Ex-Horry County police chief’s son avoids prison on drugs, weapon charges. Here’s why.
The son of a former Horry County police chief admitted to drugs and weapon charges, but avoided a prison term and was instead sentenced to probation.
Cameron Rhodes pleaded guilty to possession with intent to deliver marijuana, possession of a controlled substance and unlawful carrying a pistol. He entered his pleas during a hearing Wednesday morning in Horry County court.
In January 2019, Conway police stopped Rhodes for failing to use his turn signal, assistant solicitor Ryan Waller said. Officers approached the car and smelled marijuana. They asked Rhodes if he had a weapon, and he told them about a pistol under his seat. He did not have a concealed weapons permit.
Officers searched the car and found more than 400 grams of pot and five Xanax pills, Waller said.
Rhodes told the court the details were correct, and he was guilty of the crimes. He did not speak during the hearing other than to answer the judge’s questions.
Rhodes is the son of ex-Horry County Police Chief Saundra Rhodes. Saundra Rhodes was not present for Wednesday’s hearing.
Defense Attorney Bert von Herrmann said since he met Rhodes, his client was upset about how he let down his mom and family. He added his client had no criminal history. The defense asked that Rhodes be sentenced under the state’s Youthful Offender Act.
“In the end, hopefully one day he can put all this behind him,” Von Herrmann said.
The Youthful Offender Acts allows defendants to complete their sentence, then have their charges expunged from their record.
Judge Benjamin Culbertson sentenced Rhodes to one year in prison on each of the possession with intent to distribute and the weapon charges. He sentenced Rhodes to six months on the drug possession charge. All the sentences were under the Youthful Offender Act and were suspended in favor of 18 months probation.
Rhodes faced up to six years and six months in prison.
