According to prosecutors, the shooting happened on May 13, 2022, when at least 21 bullets were fired into a home on McClain Street as Winston and his family were settling in for the night. The child was struck in the head and wrist while lying on the couch watching television and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators said surveillance video showed a light-colored se

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