Morris Laytrell Dorch, 39, of Aiken, was booked Oct. 27 into the Aiken County Detention Center after being extradited from Florida in the shooting of Aiken County sheriff's Deputy Preston Metts. He is charged with attempted murder, possession of a weapon during a violent crime and possession of a firearm or ammunition by a person convicted of a violent felony.
Two other Aiken residents are charged in the case. Teondra Coleman, 32, who warrants say was driving the car Metts stopped, was booked Oct. 22 on a charge of misprision of a felony. Leviel Priester, 41, who warrants say drove Dorch to a Sumter hospital the day after the shooting, was booked Oct. 23 on a charge of accessory after the fact to attempted murder.
Sheriff Marty Sawyer said Metts, who joined the agency in February 2023, saw a traffic violation and stopped a Hyundai Tucson on Shiloh Heights Road near Pipeline Road around 11:30 p.m. Oct. 21. A passenger jumped out and ran into a wooded area, and Metts chased him. Dorch's arrest warrant identifies him as that passenger and says he fired an AR-style pistol at the deputy, hitting him in both legs, a hand and the chest. An AR-style firearm was recovered at the scene. "Even after being shot, the deputy was able to stay in the fight and return fire," Sawyer said. Metts called for backup and medical help, and other deputies gave him aid before he was taken to Wellstar MCG Health in Augusta. He has had two successful surgeries and faces more.
Warrants released by the State Law Enforcement Division say Coleman drove off in the Tucson after Dorch ran. The vehicle was located around 4 a.m. Oct. 22 in a subdivision a few minutes from the scene, and Shiloh Heights Road was closed for about seven and a half hours during the search. Coleman's misprision warrant alleges she knew the passenger, identified by the nickname "Peanut," had committed a felony and concealed it, and that she was found at her Aiken residence after backing the car into a closed garage. A separate warrant accuses her of failure to stop for blue lights.
Priester was arrested the night of Oct. 22 in Lexington County on an unrelated warrant. His warrant in the shooting alleges he drove Dorch and a woman to Prisma Health Tuomey Hospital in Sumter on Oct. 22 so Dorch could be treated for a gunshot wound to the foot. Dorch had told Priester he had been shot, according to the warrant, and left the hospital to avoid police when staff confronted him about the wound. Priester then allegedly drove him and the woman to a residence in Sumter. Judge Donna Williamson set Priester's bond at $15,000, and he was released the day after his arrest.
Dorch was arrested early Oct. 23 in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said he went to a hospital there with a gunshot wound and told officers someone had pulled a gun on him during an attempted robbery; a check of a national crime database showed he was wanted in Aiken County. SLED said he still had a gunshot wound to his foot when he was taken into custody.
Sawyer described Dorch as a convicted felon with numerous arrests for weapons and violent crimes. "He shouldn't have been on the streets," the sheriff said. Dorch was charged with murder in the December 2012 shooting death of 21-year-old Delance Walton outside the Lucky 7 convenience store in Aiken. He pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and attempted murder and was sentenced to 15 years. An earlier murder charge in the 2007 killing of 20-year-old Prince E. Shand Jr. was dismissed in 2010 for lack of indictment. Dorch was released from prison Aug. 29, 2025, about 14 months before Metts was shot.
SLED is investigating at the sheriff's office's request, and the 2nd Circuit Solicitor's Office will prosecute the case. The shooting was the fourth involving Aiken County deputies this year, including the Oct. 5 shooting that wounded Deputy Ethan Crosby. Dorch was expected to have a bond hearing Oct. 28.