South Carolina Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in South Carolina, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Did a South Carolina jailer have to follow a family court work-release contempt order in 1995?
The 1995 opinion said a jailer had to do everything possible to carry out the family court order until a court reversed or modified it, despite objections about program availability or security. It…
Could McCormick County Council cut funding for its veterans affairs office despite the officer's submitted budget?
In 1995, an Assistant Attorney General said county council had discretion to set funding for the veterans affairs office because she found no law assigning that decision elsewhere. The 1945 act…
Where did proceeds go when a South Carolina sheriff sold a vehicle bought with drug-forfeiture funds?
A 1995 informal opinion said the proceeds would return to the law-enforcement agency’s drug-fund account. The same restrictions on drug-enforcement use, budgeting, purchasing and records still applied.
Did a third shoplifting offense go to South Carolina general sessions court regardless of the stolen goods’ value in 1995?
Yes. An Assistant Attorney General said the 1995 repeat-property-offense amendment made a third or later shoplifting case a general sessions matter regardless of value; municipal court jurisdiction…
What could a South Carolina municipal judge do about old warrants, missed hearings, jury demands and restitution?
A 1995 informal opinion said an arrest warrant did not lapse by age alone, failure-to-appear charges belonged in general sessions, and a jury demand could be made before trial. It also addressed…
Which 1994 state employee pay increases counted toward South Carolina probate judges’ and magistrates’ 1995 raises?
A 1995 informal opinion counted only the across-the-board 2% state employee increase as a cost-of-living adjustment for probate judges and magistrates. It excluded compression-relief and merit…
Could Spartanburg County use school equalization tax revenue for salaries or property purchases in 1995?
A 1995 informal opinion said equalizing school funding was the county board’s primary financial objective. Salaries, administration and property purchases were permissible only if consistent with…
Did South Carolina’s 1995 school-property weapons law cover a self-defense pepper-spray canister?
Yes. An Assistant Deputy Attorney General said a pepper-spray canister could be a weapon or device capable of inflicting bodily injury under the statute, even when marketed for self-defense.
Could a South Carolina insurance company pay off-duty deputy sheriffs to serve bad-check arrest warrants in 1995?
A 1995 informal opinion said deputies who satisfied the off-duty work conditions could be paid privately and still serve arrest warrants within their county. The office left any Ethics Act question…
Could a South Carolina police officer secretly record a suspect conversation and use it in court in 1995?
A 1995 informal opinion said an officer generally could record a conversation the officer joined without the other party’s consent. A recording still needed a proper evidentiary foundation, and…
Could a South Carolina beer wholesaler give a retail permit holder a refrigerator for juice or water in 1995?
No. The 1995 opinion said the beer three-tier law barred a wholesaler from supplying cooling or refrigerated equipment to a retail beer permit holder. Using it for juice or water did not create an…
Would posting sex offenders’ names at a sheriff’s office make a proposed South Carolina registry bill unconstitutional?
In a 1995 informal opinion, an Assistant Attorney General concluded that proposed H.3300 would survive an ex post facto challenge. He viewed the proposed office posting of names and public access to…
Did a South Carolina university have to count summer teaching pay when disclosing an employee’s compensation?
Yes, under the South Carolina FOIA provision analyzed in 1995. An Assistant Attorney General said the university had to count salary and extra pay from the university together; if total compensation…
Could a 17-year-old South Carolina driver be charged with possessing liquor found in the car’s trunk?
A 1995 informal opinion said a charge could be brought, but finding liquor in the trunk did not itself decide guilt. The prosecution had to prove the driver knew of the liquor and had actual or…
Did South Carolina’s school firearm restriction cover a gun kept in a car parked beside a school building?
In a 1995 informal opinion, an Assistant Attorney General said an ordinary school parking lot could be immediately adjacent to a school building and that a gun in a car’s trunk or glovebox could…
Who filled a Saluda School District 1 board vacancy after a trustee died in 1995?
A 1995 informal opinion concluded that the Governor would appoint a replacement for the rest of the term upon recommendation of the resident county legislative delegation members. The writer found…
Did South Carolina magistrate-court eviction procedures meet HUD’s due-process standard for public housing tenants?
A 1995 informal opinion said yes. It concluded that the court process then offered notice, representation by counsel, a chance to contest the housing authority’s evidence and defenses, and a…
Could South Carolina authorities issue both domestic violence and assault warrants for the same incident?
In a 1995 informal opinion, the Deputy Attorney General said issuing both warrants would not itself violate the cited double jeopardy and prosecution rules. The prosecutor would decide which charge…
Could a South Carolina golf cart permit holder let someone else drive the cart on a public road?
