Former DSS case worker testifies why Timothy Jones kept his children

Reports indicated a "substantial risk of physical abuse" but DSS agents said no further action was needed

LEXINGTON, S.C. (WOLO) — Testimony from Day Ten of the Timothy Jones Jr. murder trial revealed more details concerning several Department of Social Services (DSS) visits to the Jones home.

Visiting the Jones home three times in 2014, former DSS case worker Sherry Henry says there was a “substantial risk of physical abuse” in the Jones home, but not enough to take custody away from Jones.

After a Saxe Gotha Elementary School nurse testified last week that she reported bruises on Nahtahn Jones’s neck and arms, DSS agents talked with the children and gave Jones a call.

Henry testified that Jones told her that he got upset after Nahtahn destroyed a model train track he built with his older brother.

“He never stated that he choked him. He demonstrated to us that he jerked him up by his collar,” Henry testified.

She says this led to a series of visits from DSS, including an unannounced knock on the door from Henry in May 2014 to see how the family acted in a natural environment, which happened to be when the family was celebrating the oldest daughter, Merah’s, birthday.

Henry says she gave Amber, Jones’s ex-wife, a call at some point that evening.

“At that time, she indicated that he was a good father,” Henry said.

Once social workers talked with Jones and the children, Henry says they came up with a plan for Jones to try and keep his hands off the children.

“Mr. Jones will agree not to use any physical discipline on any of the children. Mr. Jones will not wrassle with any of the children,” said Henry, reading from the child safety plan.

This plan also included a provision where Jones would work to keep the house clean and neat.

DSS agents returned to the home a few weeks before the murders after they received a report of bruising on the oldest son, Elias. After going to the home and talking with the children’s babysitter, they decided not to take any further action on the Jones.

In addition to Henry, co-workers of Jones at Intel took the stand to talk about how he interacted with others inside and outside the workplace.

The co-worker who was on the stand the longest was Brantley Brokaw, a classmate of Jones at Mississippi State who also worked at Intel.

Brokaw said Jones stayed at his place before moving into his Red Bank trailer, and then after the separation between Jones and Amber. Even though they spent a lot of time together, he said he didn’t want Jones to think of him as his best friend since he had “abrupt views”, especially about religion.

In his testimony, Brokaw said the “last straw” was when Jones vomited in his apartment after a night drinking. Jones’s co-worker said he offered to buy him some food from Wendy’s as an apology, but when they were there, Jones would bark at women.

Brice Mankowski, who was Jones’s team at Intel, said his teammate was very “hard-headed”, but usually showed up to work on time leading up to the summer of 2014, when he started getting in later in the day.

Todd Schelling and Jai Ajema, both co-workers at Intel, also took the stand.

Earlier in the day, the defense played pre-recorded testimony from Jonathan J. Lipman, a neuropharmacologist who testified that Jones’s use of synthetic marijuana, especially the strand AB Pinaca, played a role in worsening his psychosis.

Lipman said under oath he never actually met with Jones in person.

Testimony continues Wednesday morning at the Lexington County Courthouse.