“A bottle of water.”
State of South Carolina v. Chikei Rick Chow
It is a phrase that has echoed across social media and vibrated through the courtroom throughout the trial of Chikei Rick Chow.
In May 2023, a confrontation outside a Columbia, South Carolina convenience store ended in the shooting death of 14-year-old Cyrus Carmack-Belton. Fast-forward to June 2026, when a Richland County jury delivered a verdict of not guilty on all charges against the store owner. The trial and its ultimate result have reignited national conversations on how implicit bias turns fatal, forcing the nation to come face-to-face with the mechanics of self-defense laws. Understanding the significance of this case requires analyzing the sequence of events, the specific legal arguments that swayed the jury, and the resulting societal implications of the verdict.
the chase
The tragedy took place inside the Xpress Mart Shell on Parklane Road, owned by 61-year-old Rick Chow and his family at the time. On May 28, 2023, 14-year-old Cyrus Carmack-Belton entered the store. Wrongly believing that the teenager had shoplifted bottled water, an argument ensued between Carmack-Belton, Rick Chow, and his son, Andy Chow. The verbal exchange ended with Carmack-Belton fleeing the store on foot.
Rick and Andy Chow pursued the teenager outside of the store. Both men, who were armed, chased Carmack-Belton for more than 130 yards. Eventually, the pursuit ended when Rick Chow fired a single shot into Carmack-Belton’s lower back. It proved to be fatal.
the shot
However, the case did not rest upon the argument or the chase. Instead, it rested upon the details surrounding the final moments of Cyrus’s life. During the trial, Andy Chow testified that at the end of the chase, Carmack-Belton tripped and fell on the grass. This is when he claims that Carmack-Belton pointed a gun at him, prompting Chow to yell, “He’s got a gun!” Seconds later, his father fired the fatal shot.
Chow’s defense team relied heavily on this testimony and emphasized that Carmack-Belton was carrying a semiautomatic 9mm pistol at the time of the incident. The defense argued that Chow feared for his son’s life and fired out of that fear.
During the trial, the presence of the gun was never in contention. In fact, the prosecution acknowledged that Carmack-Belton had a semiautomatic pistol. But what was in strong contention was whether or not it was pointed at Andy Chow.
The prosecution stated that the gun fell to the ground during the chase and that Carmack-Belton never threatened anyone with it. Meanwhile, the defense positioned themselves to capitalize on the weapon’s presence to justify the use of deadly force.
the acquittal
The core conflict of the trial was highly dependent on the severity of the charge brought forth against Rick Chow. The charge of first-degree murder placed the burden of proof upon the prosecution to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the shooting was premeditated, willful, and deliberate with malice aforethought. If convicted, Chow faced a minimum of 30 years in prison.
However, in the state of South Carolina, a person can claim “defense of others” if they reasonably believe someone else is facing an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm. Given Andy Chow’s testimony, the following 911 calls, and the police body-camera footage that showed both Rick and Andy Chow reporting the presence of the teenager’s gun immediately after the incident, the jury spent eight hours deliberating.
Under the eyes of the law, despite the initial shoplifting accusation being proven false, Rick Chow was not convicted of first-degree murder.
the aftermath
The not guilty verdict immediately drew public outcry, and the case quickly became an example of racial bias and profiling amongst communities across the nation. With activists claiming that the initial accusation of stealing a water bottle was heavily racially biased, debates amongst Asian and Black communities developed quickly. The outcome triggered difficult and complicated dialogues surrounding gun violence and safety.
Online, the trial drew intense discussions surrounding one of Rick Chow’s defense attorneys, Shaun Kent. Specifically, Kent’s closing statement on the defense spread across social media with polarizing reactions. While some were impressed by his performance, many within the Black community expressed strong reactions across the internet.
However, despite the criminal acquittal, the legal battle regarding Rick Chow is not over yet.
Although in the criminal case of the State of South Carolina v. Chikei Rick Chow, the defendant was found not guilty, the Carmack-Belton family filed a lawsuit in the summer of 2024. The complaint alleges racial profiling, false imprisonment, emotional distress, and negligence. The civil proceeding was paused to allow for the criminal trial to conclude, but the family has announced that they are now moving forward to hold Chow financially accountable.
Therefore, for activists and for Cyrus’s family, there is still a strong hope for justice. Compared to criminal cases, a civil wrongful death case requires a lower burden of proof: a preponderance of the evidence (more likely than not). While no amount of financial compensation can truly account for the loss of Cyrus Carmack-Belton’s life, the family continues to hope for the accountability and closure they need.