From the Town of Lexington – While the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) is investigating the aftermath of the barricade incident on Cherry Hall Drive, Lexington Police Chief Terrence Green released some additional information regarding the event and investigation.

On the afternoon of Saturday (March 12) detectives went to the 100 block of Cherry Hall Drive to follow up on a possible sexual assault involving a minor and met with Allen Russell Meadows, age 52 of Lexington, at his home. He asked why the detectives were there and immediately closed the door refusing to come out. He then made statements of wanting to commit suicide and told officers that he had a weapon.

Crisis Negotiations Team officers responded and began what would be an over 25-hour long series of phone calls with Allen Meadows. Crisis negotiators from the Lexington Police Department and the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department spoke with him all afternoon, through the night, and into the afternoon of the next day.

While this negotiation was going on, detectives met with a teenage victim who stated that there had been an ongoing series of sexual assaults involving Allen Meadows that began when the victim was 8-years-old and continued over the past nine years.

With this information, warrants for Criminal Sexual Conduct with a Minor – 2nd Degree and Solicitation of Minor were written on the afternoon of Sunday (March 12) and signed by a judge.

At approximately 5 p.m., members of the Emergency Services Team (E.S.T.) made entry into the residence on Cherry Hall Drive to take Allen Meadows into custody and found him dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Due to the involvement of our Crisis Negotiations Team and Emergency Services Team in this incident, Chief Terrence Green asked the State Law Enforcement Division to lead this investigation with the assistance of the Lexington County Coroner’s Office.