The man who was the target of a task force that soon came under deadly gunfire in Charlotte on Monday had a long record of criminal convictions, including in Alamance County, state records show.
A task force made up of officers from different agencies had arrived at a house in a suburban neighborhood with arrest warrants for Terry Clark Hughes Jr., 39, who was wanted for possession of a firearm by an ex-felon and fleeing to elude arrest in Lincoln County. They demanded that Hughes come out, and then a hail of gunshots rained down from the second floor of the house.
Hughes came out of the house with a gun at some point before being shot and killed in the front yard, police said.
Those killed were identified as Sam Poloche and William Elliott of the N.C. Department of Adult Corrections, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Officer Joshua Eyer and Deputy U.S. Marshal Thomas Weeks. Four other officers were wounded in the shootout.
An AR-15 semi-automatic rifle, a 40-caliber handgun and ammunition were found at the scene.
An AR-15 is able to penetrate traditional body armor and allowed the shooter to “unload several rounds towards our officers within a matter of seconds,” Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings said.
He said that more than 100 spent rounds were found, though it wasn’t clear how many were fired by Hughes. At least 12 officers also fired guns.
“Even though officers were trying to take cover, they were at a disadvantage because the suspect was up at a higher level and they were returning fire from a lower position,” Jennings said.
Ivestigators said they weren’t sure whether there was a second shooter. Hughes fired at officers from multiple positions within the house, Jennings said, creating confusion about how many shooters there were.
“That’s part of the investigation we have to sort through, and we will certainly come to a conclusion on that at some point,” he said.
It was the deadliest day for U.S. law enforcement in one incident since five officers were killed by a sniper during a protest in Dallas in 2016.
Hughes’ criminal record in North Carolina goes back more than 20 years. In all, Hughes faced 49 criminal charges since 2001, with most dismissed, court records show. His first felony conviction was on a charge of breaking and entering in Person County in 2010.
He was convicted in October 2012 in Alamance County on charges stemming from a high-speed chase late on the night of June 28, 2012, that began when he tried to avoid a driver’s license checkpoint at N.C. 62 and East Hughes Mill Road, records show. It eventually led to Interstate 40/85, where Hughes lost control on an interstate on-ramp and collided with a tree.
He was convicted of felony speeding to elude arrest and possession of a firearm by a felon, the N.C. Department of Adult Correction said.
While in prison after that conviction, he was convicted of several misdemeanor and felony charges in Person and Chatham counties.
After being released from prison in late 2013, Hughes was convicted in Alamance County in 2016 of probation violation. He was most recently released from prison May 1, 2017, the Department of Adult Correction said.
Hughes was arrested in Charlotte on multiple drug charges in May 2021, and this week there were three pending orders for arrest on charges including possession of marijuana, fleeing to elude arrest and possession with the intent to sell or deliver marijuana.
He also had pending cases remaining in Person County on charges of possession of marijuana, possession of a firearm by a felon and failure to appear in court.
