Chester County father pleads guilty to 2021 abuse of infant twins, sentenced to prison
A Chester County, S.C., man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to child abuse charges from 2021 that involved his twin infant children, according to prosecutors and court records.
Kentovian Markell White, 33, pleaded guilty two two counts of abuse inflicting great bodily injury to a child under an Alford plea Tuesday in Chester County criminal court, according to Candice Lively, 6th Circuit Deputy Solicitor. White also pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine, according to prosecutors and court records.
The children were about 3 months old when the incident happened in 2021, according to officials. The babies had head and other body injuries that were treated at a Charlotte childrens’ hospital, Lively said.
The children survived.
White is the father of the children, Lively said.
Visiting Circuit Court Judge Daniel Coble sentenced White to 12 years in the S.C. Department of Corrections, with credit for the 748 days White has been in jail since being arrested, court records show.
White must serve 85 percent of the sentence before he is eligible for release.
In an Alford plea, a defendant does not have to admit guilt, but accepts that there is sufficient evidence that there is a probability that he would be convicted if there was a trial, according to court officials. The defendant also accepts a benefit of a plea deal, officials said.
The child abuse charges carried respective penalties of up to 20 years in prison for each conviction, and the drug charge carried up to three years, South Carolina law shows.
Charges against a second defendant in the case remain pending, according to court records and prosecutors.
