He’s accused of killing a Myrtle Beach nurse. Now police say he tried to kill in NC.
A man accused of killing a Myrtle Beach nurse during a drunken crash is now suspected of trying to kill a person in North Carolina.
Claybon Atwater was arrested last week by the Burlington, North Carolina, police and charged with first-degree attempted murder in connection to a late-December shooting.
On Dec. 29, Burlington police went to Bella Grocery and found a man who had been shot multiple times, according to the agency. The victim has since been treated and released from the hospital.
Tony Slade was also charged with first-degree attempted murder in connection to the incident. Atwater, 37, is being held in North Carolina on $500,000 bond.
Atwater was free on bond in Horry County at the time of the alleged North Carolina shooting. He awaits on charges related to a fatal crash. Donna Schnell, a nurse at Grand Strand Regional Medical Center, died in the April 6, 2019, crash on U.S. 17. The wreck happened near 46th Avenue South in North Myrtle Beach.
David Schnell, Donna’s husband, filed a civil lawsuit over the summer against Atwater and Yarisbeth Espada in Horry County court.
The suit stated David and Donna Schnell were driving north on U.S. 17 when Atwater drove a car out of a private driveway and hit the couple’s motorcycle. Espada owned the vehicle that Atwater was driving. Donna Schnell died in the wreck and David was hospitalized.
Atwater was driving while under the influence of alcohol and possibly drugs, according to the suit. The Schnell family also says Atwater was speeding and going too fast for the roadway conditions.
Schnell’s family accused Atwater and Espada of wrongful death and asked for an unspecified amount of money.
This story was originally published January 11, 2021 at 9:18 AM with the headline "He’s accused of killing a Myrtle Beach nurse. Now police say he tried to kill in NC.."
