Laurens, S.C.; December 17, 2024 – A Laurens man is headed to prison for 35 years after pleading guilty Monday to the execution-style killing of his girlfriend, 8th Circuit Solicitor David M. Stumbo announced Tuesday.
William Lloyd Todd Cagle, 50, of Laurens, pleaded guilty Monday afternoon in advance of his January trial date at the Laurens County Courthouse to one charge of murder. The plea was taken straight-up, with a sentencing range under state law of 30 years up to life in prison. Circuit Judge Eugene C. Griffith Jr. then sentenced Cagle to 35 years in prison. A sentence for murder today must be served day-for-day, meaning Cagle will never be eligible for parole.
In September 2022, friends and family of Terry Chermak reported the 49-year-old Laurens resident missing. Chermak had been texting her sister that she no longer wished to marry Cagle, her boyfriend at the time. Chermak’s friends and family reported that the text messages they were receiving from Chermak changed as if someone else were texting from her phone. Chermak was last seen on September 9, 2022, as she was leaving work in Greenville.
Investigators with the Laurens County Sheriff’s Office discovered that Cagle had purchased a blue tarp, zip ties, and a shovel at the Ace Hardware store in front of the courthouse. Investigators searched Chermak’s property and discovered her body in a shallow grave wrapped in a blue tarp that was secured by zip ties. Investigators determined that Cagle placed a bag over Chermak’s head and shot her one time in the back of the head. Investigators located a .357 revolver in the house that had one spent round in the cylinder. Cagle then stole Chermak’s vehicle, cell phone, and debit cards. Cagle abandoned the vehicle at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport and he was later apprehended by U.S. Marshals in Denver, Colorado.
The case was prosecuted by Senior Assistant Solicitor Jared Simmons and Assistant Solicitor Mary-Madison Driggers with assistance from 8th Circuit Victim Advocate Lauren Powers and Investigator Joey Pittman. Cagle was represented by Joel Broome of the 8th Circuit Public Defender’s Office.
Solicitor Stumbo praised the work of his staff along with LCSO investigator Logan Kanipe in securing the conviction and lengthy prison sentence.
“Murders as a result of domestic violence unfortunately continue to plague our State, but as long as that is the case we will continue to seek justice for these victims and their surviving families,” Solicitor Stumbo said. “William Cagle will be behind bars where he belongs for likely the rest of his natural life, and we pray that Terry Chermack’s friends and family can begin to heal from this terrible tragedy.”