Under the 1995 provision analyzed, an Assistant Attorney General said no. The permit was personal to the licensed owner who obtained it; the owner could not authorize another person, especially an…
Did South Carolina’s 1993 early childhood law require one named curriculum and assessment method?
No, according to a 1995 informal opinion. The law called for developmentally appropriate curriculum and assessment, but the Assistant Deputy Attorney General concluded it did not mandate a specific…
Could a South Carolina beer wholesaler give a retailer a refrigerator just for juice or water?
In a 1995 informal opinion, an Assistant Attorney General said no. He read the then-current beer law to bar a wholesaler from providing a retailer with equipment, including cooling equipment for…
Could a South Carolina garage bill a vehicle lienholder for storage before notifying them of the tow?
A 1995 informal opinion said the garage had no storage lien against the vehicle for charges incurred before it mailed written notice to the lienholder. It also said the prior recorded mortgage took…
Could South Carolina police briefly restrain a dangerous patient or student without an arrest or court order?
A 1995 informal opinion said temporary restraint could be lawful when the person was dangerous to self or others and immediate intervention was needed. It tied the authority to the then-current…
Was a members-only South Carolina retail store exempt from Sunday blue laws in 1995?
No, according to a 1995 informal opinion about a Sam’s Club in Anderson County. The writer said private membership did not create an exemption from the then-current Sunday sales rules. Before 1:30…
Did South Carolina’s 1995 ninety-day cap combine consecutive sentences from different magistrate hearings?
A 1995 opinion read the cap as applying to consecutive terms imposed by one magistrate in one sentencing act, not as a lifetime or cross-court aggregate. It also applied the limit to municipal…
Did South Carolina’s 1995 disabled-parking fee exemption cover daily airport lots and employees?
A 1995 informal opinion said the fee exemption for metered or timed parking covered daily, weekly, and monthly airport parking if it was time-based. It also said an eligible employee using a…
Could a 1995 South Carolina bill shift zoning near one regional airport to a special authority?
A 1995 informal opinion said a court could well uphold proposed H.3604, which would move certain county and town zoning functions to a Greenville-Spartanburg airport authority. The writer stressed…
Did Union County’s nine-member election board need members from both major parties in 1995?
Yes, in a 1995 informal opinion. The writer said the seven-member-board statute did not apply to Union County’s nine-member board, but a general election-commission statute still required at least…
Why did South Carolina Family Court proceedings generally lack juries in 1995?
A 1995 informal opinion said most Family Court matters were equitable or statutory proceedings for which the state constitution did not guarantee a jury, and the Family Court rule then required…
Could a public college trustee also serve on South Carolina’s higher education commission under 1995 bills?
A 1995 informal opinion said the two pending bills probably avoided a dual-office problem because they made trustee representatives ex officio commission members. It warned that such membership…
Could a South Carolina coroner give EMS crews authority to secure a death scene before investigators arrived?
A 1995 informal opinion said the coroner probably lacked authority to delegate crime-scene control to EMS or rescue personnel. The writer found no statute empowering those personnel to secure the…
Could South Carolina pass a landfill siting restriction that applied only in Spartanburg County?
The 1995 informal opinion considered the proposed Spartanburg-only landfill restriction constitutionally doubtful under South Carolina’s ban on laws for a specific county. The writer stressed that a…
Could an Isle of Palms planning commissioner also serve on its public works commission?
The 1995 informal opinion said simultaneous service would most probably violate South Carolina’s dual-office restriction. Its conclusion assumed the Isle of Palms public works commission was…
Could gubernatorial appointees vote on a joint South Carolina legislative committee in 1995?
The 1995 informal opinion concluded that gubernatorial appointees on the joint legislative committees described had the same right and responsibility to vote as other members because the examined…
What restrictions did a South Carolina state employee face when seeking a family court judgeship in 1995?
The 1995 informal letter identified annual leave for campaigning during working hours, judicial screening restrictions on soliciting legislative pledges, and possible professional-conduct concerns…
Did South Carolina police have to notify a school principal after taking an out-of-state child into custody in 1995?
Yes, for the offenses specified by the 1995 statute. The opinion said the principal-notice duty covered out-of-state children and school breaks; the law did not prescribe a single notice method or…
Could a South Carolina cable customer avoid a theft charge by paying a basic-service bill while using an unauthorized descrambler?
