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Inset: Melvin Otto Lamb, III (Al Cannon Detention Center). Background: The area in South Carolina where Lamb caused a fatal car wreck (WCIV).
A 32-year-old South Carolina resident is heading to prison for instigating a tragic multi-car accident after ramming into a stationary vehicle while distracted by social media and dating apps on his phone.
On Monday, Judge Roger M. Young, Sr. of the Ninth Judicial Circuit sentenced Melvin Otto Lamb to a term of three to five years in a state correctional facility, followed by five years of probation. The sentencing came after Lamb admitted guilt to a charge of reckless homicide related to the deadly incident, as announced by authorities.
Lamb’s admission of guilt occurred shortly before his jury trial was set to commence, according to a statement from Solicitor Scarlett A. Wilson’s office.
The charge arises from a collision on June 12, 2021, in Mount Pleasant, resulting in one fatality and involving nine vehicles.
Prosecutors detailed that Lamb was operating a 2008 Chevy Tahoe on Highway 17 near Hamlin Road when he collided with a stationary 2019 Chevrolet Trax, which was halted at a traffic light. This crash set off a domino effect involving multiple vehicles.
Crash data revealed Lamb was traveling at 68 mph — well above the posted 45 mph speed limit — and continued at that speed “for the five seconds before impacting the victim’s vehicle — without turning or applying the brakes at any point,” the release states.
Investigators later determined distraction played a central role.
“Lamb’s admissions and a subsequent search of his phone showed that he had been swiping through Tinder, Snapchat, and using Spotify leading up to the crash,” prosecutors said. Lamb himself “admitted not knowing what happened in the crash because he had been looking at his telephone.”
Emergency medical personnel transported Lamb and the victim to the Medical University of South Carolina. The victim later succumbed to injuries sustained in the crash while Lamb was treated and released with only minor injuries.
The Mount Pleasant Police Traffic Division investigated the crash with assistance from the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office.