Louie and Patricia Ayende-hero neighbors

2025-2026 Bill 5025: Louie and Patricia Ayende-hero neighbors - South Carolina Legislature Online

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026
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H. 5025
STATUS INFORMATION
House Resolution
Sponsors: Reps. Robbins, Alexander, Anderson, Atkinson, Bailey, Ballentine, Bamberg, Bannister, Bauer, Beach, Bernstein, Bowers, Bradley, Brewer, Brittain, Burns, Bustos, Calhoon, Caskey, Chapman, Chumley, Clyburn, Cobb-Hunter, Collins, Cox, Crawford, Cromer, Davis, Dillard, Duncan, Edgerton, Erickson, Ford, Forrest, Frank, Gagnon, Garvin, Gatch, Gibson, Gilliam, Gilliard, Gilreath, Govan, Grant, Guest, Guffey, Haddon, Hager, Hardee, Harris, Hart, Hartnett, Hartz, Hayes, Henderson-Myers, Herbkersman, Hewitt, Hiott, Hixon, Holman, Hosey, Howard, Huff, J.E. Johnson, J.L. Johnson, Jones, Jordan, Kilmartin, King, Kirby, Landing, Lastinger, Lawson, Ligon, Long, Lowe, Luck, Magnuson, Martin, McCabe, McCravy, McDaniel, McGinnis, C. Mitchell, D. Mitchell, Montgomery, J. Moore, T. Moore, Morgan, Moss, Neese, B. Newton, W. Newton, Oremus, Pace, Pedalino, Pope, Rankin, Reese, Rivers, Rose, Rutherford, Sanders, Schuessler, Scott, Sessions, G.M. Smith, M.M. Smith, Spann-Wilder, Stavrinakis, Taylor, Teeple, Terribile, Vaughan, Waters, Weeks, Wetmore, White, Whitmire, Wickensimer, Williams, Willis, Wooten and Yow
Document Path: LC-0610WAB-GM26.docx
Introduced in the House on January 28, 2026
Adopted by the House on January 28, 2026
Summary: Louie and Patricia Ayende-hero neighbors
HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS

Date

Body

Action Description with journal page number

1/28/2026

House

Introduced and adopted (
House Journal-page 387
)

View the latest
legislative information
at the website
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
01/28/2026

A
house
RESOLUTION

TO RECOGNIZE AND HONOR Louie and Patricia Ayende for
their courageous and speedy assistance to their neighbor when they saw her
being kidnapped, which enabled law enforcement to rescue her quickly.

W
hereas, in March of
2025, a California resident out on bond for attempted murder in California, forced
his way into the home of Delores Johnson, an eighty-nine-year-old resident of
Summerville; and

W
hereas, the assailant
sprayed her with bear mace and tied her to a chair in her kitchen. While the
assailant was still inside Ms. Johnson's residence, her neighbor, Mr. Louie Ayende,
arrived at the elderly victim's home to take her trashcan to the curb, as he
routinely did; and

W
hereas, when Louie
knocked on the door, he noticed an unfamiliar man behaving suspiciously inside.
The man claimed Ms. Johnson had been taken to the hospital, a statement Louie
immediately recognized as false. Louie sprang into action, returning home to
retrieve his firearm and call law enforcement; and

W
hereas, the assailant
then taped a plastic bag on Ms. Johnson's head, tied her with a dog leash, forced
her into the floorboard of her vehicle, and fled the scene with her inside the
car; and

W
hereas, Louie's wife,
Patricia, ran to the car, attempting to stop the vehicle and retrieve the
victim as the assailant quickly reversed out of the driveway. Because of these
neighbors' actions, law enforcement was alerted immediately and was able to
locate the victim alive later that day. Police averred that if the victim had
not been found that night, she likely would have died; and

W
hereas, in August of 2025,
the assailant, Enver Zueros, was convicted by the First Circuit Solicitor's
Office in Dorchester County and sentenced to fifty years in prison, after pleading
guilty to first-degree burglary and kidnapping. Ms. Johnson's survival is a
direct result of neighbors who trusted their instincts and refused to look the
other way; and

W
hereas, prosecutors
said the assailant had driven across the country after Ms. Johnson stopped
sending him money, rented an Airbnb near her home, and waited to assault her when
her caregiver was not present; and

W
hereas, family members
testified in court about the weeks of wound care, physical therapy, and the
lasting fear Ms. Johnson has endured since the attack; and

W
hereas, the South
Carolina House of Representatives values the heroic and selfless actions of
neighbors in the Palmetto State, like Patricia and Louie Ayende, who appreciate
the welfare of others in their community, and the members commend them for
boldly coming to the aid of Ms. Johnson. Now, therefore,

B
e it resolved by the
House of Representatives
:

T
hat the members of the
South Carolina
House of Representatives
,
by this resolution, recognize and honor Louie and Patricia Ayende for their
courageous and speedy assistance to their neighbor when they saw her being
kidnapped, which enabled law enforcement to rescue her quickly.

B
e it further resolved
that a copy of this resolution be presented to Louie and Patricia Ayende.

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This web page was last updated on January 28, 2026 at 2:49 PM