Reporter attacked by angry family

SPARTANBURG, S.C., March 12 (UPI) -- The mother of a white South Carolina murder suspect and three others are facing assault charges for attacking a black television reporter and her photographer.

Veteran reporter Charmayne Brown of WSPA-TV, Spartanburg, was covering a homicide in the town of Union when three members of the suspect's family surrounded her and started punching, The Spartanburg Herald reports.

Brown and her photographer Ti Barnes went to an address in Union after learning that Tommy Howell, 73, had been found dead in his home and police arrested his grandson, Shane Howell, on murder charges.

"From the time we got there, it was a hostile environment, so I made sure I stayed clear of these folks because they were really mean and nasty," Brown said.

A reporter from another station confirmed that both Brown and her cameraman were on a public sidewalk across the street from the Howell home and not on the Howell's property when they were attacked.