According to the United States Attorney’s Office, Martin Ballard, 34, of Summerville was sentenced on Thursday by Senior United States District Judge Margaret B. Seymour to life in federal prison without parole for attempting to harm a federal witness.
“The criminal justice system cannot and will not tolerate the kind of severe criminal wrongdoing Mr. Ballard orchestrated,” stated Acting United States Attorney Beth Drake.
Evidence presented during the trial and sentencing established that Ballard was a major drug trafficker, and that he orchestrated an attempt to kill the main witness against him while behind bars in the county detention center, instructing others to carry out the attempt. After that individual had cooperated with authorities, he was shot between 7 and 11 times. Although grievously wounded, he lived and testified.
The investigation, which included a federal wiretap, revealed that Martin Ballard was a major source of supply for crack cocaine sold in the Walterboro area. Ballard’s organization operated out of a house in the vicinity of Old Orangeburg Road and Ancrum Lane near Summerville, an area known as the “Hill.”
Cooperating witnesses corroborated the fact that Ballard was a large-scale distributor of cocaine and crack cocaine from at least 2008 until Ballard was arrested on March 19, 2012. Ballard and members of his organization were charged in a federal indictment.
Ballard was arrested while driving a pickup truck with a loaded Taurus 9mm semi-automatic pistol in the center console, one gram of cocaine, eleven cellular phones, more than one thousand dollars in cash, and a spent 9mm shell casing. A search of Ballard’s residence revealed a cocaine press, which is used to re-press cocaine into kilogram bricks, various financial documents, and a number of cellular phones.
During the sentencing hearing, Assistant United States Attorney Sean Kittrell urged the court to impose the sentence of life in prison plus ten years, saying the harsh sentence was appropriate because “Ballard tried to commit one the most serious crimes imaginable, attacking not only the witness but directly targeting the judicial and law enforcement system itself.” He said that “without witnesses, there is no court and no justice. That’s why shooting a federal witness it such a big deal. It threatens the very heart of what we do – testimony is the key to determining truth and establishing guilt.” He noted that because this was a case where Ballard tried to obstruct justice through a violent and vicious attempt to eliminate a federal witness by killing him, a tough sentence was essential in order to deter others who may seek to protect themselves from federal prosecution and sentencing.
Resident Agent in Charge Scott Perala (ATF) also commented “ATF is dedicated to working with all law enforcement agencies to attack gun violence on the streets. Federal investigators will go full force after people who try to obstruct justice.”
Acting United States Attorney Drake noted that the investigation was the result of the cooperative work of federal, state and local agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), Summerville Police Department, Dorchester County Sherriff’s Office, the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office and the City of Charleston Police Department. Drake commended the efforts of the law enforcement agencies who joined forces.
“The long hours and hard work of the law enforcement officers working the streets, and the prosecutors who handle the cases, make a difference in our community. They do it to protect us and the system,” stated Drake.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Sean Kittrell and Jay Richardson, and Special Assistant United States Attorney Peter Phillips.
