Mount Pleasant police: Man killed in standoff threatened to kill neighbor, officers

An incident report about a standoff that ended in the shooting death of a 60-year-old Mount Pleasant man indicated that he had threatened to kill a neighbor and police officers who responded to the call.

Richard Cathcart III died after members of a SWAT team from the Mount Pleasant police Department opened fire during a three-hour standoff at his house on Wappetaw Place.

Deputy Coroner Brittney Martin said Cathcart died of a single wound to his chest, but she wouldn’t discuss any other injuries he might have suffered.

Martin also would not divulge the caliber of the bullet that killed Cathcart. SWAT teams typically carry high-powered, military-style rifles.

Officers were first called around 2:25 p.m. when Cathcart’s wife, Nancy, told the police that he had a gun and had been drinking alcohol.

The police report stated that he later threatened a next-door neighbor who tried to reason with him.

Officers set up outside the home, knowing Cathcart was inside and armed.

One reported that Cathcart was seen near a back window and that he was wearing an orange shirt. With voice amplifiers, officers tried to order him out of the home, but he once emerged through the front door and said, “Go away!”

Later, Cathcart stepped onto the porch and yelled, “I’ll kill you,” the report stated. He raised his gun and pointed it at officers, who scattered for cover behind a patrol car.

Cathcart later came to the front door and said, “If you want me, come inside.”

That’s when the SWAT team escorted patrol officers away from the house.

Police officers said he again emerged around 5:50 p.m., pointed his gun and was shot by the SWAT team. He was pronounced dead at Medical University Hospital.

Reach Andrew Knapp at 937-5414 or twitter.com/offlede.