He held a gun to his head at Chick-fil-A, but already shot someone else, SC cops say

The man who held a gun to his head at the drive-thru of a South Carolina Chick-fil-A Monday was charged with murder in North Carolina Tuesday.

Jason Daniel Butler, 45, is facing charges in both states. In South Carolina, Butler was charged with weapons/pointing and presenting firearms at a person, according to the Travelers Rest Police Department.

The 6-foot-8, 390-pound Butler was charged with murder by the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office, foxcarolina.com reported.

"North Carolina has the bigger charges," Travelers Rest Chief of Police Lance Crowe said to The State.

Butler and his wife, Shannon Toney Butler, were arrested following the incident at the Travelers Rest Chick-fil-A.

It occurred around 7:30 p.m., when police responded to a disturbance between a man and a woman in a car. When the police arrived, Shannon Butler was sitting on the curb with two handguns on the ground in front of her, according to the incident report.

After being handcuffed, Shannon Butler told police the guns belonged to her husband, adding that he shot and killed Michael Splawn in her house on Sunday, and he was armed with another gun, police reported.

At that time, another officer reported that Jason Butler had the gun pointed to his own head, according to the incident report. The officers convinced Jason Butler to drop the weapon, and he was handcuffed, police said.

"It could have been more aggressive. It was a very delicate situation," Crowe said.

Police reported that Jason Butler "freely gave information regarding the suspected shooting" of Splawn at his residence.

Shannon Butler said that her husband had been on several different medications and had been delirious and seeing things. She added that Jason Butler hit her and became more aggressive and paranoid, according to the incident report.

Travelers Rest police said they contacted the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office, confirming the shooting and discovery of Splawn's body at the Butler's residence in Forest City. A sheriff's deputy soon arrived to interview the Butlers.

Crowe said he expected Jason Butler to be extradited to North Carolina.

The 49-year-old Splawn was shot, Rutherford County Sheriff Chris Francis said, according to wyff4.com, which reported that he had done yardwork for the Butlers in the past.

"I just want to know why? Why are people so cruel? He didn't deserve this," Splawn's sister Kim McCombs said to foxcarolina.com. "The guy that did this, he helped him," McCombs said. "That was his friend. You don't do this to your friends."

Shannon Butler was charged with unlawful carrying of a pistol, police said.

Both Butlers were taken to the Greenville County Detention Center. They had a bond hearing on the South Carolina weapons charges Tuesday afternoon.

This story was originally published April 10, 2018 at 3:56 PM with the headline "He held a gun to his head at Chick-fil-A, but already shot someone else, SC cops say."