A 20-year-old sophomore student at the University of South Carolina was fatally shot early Saturday morning, August 26, after mistakenly entering the wrong home.
The incident occurred in an off-campus neighborhood less than two miles from the university’s main campus, on the block where the student resided.
The victim, identified as Nicholas Anthony Donofrio, a Connecticut native, was found on the front porch of a house on South Holly Street. The Columbia Police Department was called to the scene around 2 a.m. following an initial report of a home break-in. A subsequent call indicated that shots had been fired before officers arrived.
The Richland County Coroner’s Office reported that Donofrio sustained a gunshot wound to his upper body.
The circumstances behind the shooting remain unclear, and the police have not disclosed the shooter’s identity or any potential charges related to the incident.
South Carolina has a “stand your ground” law that allows the use of deadly force in self-defense.
