A Conway attorney charged with trying to hire a hit man to kill a former colleague, is on home detention, monitored by a GPS tracking device.
Irby Walker is free on bond, after being charged last week with trying to hire someone to kill attorney Doug Thornton.
Thornton says the legal system is doing what it can do to protect him, but he's taking his own precautions to keep himself and his family safe, saying "I'm not going to be a victim."
He keeps his office door locked and says he's maintaining a constant vigilance. He says it's still hard for him to believe Irby Walker might actually want him dead. "What he might do - I have no idea, but I'm armed and just take what precautions I can and try to get on with my life from this point."
Thornton says Walker himself is not the threat, though it's unsettling what Walker could do now that he's out and has access to telephones and bank accounts.
Thornton isn't sure how much protection the GPS monitoring device worn by Walker will provide. "I think that's just about as far as the law can go in putting some safeguards in place, but I don't think that it makes me any safer," said Thornton.
A sheriff's deputy who keeps track of inmates on home detention says the GPS system works well. Officials with a company in Colorado monitor those on home detention and if they track a client entering an exclusion zone - that would be near the victim's home or workplace - the company immediately contacts the deputy on duty. "We would be on the phone with the victim as soon as it would happen and we would be on the phone with Horry County PD," said Jennifer Deshong, Horry County Sheriff's Office.
So the company calls the deputy, the deputy calls the victim and police, and the police can arrest the inmate. That may seem time consuming, but Deshong says notification is instantaneous and the county has never had a victim harmed by a person on home detention.
Deshong says if she was threatened by someone being monitored by GPS, she would feel safe. "Because I would know that the officers who are working in the home detention program have my best interests."
Deshong says the GPS monitoring lasts until the inmate's case is resolved or has their bond modified. That can last up to two years. Horry County currently has 29 inmates on home detention, monitored by GPS.
The South Carolina Supreme Court has temporarily suspended Irby Walker's license to practice law.
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Earlier story posted from NewsChannel 15:
A Conway attorney charged with trying to hire a hit man to kill a former colleague has been suspended from practicing law.
The South Carolina Supreme Court has temporarily suspended Irby Walker's license to practice law.
The court appointed Murrells Inlet attorney Martin Stark to protect the interests of Walker's clients while his case goes forward.
Walker is free on bond, after being charged last week with trying to hire someone to kill attorney Doug Thornton.
At Walker's bond hearing last week, Thornton said he's taking the threats seriously and fears for his family's safety.
During that hearing, police said when they got wind of the plot, they had an undercover officer posed as a hit man, and meet with Walker to discuss how much Walker would be willing to pay for the hit. Walker's attorney called the charges farcical.
Walker posted a $100,000 bond, and was freed Friday afternoon, though he must wear a GPS tracking device and avoid all contact with Thornton.
