A scuffle in a St. Tammany holding cell in 2019 resulted in a man suffering a broken jaw. Now another man has been convicted of causing that injury.
Slidell native Christopher “Winky” Bell Jr., 36, was found guilty of second-degree battery, and it could result in lifetime imprisonment.
Bell was in the holding cell in May 2019 after being arrested on charges of possession of a firearm by a felon and obstruction of justice. He was later convicted on those charges and sentenced to 50 years in prison.
Normally a second-degree battery conviction carries a maximum 8-year sentence, but Bell is a special case.
His prior convictions for aggravated battery, illegal possession of stolen things, cocaine possession and aggravated criminal damage to property, as well as those firearm and obstruction convictions, could push Bell into a life sentence under the Habitual Offender Statute.
Bell’s attack on his victim in the holding cell was caught on surveillance footage and showed Bell to be the aggressor in the altercation, according to the Slidell Police Department. A six-person jury agreed.
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