COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A Republican member of the South Carolina House who prosecutors say used the screen name “joebidennnn69” agreed Friday to plead guilty to distributing sexual abuse material involving children.
RJ May signed court papers to change his plea a few days after a hearing where prosecutors laid out how they would present their evidence in May’s trial next month. May, who does not have a law degree, is acting as his own attorney.
The Republican, who resigned earlier this year, is accused of using “joebidennnn69” to exchange 220 different files of toddlers and young children involved in sex acts on the Kik social media network for about five days in spring 2024, according to court documents that graphically detailed the videos.
May, 38, is pleading guilty to five counts and faces five to 20 years in prison on each charge. He will have to register as a sex offender and could be fined up to $250,000, according to his plea agreement.
May is scheduled to be in federal court Monday to officially change his plea. He has been in jail since June after a judge refused bond following his arrest.
May acted as his own attorney at a hearing that included prosecutors showing charts explaining in stark, factual ways what was on each video May is charged with distributing.
During the hearing, May made arguments to the judge to throw out the warrant used to search his home, laptop and mobile devices. She had not ruled on the request before May approached prosecutors about pleading guilty Wednesday.
May also was trying to keep out any evidence about whether he used a fake name to travel to Colombia three times. Prosecutors said they found videos on his laptop of him allegedly having sex with three women. A Homeland Security agent testified the women appeared to be underage and were paid. U.S. agents have not been able to locate the women.
Prosecutors said they linked May to uploading and downloading the child sexual abuse videos by showing he multitasked, emailing work files, making phone calls and doing web searches as part of his job as a political consultant as he was on Kik asking for “Bad moms. Bad dads. Bad pre teens.”
May was in his third term in the South Carolina House when he was arrested. After his election in 2020, he helped create the Freedom Caucus, a group of the House’s most conservative members who say mainstream House Republicans aren’t the true conservative heart of the GOP. He also helped the campaigns of Republicans running against GOP House incumbents.
“We as legislators have an obligation to insure that our children have no harm done to them,” May said in January 2024 on the House floor during a debate on transgender care for minors.
