BEAUFORT, S.C. (April 23, 2026) – A 46-year-old Michigan man vacationing on Hilton Head Island with his ex-wife to discuss a possible reconciliation is instead heading to prison after brutally assaulting her.
A Beaufort County General Sessions Court jury on Thursday found Ryan Christopher Inks of Taylor, MI, and formerly of Whitmore Lake, MI, guilty of domestic violence of a high and aggravated nature for his assault in a South Forest Beach Drive unit where the couple were staying with their 6-year-old son.
Inks was sentenced to 15 years in prison, suspended to five years of active time, three years of probation and participation in a batterer’s intervention program. A permanent restraining order also bars Inks from any contact with his ex-wife.
Ryan Christopher Inks
“Today’s verdict holds this defendant accountable for a terrifying and life-threatening assault that no one should ever endure,” said Assistant Solicitor Alexa Casavecchia, who prosecuted the case. “We are grateful to the jury for recognizing the severity of this violence, and we hope this conviction brings a measure of justice and reassurance to this survivor and all others that they will be heard, protected and supported.”
Inks and his ex-wife had been divorced a few months when they decided to have a joint vacation with their son and consider getting back together. However, on March 30, 2021, the two argued over their divorce terms. Inks’ ex-wife left the condominium to allow her ex-husband to cool down, but he had been drinking alcohol and was still enraged when she returned.
Inks told her she had to leave the next day, and when his ex-wife bent over to pick up a pair of shoes, he came behind her and put her in a chokehold, using his other hand to cover her mouth and prevent her from calling for help. He held the chokehold until his ex-wife lost consciousness.
The woman woke up to find she was bleeding from her nostrils. Inks ordered her to clean the blood from her face, then laundered the towel she used to wipe herself. The woman said she was calling law enforcement, but Inks told her that if she did, she’d be dead before the officers arrived.
Inks then forced his ex-wife to sleep next to him the entire night and again threatened to kill her if she left.
The next morning, the woman called 9-1-1. Authorities arrived to find bruising on her neck and both of her eyes blackened and bloodshot, the latter condition an indicator of possible strangulation.
Inks admitted to the officers that he and his ex-wife argued the night before and that he put her in a “bear hug” to calm her down, though he gestured by putting his hands to his throat as he described what he did. Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office deputies immediately placed him under arrest.
Casavecchia called five witnesses during two days of testimony at the Beaufort County Courthouse.
Circuit Court Judge Robert Bonds handed down the sentence.
Inks was found not guilty of a charge of kidnapping.
Casavecchia prosecutes cases in Beaufort County, where the Solicitor’s Office headquarters houses the 14th Circuit Victims Services Center. The VSC is a community initiative that couples local nonprofits and the prosecutor’s office to aid survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, child and elder abuse and other crimes against vulnerable populations. To learn more, or to get help, call (843) 790-6220 or email [email protected].
