Year in Review: Jury sentences man to death in deadly CresCom bank robbery

CONWAY, S.C. (WMBF) – After more than two years, the case of a deadly bank robbery that took the lives of two employees reached a conclusion.

In September, a jury convicted Brandon Council of killing Katie Skeen and Donna Major in August 2017 during a robbery at a CresCom Bank in Conway.

But in the months before the federal trial, there were several developments in the case.

In April, both Council and the families of the victims listened as attorneys made their arguments on a series of motions in the case.

One was an attempt by the defense to keep Council’s confession to the murders out of court. In an affidavit written by an FBI special agent, Council was quoted saying that he was desperate, in need of money and that he knew he was going to hurt somebody that day. The judge decided the confession could be a part of the government’s case against Council.

In May, the defense tried to take the death penalty off the table. But that motion was denied as well.

Jury selection started Sept. 9 inside a federal courtroom in Florence, but the trial didn’t begin once the jury was seated.

It was delayed after the defense filed another motion requesting a mental evaluation for Council.

Once he was found competent to stand trial, opening statements began on Sept. 23.

During the trial, new information was revealed about the tragic events that unfolded on Aug. 21, 2017.

Prosecutors said Council shot Skeen in her office and Major behind the bank’s counter to help his chances of getting away with $15,000.

We also learned that he stole Skeen’s car from the parking lot and picked up a prostitute in North Carolina where he stayed in a hotel.

The next day, prosecutors said he bought a car with money from the robbery.

It was all in an effort to prove that Council was a man of greed and chose to kill.

Meanwhile, the defense asked jurors to consider Council’s difficult childhood.

The jury was handed the case on Sept. 24 and only deliberated for an hour before they found Council guilty.

The first phase of the trial was over, and the focus turned to the penalty phase.

The victims’ families took to the stand where they talked about the women they lost, how their lives are forever changed and the hurt and they experienced.

As for the defense, Council’s aunt, cousin and a former teacher took the stand to talk about his difficult childhood.

Family members said that Council’s mother had him at a young age and out of wedlock, which was an embarrassment to the family who were very involved in church. They said his mother was absent and his father was physically abusive.

They said Council was raised by his grandmother, who was described as stern but caring. Family members said Council was a fun-loving child but changed when his grandmother died when he was 11 years old.

The defense said that Council found himself in a very unstable and dysfunctional environment. He started performing poorly in school, ran the streets, got into drugs and was soon admitted to the Dobbs Training School. Council told a social work expert that during his time there he was sexually assaulted and raped.

On Oct. 3, about three weeks into the trial, the jury sentenced Council to death.

In November, attorneys for Council filed a motion asking for a new sentencing trial or an acquittal of his death sentence.

The judge denied the defense’s motion in December.

Terre Haute federal penitentiary in Indiana, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

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