Independent-Mail

Maurice Mills, 18, left and Detravious Mills, 17, listen to testimony Friday in Anderson County Magistrate Court that links the two brothers to 21 felonies.

ANDERSON COUNTY — Two Anderson brothers showed no emotion Friday when an Anderson County Magistrate said he heard enough testimony to forward 21 felony charges against the two to a grand jury for indictment.

Maurice Mills, 18, and Detravious Mills, 17, both of Ferry Street, have been in custody without bond at the Anderson County Detention Center since Sept. 13, when roughly 38 gunshots were fired.

The violence started around 4:35 a.m. at South Main Street near Anderson and continued at a Hardee’s parking lot on S.C. 28 Bypass then to Hall Street roughly 90 minutes later.

Melody Holmes, one of two women shot during the violence, sat behind her sons, the Mills, and moments before the hearing joked about her boys being portrayed as violent men.

Maurice Mills is charged with one count of assault and battery with intent to kill, eight counts of assault with intent to kill, kidnapping and two counts of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime, according to court records.

Detravious Mills is charged with eight counts of assault with intent to kill and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, according to records.

Anderson County Sheriff’s Detective Jackie Wayne Mills, no relation to the two brothers, testified that the Mills brothers were in a gold vehicle with two other unidentified men during a shooting that was captured on surveillance video as the car drove into the restaurant’s parking lot.

At least 38 shell casings have been recovered, including five from a .45-caliber pistol fired by Fred Mattison, 26, of Anderson, who was serving probation after a 2007 burglary conviction, according to Detective Mills and court records, which indicate that Mattison has not been charged with a crime.

Under questioning by Anderson attorney Chuck Anderson, Detective Mills said none of the alleged victims called 911 and had fled the Hardee’s lot before deputies arrived.

Anderson also got Detective Mills to say that reported witnesses have provided conflicting stories and that there were no bullet holes in Mattison’s car in spite of testimony that five gunshots were fired from it with a .45-caliber pistol.

Roughly 33 gunshots were fired from other pistols.

When assistant solicitor David Phillips asked Detective Mills about the links to Maurice Mills and Detravious Mills, the detective testified that members of the Mattison family positively identified both of them as being involved in the shooting.

Holmes and Tiffany Graham were each hit by a bullet and are recovering, but the bullet that passed through Graham has not been recovered, and another bullet remains in Holmes’ shoulder, according to testimony.

Detective Mills testified that a determination has not been made if they were injured by the .45-caliber pistol or 9 mm pistols, allegedly used by the two brothers, but not recovered.

About 30 minutes after the Hardee’s shooting, a drive-by shooting was reported at the home lived in by the mother of Fred Mattison’s child on Nevitt Forest Road. Two gunshots hit the child’s bed, causing no injury, said Detective Mills, who indicated that the case remains under investigation, but no one has been charged as of Friday.

Then at 6:15 a.m. Sept. 13, Maurice Mills and another man allegedly ended the crime spree after confronting Darlene Mattison, 39, at gunpoint on Hall Street, hitting her with the pistol and refusing to let her leave.

So far, only Maurice Mills has been charged. Darlene Mattison is the mother of Fred Mattison and three other alleged victims from the Hardee’s parking lot.

According to arrest warrants for kidnapping and assault and battery with intent to kill, Maurice Mills demanded that Mattison call her son, beat her over her head and threatened to kill her.

Court records also show that both of the Mills were on bond and awaiting trial at the time of the Sept. 13 shootings.

Both Mills brothers are the subject of previous criminal charges involving guns.

In April, Anderson police charged Detravious Mills with a gun law violation and possession of a firearm under the age of 18 after being arrested with a 9 mm pistol.

Also in April, Anderson police charged Maurice Mills with a gun law violation after his arrest for concealing a .40-caliber pistol.