‘Nightmare for everybody.’ Chapin High football player pleads guilty to lesser crimes
A Chapin High School student and standout football player pleaded guilty to third-degree assault and being a minor in possession of alcohol Wednesday.
David Bennett Galloway III told Judge Casey Manning that he was pleading guilty to third-degree assault, a misdemeanor, and minor alcohol possession of his own free will at the Richland County courthouse on Main Street.
Specifically he pleaded guilty to “unlawful touching” of a 13-year-old girl.
A lawyer for the victim and her family told the court that the impact on the girl has been “severe.”
At the hearing, Galloway apologized directly to the victim and her family.
“I cannot imagine what she is going through,” he said, adding that he “cannot comprehend” what the victim’s mother and family are thinking.
Galloway pleaded guilty after he and his lawyer, Jim May, solidified a deal with the Fifth Circuit Solicitor’s Office that reduced the original charge of second degree criminal sexual conduction with a minor. Deputy Solicitor Dan Goldberg represented the solicitor’s office in court on Wednesday.
“This is a nightmare for everybody,” May said. That included the victim, her family as well as Galloway and his family. “There are no winners.” May emphasized that the situation “could happen to most teenagers.”
Galloway was sentenced to 60 days in jail suspended to 240 hours of community service and alcohol and drug counseling. He also was ordered to pay $15,000 restitution to the victim for counseling. That means Galloway will spend no time in jail if he adheres to the stipulations.
Galloway is a three-star prospect by 247Sports Composite rankings and the No. 15 ranked prospect in South Carolina for the class of 2022. In the 2021 season, Galloway rushed for 1,084 yards and scored 25 total touchdowns. He had committed to play at N.C. State.
The incident
On Oct. 2, Galloway was at a party at a relative’s house with other high school students and no adults, Goldberg said.
He was drinking, and when the victim approached him, he offered her alcohol. She said she didn’t want any.
They went into the upstairs of the house and had a sexual encounter that was stopped by another person. Later that night, Galloway and the victim met up again and had sex, according to Goldberg.
The prosecutor described the sex as consensual, saying the victim never indicated she did not want to have sex.
That unfolding of events was agreed to by Galloway in court. At dispute between prosecutors and Galloway’s defense was whether Galloway knew the victim’s age, Goldberg said.
The prosecution maintained that Galloway knew the victim’s age because she told him. His defense contended he never knew the victim was 13 years old but believed she was in high school.
At the courthouse, May said Galloway passed a lie detector test when asked if he knew the victim’s age.
Richland County Sheriff’s Department arrested Galloway in November.
By accepting a negotiated plea of third degree assault and minor in possession of alcohol, prosecutors agreed that the evidence didn’t rise to second degree criminal sexual conduct with a minor.
Impact on the victim
Attorney Jack Duncan gave a brief statement on behalf of the victim in court, noting that the victim’s family only wanted him to say a few things.
Duncan told the court that a friend of Galloway’s told people that he had sex with the victim. That led to the victim and her family being bullied throughout Chapin.
The victim was forced to drop out of middle school classes and attend school virtually.
“The bullying of the Chapin community has been horrendous.,” Duncan said.
Neither the victim nor her family spoke in court.
What Galloway said
Galloway read a statement in court.
“I drank when I should not have and did something that I should not have,” he said.
When he found out the victim’s age, he was “horrified and embarrassed,” Galloway said.
He accepted full responsibility for the crime and said he knows what he did was unlawful. He said he understood that mistaking the victim’s age was not a defense for his actions.
He apologized to his family and the Chapin community.
“I am so sorry to everyone who was affected,” he said.
During the hearing, May, Galloway’s lawyer, turned directly to the victim and her family and said, “We are so sorry,.”
The Galloway family tried to stop the harassment that the victim and her family faced in the Chapin community, May said.
This story was originally published January 19, 2022 at 1:22 PM with the headline "‘Nightmare for everybody.’ Chapin High football player pleads guilty to lesser crimes."
CORRECTION: Attorney Jack Duncan spoke on behalf of the victim and her family. An earlier version of this story mislabeled him.