Hearing finds Shelley violated probation in 2007 reckless homicide case

By Jody Barr
WBTW News 13 Reporter
Published: September 18, 2008

The Loris teen serving a probation sentence for killing her best friend, Kayla Bennett, in a July 2007 alcohol-related crash had a probation revocation hearing Thursday.

The crash happened near Loris and killed Bennett and sent Shelley to a North Carolina hospital.

NC Troopers did not collect blood and urine samples from Shelley, instead administered a breathalyzer, which is not admissible in South Carolina courts, according to Bennett.

The State Law Enforcement Division charged Shelley’s uncle, Gary Gene Shelley, with two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor after investigators said he bought the two 16-year-old girls a six pack of beer and wine coolers from the Loris Food Lion the day of the deadly crash.

At the hearing, probation agent Michael Thompson said 17-year-old Taylor Shelley violated the terms of her probation on August 28 after she stopped to eat breakfast at R.W. Woods’ convenience store for breakfast on her way to school at North Myrtle Beach High.

Shelley pleaded guilty to reckless homicide on July 14 and circuit court judge John Milling sentenced her to 10 years in prison, but suspended that to five years of probation and six months of home detention.

The violation came after Shelley stopped for breakfast without permission from her probation agent.

Thompson said Shelley had permission to stop at the store on August 26.

Greg Bennett, Kayla’s father, told the judge this morning that Shelley’s probation has turned into a “joke” and said the probation department was not doing the job ensuring Shelley abided by the judge’s order, “On the morning she walked in to eat breakfast I was sitting there and was shocked to see her walk in. I’d heard she’d been coming in there every morning,” Bennett said.

The Bennett and Shelley family negotiated the sentence in the case before the guilty plea in July.

Bennett said he did not want Taylor Shelley to go to jail for the crime, but asked that she be held under home detention and pay some debt to society.

Circuit Court judge John Milling agreed to the negotiated plea when he sentenced Shelley.

Thompson allowed Shelley to play in a week-long softball tournament in August after Shelley’s psychologist sent probation a letter stating that her participation in the tournament was part of “her healing process,” Thompson told the court Thursday.

Bennett made a point that Thompson did not allow her to participate in two following tournaments later in August after her participation in the first tournament was made public.

Thompson said his decision to not allow Shelley to play in the last two tournaments, “Since the media attention, her psychologist decided maybe it would be best if she stayed at home and did her exercise and participated in things at home.”

“This is not what home detention and intensive probation is supposed to be like. I mean, Everyday it’s something different and me and my family need some kind of closure,” Bennett said.

Bennett told the judge that Shelley agreed to the terms of her probation, but she’s not living up to them.

Shelley’s attorney, John Breeden told the judge that Shelley did nothing wrong by playing in the August softball tournament, but that she did make a mistake by stopping at the store for breakfast, “She did some wrong in getting a biscuit in Thursday after having been given permission on Tuesday to go and that’s why we’re here,” Breeden said in the hearing Thursday.

Both Thompson and Breeden said Shelley has been a model probationer since July.

Bennett argued that Shelley should be placed on a monitoring system until her home detention ends because he said, “without monitoring, she’s just running free.”

Circuit court judge Stephen John said that although the probation department found Shelley in violation, he was not “going to revoke your probation at this time.”

John told Shelley that he would revoke her probation if he felt the situation warranted it, instead he admonished her in court, “You are not now in control of your life. You are on probation. Judge Milling gave you an active sentence, suspended to probation. If you do not follow the terms and conditions of your probation, you will go to the department of corrections; make no mistake about that ma’am.”

If Shelley’s probation is revoked, she must serve the remaining time of her five year suspended sentence in a state prison.

Shelley’s driver’s license is also suspended through August 2013 and she must complete community service, speak to area schools about underage drinking, participate in a public safety video about underage drinking and drinking and driving, maintain a “C” average, abide by a curfew of 10 p.m. on weekdays and 11 p.m. on weekends, and pay an annual contribution of $250 to the Kayla Bennett scholarship.

Gary Gene Shelley remains free on bond; there is no word yet on a trial date.