Inman man denied bond in crash that killed two teens

An Inman man was denied bond Wednesday after being handed felony charges in a Boiling Springs crash that left two Inman teenagers dead just before Christmas.

Hollis Brock Jr., 48, was charged with two counts of felony DUI resulting in death and one count of felony DUI resulting in great bodily injury.

Brock was released from Spartanburg Medical Center on Wednesday and taken to the Spartanburg County jail where he was denied bond.

He faces up to 65 years in prison if convicted on all three charges.

Solicitor Barry Barnette said Brock was “extremely intoxicated” when he was driving along Highway 9 near Blalock Road around 11:15 p.m. Friday. He crossed the center line and struck a vehicle head-on with his red pickup truck, Barnette said.

Three 19-year-old women were in the car that was struck. Melissa Marie Frilot died at the scene. She was driving. Kortlynn Brianna Smith died at the hospital. Daisy Byrd suffered broken bones and severe injuries but survived, Barnette said during the bond hearing.

A blood test has been sent to the State Law Enforcement Division to determine Brock’s blood alcohol content at the time of the crash, though the results have not yet come back.

Barnette said Brock failed a field sobriety test. He was found Friday night walking away from the crash scene about 100 yards away, the prosecutor said.

Authorities found Brock with a neck injury.

“He just didn’t realize it at the time from the intoxication,” Barnette said.

Brock wore a neck brace as he was brought into the bond hearing in a wheelchair. He was soft-spoken and responded to the magistrate’s questions with “yes sir.”

Frilot’s family members attended the hearing as Magistrate Edward Addington forwarded the charges to Circuit Court to determine Brock’s bond at a later date.

“We feel like he is a danger to the community because of obviously the actions he’s done,” Barnette said.

Frilot was a 2016 graduate of Chapman High School and was a freshman at the University of South Carolina Upstate. She was also an employee at Little Pigs BBQ in Boiling Springs and an active member of NewSpring Church, according to her obituary.

Smith’s family was holding a celebration of life event in Inman at the same time as the bond hearing.

She was also a 2016 graduate of Chapman High School and was a freshman at Coastal Carolina University, majoring in sports medicine. At Chapman, she was a varsity competition cheerleader for four years, her obituary states.

Brock’s criminal background includes a grand larceny conviction and a reckless driving conviction.

Along with the felony charges, Brock has been accused of having an open container of alcohol in a vehicle, failing to register a vehicle and driving an uninsured vehicle.

“I have insurance on it,” Brock said after Addington read the charges.

“You’ll have a court date to talk about that,” Addington responded.

This story was originally published December 28, 2016 at 7:45 PM with the headline "Inman man denied bond in crash that killed two teens."