Trial for man charged with murdering USC student set to begin this summer

Noah Feit, Travis Bland
·2 min read

The trial for the man accused of killing a former University of South Carolina student is scheduled to begin in July.

Nathaniel Rowland was charged with murder in the death of 21-year-old Samantha Josephson after the USC student’s body was found in March 2019.

On Thursday, 5th Circuit Solicitor Byron Gipson told The State that Rowland’s trial is tentatively scheduled to start in a Richland County courtroom on July 19. If the trial does not begin on that date, it will definitely begin in July, according to Gipson.

Josephson was last seen by friends on March 29, 2019 after a night out in Five Points.

Samantha Josephson
Samantha Josephson

Surveillance video showed her getting in a black Chevrolet Impala, which the Columbia Police Department later said she mistakenly believed was an Uber driver. Her body was found the next day by turkey hunters in a rural area of Clarendon County, about 65 miles from Columbia.

Josesphson died of “multiple sharp force injuries,” according to an autopsy.

Rowland was arrested on March 30 and charged with murder and kidnapping after an officer spotted his car and pulled him over near Five Points.

Inside the car, police found Josephson’s blood and cellphone, along with cleaning supplies.

On April 24, 2019, Rowland was charged with possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime.

Rowland has been behind bars since his arrest, and was again denied bond during a virtual hearing in June 2020. In that hearing, Josephson’s parents attended and pleaded for Rowland to remain in jail.

Rowland’s family and other supporters also attended, saying they don’t believe he is the person who killed Josephson.

After graduation from USC, Josephson, from Robbinsville, New Jersey, planned to attend law school at Drexel University in Philadelphia.

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