Suspect in Edgefield inmate’s slaying charged with murder
EDGEFIELD, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - The Department of Justice has charged the suspected killer of an Edgefield federal prison inmate.
Corderius Johnson is charged with one count of second degree murder in the June 2024 slaying of fellow inmate 36-year-old Joseph Hamilton.
In November 2024, authorities applied for a warrant to take a DNA swab of Johnson, who’s suspected of killing Hamilton on June 4 in a dispute at Federal Correctional Institution Edgefield.
Employees initiated life-saving measures, and Hamilton was taken to a local hospital and was subsequently pronounced deceased by hospital personnel.
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The FBI was notified.
The warrant was filed Nov. 12 based on “evidence of a crime,” according to federal court documents.
Johnson is accused of stabbing Hamilton in the chest.
An FBI special agent was told that surveillance video showed the stabbing. The investigator said he reviewed the video and saw Johnson trying to punch Hamilton with a closed left fist, but Hamilton ducked underneath and punched Johnson in the side with his right hand.
Hamilton removed his right hand from his pants and started moving toward Johnson. It wasn’t clear what Hamilton had in his hand, but the special agent said he believed it was a knife.
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The special agent said another inmate soon handed Johnson a knife, and the two moved to another area.
“I believe that both Johnson and Hamilton had knives,” the special agent wrote. “There was not a functioning camera in the area that the two moved into.”
However, when they reappeared, the special agent said, “Hamilton appeared limp.” He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
In an interview with the investigator, Johnson said there was a disagreement with people outside the prison that carried over into the prison between the two inmates.
The special agent said Johnson itted that both eventually had knives during the conflict, but he denied stabbing Hamilton.
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The special agent wrote he believes Johnson gave the knife to another inmate, and it was later discovered in another cell.
Hamilton was sentenced in the Western District of Tennessee to a 240-month sentence for possession with intent to distribute marijuana and felon in possession of a firearm.
He had been in custody at Edgefield since March 13, 2024.
The medium-security prison has 1,554 inmates at the prison and 449 at a minimum-security satellite camp.
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