JERRY CASE A prison parolee accused of kidnapping a North Carolina family and bringing them to Gaffney, where he was stopped during a shootout with Cherokee County sheriff’s deputies, pleaded guilty in federal court Tuesday morning.

Jerry Douglas Case, 52, of Gastonia, appeared before U.S. Magistrate David Keesler and entered a guilty plea in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina to two counts of kidnapping, two counts of kidnapping involving a child, and one count of carjacking.

Case’s plea was straight, meaning there was no plea agreement with federal prosecutors, confirmed Suellen Pierce, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Western District of South Carolina. Pierce said a sentencing date has not yet been announced by the court.

There was no immediate word about how much prison time Case will face in the federal court system, though the charges carry a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment.

When federal prosecutors in North Carolina are through with Case, it’s expected that he‘ll be brought back to South Carolina to face charges here.

Locally, prosecutors couldn’t say what impact the federal plea and upcoming federal sentence will have on the local charges.

Case faces four counts of kidnapping as well as two counts of assault and battery with intent to kill under South Carolina law.

“We are still reviewing the (local) cases and it would be premature to say if his plea in federal court will have any effect on the cases,” said Attorney Michael Morin, assistant solicitor for the 7th Circuit Solicitor’s Office.

Case’s defense attorney could not be reached for immediate comment Tuesday.

Case was accused of kidnapping a 71-year-old grandfather, the man’s 28-year-old daughter, and the woman’s two young children (ages 7- years-old and ninemonths old) from a fishing spot near Belfont, N.C., on July 17 and forcing them to drive him to various locations, including convenience stores where he bought beer and cigarettes.

He ultimately had them cross state lines on July 18, where they stopped at the Kangaroo convenience store in Gaffney near Exit 96 of Interstate 85.

The family was able to escape and call police when Case went into the store and Cherokee County Sheriff’s deputies began a manhunt, tracking Case to a swampy area near the Interstate.

Case, who federal authorities say was armed with a .177-caliber pellet pistol that looked like a conventional weapon, fired shots at the pursuing deputies, striking one in the leg.

The deputy was not seriously injured.

Deputies returned fire, discharging three shots and striking Case twice.

Case was treated at Spartanburg Regional Medical Center, where he remained until he was transferred to federal custody.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Cullen is prosecuting the federal charges.