Ex-SC Prison Captain Faces Charges for Smuggling 170+ Phones to Inmates

A former high-ranking South Carolina prison security officer has been indicted on several federal offenses, including bringing contraband into jail and selling illegal things to convicts, including over 170 telephones.

Christine Livingston, 46, a former captain of the South Carolina Department of Corrections, appeared in federal court Thursday afternoon on accusations of money laundering, wire fraud, and bribery.

Livingston, of Gaston, Lexington County, arrived in court wearing shackles and handcuffs. From 2016 to 2021, she made at least $219,360 by smuggling contraband into prison and selling it to convicts, according to a 15-count indictment. The products included 173 cell phones, headphones, screen protectors, phone chargers, SIM cards, and other sorts of contraband in transactions with convicts, according to the indictment.

The phones were ordered from Amazon, and Livingston facilitated payments from offenders using 14 peer-to-peer payment accounts, including the mobile payment software CashApp. “Those accounts were operated primarily under pseudonyms, and they were linked to financial accounts in her genuine name,” according to the criminal complaint.

During the arraignment hearing at the federal courtroom in Columbia, assistant U.S. Attorney Elliott Daniels informed Magistrate Judge Paige Jones Gossett that she was also affiliated with an in-prison gang.

“She would either allow or direct violence against inmates” who might inform on her to safeguard her plot, Daniels informed Gossett. At the arraignment, Livingston pled not guilty, and her attorney, Connie Breeden, informed Gossett that the charges against her client were only claims.

“We are not here to try the case today,” explained Breeden. Breeden also stated that Livingston is “a good, upstanding citizen” who owns property and has children. “I don’t believe she is a flight risk.”

The accusation against Livingston also named prison inmate Jerell Reaves, 33, as a co-defendant. Reaves is presently serving a 15-year term for voluntary manslaughter at the Broad River Correctional Institution, where Livingston worked. His anticipated delivery date is July 2029.

Corrections officials having business, romantic, or professional connections with convicts is against prison rules, Daniels informed Gossett.

“She violated all of these,” Daniels stated.

The indictment stated that Reaves “paid and caused to be paid” about $48,000 in bribes to Livingston. Reaves and Livingston conspired from July 2018 until November 2021, according to the indictment.

Daniels informed Gossett on Thursday that Livingston utilized two detainees as go-betweens in her interactions with inmates. According to the indictment, Livingston was a Class II law enforcement officer who could carry a gun, wear a badge, and make arrests.

According to the South Carolina Department of Corrections, Livingston started working for the prison system in 2005 and left in 2021.

Livingston resigned while an internal inquiry into her actions was underway, a prison spokesperson said late Thursday. According to correctional officials, Livingston’s annual salary was $56,797 when she departed.

Gossett ordered Livington must post a $25,000 secured bond, as asked by Daniels. Breeden had requested an unsecured bond. Daniels informed the court that five South Carolina detainees were prepared to testify against Livingston.

The FBI nabbed Livingston on Thursday morning at her workplace as a security officer. “We don’t believe she was aware the FBI was investigating her until today,” Daniels stated in court.

The FBI investigated the case, with three agents present in court on Thursday.