Berkeley County Woman Convicted of Murder and Sentenced to 50 Years

Gabrielle Olivia Lashane Davis-Kocsis (Via Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office)

BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C.—A Berkeley County jury found Gabrielle Olivia Lashane Davis-Kocsis, 38, guilty of murder in the 2015 killing of Mark Connor. The jury returned its verdict Wednesday afternoon. The defendant was also convicted of burglary in the first degree, two counts of kidnapping and criminal conspiracy.

The Honorable Maite Murphy sentenced Davis-Kocsis to 50 years for the murder and burglary, 30 years for the kidnappings and 5 years for conspiracy, all to be served concurrently.

Assistant Solicitors Bart J. Stegall and Jordan A. Smith prosecuted the case with the help of Investigator David Young. Grant Smaldone represented the Defendant.

During the early morning hours of September 27, 2015, the Defendant, along with co-defendants Glenn Lane, Grayson Griffin and Matt Granger went to 512 McCrystal Circle in Moncks Corner to confront the victim, Mark Conner, over money and a motorcycle.

They broke a window, kicked in a door and once inside, the defendant pepper sprayed the area where several people were sleeping. The Defendant and Granger then found Connor hiding in a bedroom. The Defendant pepper sprayed Connor in the face and yelled at Granger to “shoot him.”

Granger followed the defendant’s instructions and shot and killed Connor. The defendant and Griffin fled the scene and were later apprehended by the U.S. Marshals in Effingham County, Georgia.

Co-defendant Granger previously accepted responsibility for his role in the murder by pleading guilty to murder, burglary and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime. He is serving a 30-year sentence. Co-defendants Griffin and Lane’s charges remain pending.

Assistant Solicitor Stegall praised the witnesses for their courage. “To be able to recall this horrific crime with such great detail after three and a half years took tremendous resolve and composure. We are grateful for the hard work done by Lieutenant Dan Wilson, Sergeant Shane Cook and the entire Berkeley County Sheriff’s Department.”