Invictus, the former Senate, president candidate from Florida, not guilty in SC trial
A South Carolina jury late Tuesday evening found Augustus Sol Invictus not guilty of domestic violence.
The verdict came after a trial following an arrest where Invictus’ wife accused him of choking her and putting a gun to her head in Rock Hill in December 2019. Invictus’ wife was not present in court, and testimony revealed she refused to attend the trial.
The jury deliberated less than 30 minutes before coming back with the not guilty verdict on a charge of domestic violence of a high and aggravated nature.
Invictus, 38, has said from the time of his first court appearance in January 2020 that he was innocent of the allegations. Invictus has no criminal record, court testimony showed.
Invictus, a lawyer from Orlando, Florida, did not testify in the two-day trial in York County, S.C. Testimony in the trial stated the couple had been living in Rock Hill in 2019.
Invictus still wants an apology from authorities
After the verdict, Invictus told The Herald that he still will accept an apology from authorities in the case. Invictus said more legal action may be possible.
At his first court appearance in Rock Hill in January 2020, Invictus said he would accept an apology from authorities. That statement came after he was arrested in Florida and charges were made by detective Matt Beach of the Rock Hill Police Department.
“I said on Day One I would magnanimously accept Detective Beach’s apology,” Invictus said to The Herald in the courthouse hallway Tuesday, with his defense lawyers standing next to him. “I am granting a general amnesty until May 1 for everyone to provide me with their letters of apology.”
Invictus’ defense lawyer, 16th Circuit Public Defender B.J. Barrowclough, said after court that the 12-member jury came back with a unanimous not guilty verdict.
“We appreciate the hard work the jury put in,” Barrowclough said. “We are very happy with the jury’s verdict.”
A charge of possession of a weapon during a violent crime was dismissed by Judge Brian Gibbons after prosecutors completed trial arguments, because the threshold had not been met for that charge to go to the jury, Gibbons said.
Trial lasted two days
The failure of Invictus’ wife to attend court and testify was crucial in the trial, lawyers in the case said.
Evidence presented in court by prosecutor Jenny Desch of the 16th Circuit Solicitor’s office included pictures of alleged bruises on Invictus’ wife from the alleged incident, and an audio recording between her and a friend in Florida. In the recording made in Florida, which was played for the jury, Invictus’ wife told the friend she was slammed against a wall and threatened with a gun.
No gun was ever recovered.
Barrowclough stated during closing arguments the failure of Invictus’ wife to show up for trial was crucial to reasonable doubt that anything happened in December 2019.
“No face, no case,” Barrowclough told jurors in closing arguments.
Barrowclough called the allegations, “a bunch of nothing.”
Barrowclough said in court a police building surveillance video showed no bruises on the neck of Invictus’ wife a week after the alleged crime when she went to the police with the accusations. The video was played in court for the jury.
“(Invictus) has been living with this charge hanging over his head like a guillotine for over two years,” Barrowclough said in closing arguments.
Testimony showed Invictus’ wife reported the allegations to police a week after the alleged incident on Dec. 19, 2019.
Invictus spent months in jail in two stretches in 2020 before being released on bond in August 2020 pending trial.
Desch said in closing arguments that without Invictus’ wife testifying, the case became much harder to prove. But the pictures and the audio recording were enough circumstantial evidence to show Invictus’ wife was a victim, Desch said.
“Either way, you have evidence of injuries from a week later,” Desch said.
Invictus ran for Senate, President
Invictus ran for U.S. Senate in 2016 from Florida and said online in 2020 he was a candidate for president. One of Invictus’ lawyers said previously in court Invictus operated an “alt-right news site.”
Invictus is known for his views published online and at public speeches about politics and American society, according to previous court hearings and news accounts from CBS, The Miami Herald, and other sources.
This story was originally published April 19, 2022 at 7:20 PM with the headline "Invictus, the former Senate, president candidate from Florida, not guilty in SC trial."
