a day ago
Digital forensics expert takes stand on Day 4 of Horry County murder trial
An expert in digital forensics read intimate conversations as evidence when he took the stand on Day 4 of the Horry County murder trial of Meagan Jackson.
Jackson is on trial for allegedly shooting and killing Greg Rice, her ex-boyfriend and father to her four children, on Oct. 2, 2020. The trial began Tuesday, with Jackson facing charges of murder and criminal conspiracy. Former Horry County deputy coroner Christopher Dontell, Jackson's lover, admitted providing assistance by dumping Rice's body in the Little Pee Dee River overnight Oct. 3-4, 2020, pleading guilty to accessory after the fact and criminal conspiracy in December 2024.
Sheriff's Lt. Benjamin Wells was called to the stand Friday to testify about extracting evidence from cellphones belonging to Jackson and Erica Dontell, Christopher Dontell's wife. He also read from anonymous messages sent to Erica Dontell attempting to expose the affair between Jackson and Christopher Dontell, including texts reading, 'I thought you should know about how your husband has someone else pregnant,' and, 'The girl that is pregnant is Meagan.'
Jackson and Dontell were family friends who began having an affair in 2020.
Jackson allegedly brought Rice's body to the Myrtle Beach Funeral Home after killing him, around Oct. 2, 2020, The Sun News previously reported. Rice's body was later discovered, wrapped in a tarp, by people stringing catfish lines overnight Nov. 7-8 near Pitts Landing.
Wells explained that he used software called Cellebrite to help extract the data and split it into categories for investigation. He explained that a web service called Text4Free had been used to send the messages to Erica Dontell anonymously.
Wells' testimony also included images shared via links, which allow large images to be shared among recipients. Several links were found on Jackson's phone from Sept. 27, 2020, containing screenshots of text message exchanges between Jackson and Christopher Dontell. Messages included conversations regarding Jackson's appointment to get an abortion, with a photo of several pregnancy tests she had taken.
The defense objected to the position now being taken by the prosecution, which they said was trying to paint Jackson as the sender of the anonymous messages, a move they said they didn't know was going to be made. This objection led to a recess, during which Jackson held animated conversations with her attorneys and made frequent visits to their computers.
Also presented was an anonymous email sent to Erica Dontell on Oct. 1, 2020, claiming to have proof of the affair between Christopher Dontell and Jackson. The email had several attachments, including nude photographs and screenshots of text conversations that were shown being created on Jackson's phone before the email was sent.
Some of the texts shared between Jackson and Christopher Dontell said that Rice had found out about Jackson's pregnancy with Christopher Dontell, and that he was indicating he would reveal their relationship.
A message was then sent from Jackson's phone reading, 'I'm all for popping a tire on the highway or cuttin a break line (sic) on him,' to which Christopher Dontell's contact replied, 'Unfortunately I am too now.'
When Dontell testified Thursday, he claimed that he aided in dumping Rice's body because he feared that Jackson would kill him, The Sun News reported.
He said that on the night of Oct. 2. 2020, he drove Jackson to Rice's apartment complex because Jackson said she needed to speak with Rice. When he saw Rice outside, he pulled up next to him. Then, he said Jackson opened the door of her work minivan and fired a gun at Rice, proceeding to yell at Dontell to help her with the body.
Dontell claimed that he did not want to be part of the crime, but that Jackson threatened to kill him if he told anybody.
This was the first piece of direct evidence tying Jackson to Rice's murder.
In the presented text conversations between Jackson and Rice, it was revealed that Rice said he was going to 'start letting people know the truth' about Jackson's 'lies.' He later messaged her 'all I can say is wait for the storm.'
As these text exchanges were read aloud to the jury by Wells, Jackson whispered to her attorneys.
Jackson's 19-year-old daughter, Savannah Rice, became emotional as messages between Jackson and Greg Rice were read, some of which regarded her and her siblings.
On Tuesday, Savannah Rice testified against her mother, saying that Jackson made a comment alluding to killing Rice before the discovery of his body, during a fight between her mother and her sister. Also during Tuesday's session, security footage was shown putting Jackson and Dontell together for much of the night of Rice's death.
The defense argued during its cross-examination of Wells that the presented messages were 'cherry-picked,' and that Jackson has tried to help Erica and Christopher Dontell find out how the anonymous messages had been sent, and by whom. Wells replied that because device extractions are 'extremely large,' they require excerpts to be taken from them.
The trial will continue Tuesday morning.
