FLORENCE, S.C. (AP) -- An armed man who blocked a hospital emergency room exit in Conway for about 16 hours has been charged with having a weapon as a felon.
Robert McGowan was formally charged in federal court in Florence on Thursday, a day after the 42-year-old surrendered to police. A judge ordered a public defender appointed.
A warrant says McGowan threatened to kill himself while barricaded in his car, but it's unknown why he drove to Conway Medical Center armed with a .22-caliber rifle.
Police said McGowan's only demands were to speak to his parole officer and for a cup of coffee.
Prosecutors said he served 10 years in prison for shooting a Horry County police officer in the hand in 1996. The Sun News of Myrtle Beach reports McGowan was released last year and was serving two years of probation.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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