Payments only stop before conviction if you're on standard social security payments. Chris is on Disability, so he would have continued receiving payments, because he was never convicted.
You don't have to be convicted. They stop it while you are incarcerated regardless. It could be for a probation violation, it could just be you were arrested and held for a month and a half, either way, you will lose it. I see what it says there, and the language implies what you're saying, but I'm telling you for a fact that you will lose after 30 days, just like they say, whether you were convicted of a crime or not.
How long has he been in there as of now? Has it been a year? Because something else it says regarding social security:
"If you’re receiving SSI, we’ll suspend
your payments while you’re in prison.
Your payments can start again in the
month you’re released. However, if your
confinement lasts for 12 consecutive
months or longer, we’ll terminate your
eligibility for SSI payments and you must
file a new application after your release."
If it has been, he will have to reapply. I mean, that's no big deal to do, I'm just curious.
"Social Security Disability Insurance
(SSDI) and Supplemental Security
Income (SSI) payments generally are
not payable for months that you’re
imprisoned for committing a crime. This
includes when you’re confined to a jail,
prison, or certain other public institutions.
You’re not automatically eligible for
Social Security or SSI payments after
your release."
I know it has that caveat in there about "being convicted of a crime" but it's just written that way under the assumption that if you're held that long, you've probably been convicted of some type of crime. The important part is that you will lose them after being incarcerated for 30 days. Nobody is getting social security benefits from jail after that long.
You will lose your SSI payments for a probation violation because those typically last 90 days. You weren't convicted of any extra crime, as you are allowed to receive benefits while on probation/parole, but as soon as you spend 30 days or more in jail for that violation, you won't keep getting payments for that time. Once you get out, you call them and your payments can resume.