Parents of slain man in the dark

The parents of Brian Eliot Holmes, the 33-year-old accountant who was found shot to death on America Street early Monday, said they have no idea why he was there at that hour of the day.

The only thing they know for sure, they said, is that their son is in the arms of Jesus.

"I am at perfect peace with that," said Holmes' mother, Harriet Holmes. "I may have a lot of questions, but I don't question that."

She works at The Citadel in the chaplain's office. His father, the Rev. Sonny Holmes, is lead pastor at Northwood Baptist Church in North Charleston and president of the S.C. Baptist Convention.

Their son was found, bloody and unresponsive, sitting in the driver's seat of his car about 3 a.m. Monday after it had hit a parked car.

He was pronounced dead at the scene from a single gunshot wound.

Police have said very little about the case. There is no word on a motive or on any suspects. On Tuesday, police said there were no new developments.

Holmes' parents were surrounded by friends and family Tuesday night, but they were still reeling from the news they had received the day before.

Sonny Holmes described his son as a successful businessman, who was a good student at The Citadel. "He loved his work, his wife, his parents and his family," Holmes said. Their son was a certified public accountant and has worked in the insurance industry.

Brian Holmes' wife, Katherine, lives in Columbia, they said. He had moved into their townhouse in North Charleston recently so he could explore job opportunities in the Lowcountry, they said.

His wedding ring was among the personal effects that authorities dropped off at their house, they said.

Brian Holmes was very much a Christian, his father said. "I baptized him myself. And I recently talked with him about his personal faith relationship with Jesus Christ."

He had gone to church with his parents on Sunday. When they woke up Monday, he was gone. They thought he might have gone up to Columbia to visit his wife, they said.

Like everyone else, they wonder what might have led him to America Street at 3 a.m., but they refuse to speculate.

"We don't know why he was there," his father said. "This is one of those mysteries. We leave it to the police to figure out."

Both parents praised the police. "They've been kind and compassionate, keeping in touch," Sonny Holmes said. "They've made a bad experience as good as it could be."

A funeral service is planned for 11 a.m. Saturday at Northwood Baptist Church.