FLORENCE COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) — A Florence County drug dealer who tried to escape from prison will remain in prison to serve his sentence, the South Carolina Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday.
Johnny N. Gregg, Jr., was convicted in 2018 of multiple drug trafficking charges. He is projected to be released in 2052, and becomes eligible for parole in 2048.
Gregg submitted the appeal on Thursday. The court’s decision was made without oral arguments being made.
He asked for the court to review his request after his application for post-conviction relief was denied, according to the ruling. The court said that there is “sufficient evidence” to support the post-conviction court’s ruling that he “did not knowingly and intelligently waive his right to a direct appeal,” and therefore it looked at the case.
After reviewing it, however, his appeal was dismissed. There was no further explanation for the decision.
The court also granted Gregg’s attorney’s request to be removed from Gregg’s legal team for the direct appeal.
The appeal request comes about two years after Gregg was accused of trying to escape from prison.
In 2020, Gregg was texting with Dallas Waiters, Jr., to plan how to break Gregg and other inmates out of the McCormick Correctional Institute, according to authorities.
While incarcerated, Gregg has hit an employee, used drugs and was caught with a cell phone, according to state records. He was caught with a cell phone in 2021, and again in February of this year.