Man who killed an Horry County toddler accused of possessing child porn in prison
A 32-year-old who rammed his car into another vehicle ultimately killing an Horry County toddler is now accused of possessing child pornography while in prison.
The South Carolina Attorney General’s Office announced on Thursday that it charged Christopher David Jones with 20 counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor. That is South Carolina’s version of a child pornography charge.
Each count is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, meaning Jones faces an additional 200 years behind bars if found guilty.
Jones pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and assault and battery with the intent to kill in connection to the 2005 crash on S.C. Highway 544. He was sentenced to 21 years in prison. Jones had a projected release date of 2023, according to information from the South Carolina Department of Corrections.
Jones admitted to ramming his SUV into the car of the Bellamy family on March 7, 2005, killing three-year-old Erica Bellamy.
Prosecutors said Jones, who was 17 at the time of the crash, and his girlfriend made a suicide pact the night before the crash. Jones aimed his vehicle at the Bellamy’s car to kill himself. Jones was traveling 99 miles per hour and never applied the breaks when he hit the other car.
“I’m sorry for y’all. I never meant for this to happen,” Jones told the toddler’s family at his sentencing.
The state’s Attorney General’s Office said a report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children led the child pornography investigators to Jones.
A news release did not describe how he allegedly obtained child pornography while in prison.