No. The 1995 opinion said paying the amount charged for basic cable did not shield a customer who installed an unauthorized converter or descrambler to receive premium channels without payment. The…
Did South Carolina’s higher education commission have to make private college licensing depend on ADA compliance in 1995?
No. The 1995 informal opinion said the Commission on Higher Education did not appear required to ensure ADA compliance by nonpublic postsecondary institutions as a condition of licensure. It did not…
Could South Carolina reserve police officers be paid for private off-duty security work under the 1994 amendment?
Yes, in the 1995 informal opinion’s reading of the amended law, reserve police officers could be paid for authorized private off-duty jobs. The writer distinguished that pay from compensation for…
Could a South Carolina voter enter a write-in candidate’s name on an electronic machine keypad in 1995?
The 1995 informal opinion adhered to earlier AG views that a write-in vote had to be in the voter’s handwriting or that of an authorized helper. It did not treat keypad entry on an electronic voting…
Could South Carolina charge out-of-state contractors the higher fees their home states charged South Carolina contractors?
The February 1995 informal analysis said the proposed bill probably would not survive constitutional review. Matching another state’s fees for South Carolina contractors appeared retaliatory, and…
Could South Carolina’s governor suspend a local foster-care review board member after a kidnapping indictment in 1995?
The 1995 informal opinion found no authority for the governor to suspend a local foster-care review board member on the described kidnapping indictment. The writer treated the local board role as…
Did a South Carolina officer need the paper warrant in hand to arrest on a verified misdemeanor warrant in 1995?
The 1995 AG opinion said an officer could arrest after verifying by radio that a real, outstanding warrant existed, even without the paper warrant in hand and even for a misdemeanor. It said the…
How did South Carolina’s 1994 law let counties collect real property taxes in installments or offer early-payment discounts?
Under the 1994 law as read in 1995, a county could authorize real-property tax installments and prepayment discounts by ordinance. The opinion set the final installment due date at January 15…
Did the South Carolina AG consider kidnapping a crime of moral turpitude in 1995?
Yes. The 1995 opinion concluded that kidnapping was a crime of moral turpitude. It acknowledged that the office had not previously decided that question and found no South Carolina court decision…
Could a South Carolina school district offer its own employee cafeteria plan alongside the state plan in 1995?
No, under the 1995 informal opinion. The AG office adhered to its earlier interpretation that school districts could participate only in the Retirement System cafeteria plan, even where the proposed…
Did Greenville-Spartanburg Airport police have general statewide arrest powers in 1995?
For officers other than the chief, the 1995 opinion said their commissions granted statewide authority only when they were performing airport-police duties. Outside those duties, the writer said…
Was a certified-mail receipt enough to convict someone of passing a bad check in South Carolina in 1995?
No. The 1995 informal opinion said a bad-check prosecution still needed evidence of the offense and proof beyond a reasonable doubt when contested. It also said the statute did not require a…
Could a precious-metals dealer get a South Carolina permit for a flea-market booth leased for a year in 1995?
No. The 1995 informal opinion said the statute expressly treated a flea market as a temporary location from which a precious-metals dealer could not operate. A one-year lease supported permanency…
Did a volunteer Group 3 constable’s training qualify him to run for sheriff in South Carolina in 1995?
No, on the facts reported in 1995. The writer said the volunteer Group 3 constable’s 48-hour course and annual in-service training did not make him a certified law enforcement officer with the…
Could The Citadel’s state-constable campus officers carry pistols off duty and make arrests statewide in 1995?
Yes, under the circumstances described in the 1995 informal opinion. The writer said The Citadel’s officers were covered by the constable pistol exception even off duty and had statewide arrest…
Could Union County accept private donations restricted to the Susan Smith prosecution in 1995?
The 1995 opinion said Union County could accept private contributions for the Susan Smith case, with important conditions. Funds restricted to that case had to be used for it or could revert to…
Could Horry County council members both impose a road-maintenance fee and direct spending in their districts in 1995?
The 1995 opinion said the state constitutional separation-of-powers problem that barred a legislative delegation from directing state C-fund spending did not apply to Horry County Council. It…
Did South Carolina’s court-interpreter statute require interpreters for every deaf juvenile in a juvenile-justice facility in 1995?
No. The 1995 opinion read the cited statute as providing interpreters for legal proceedings involving a deaf person, including one confined in an institution, rather than for every interaction in a…
Could South Carolina’s vocational rehabilitation agency keep federal reallotment money for later capital projects in 1995?
Yes, under the 1992–93 appropriation provisions analyzed in 1995. The opinion said federal reallotment funds budgeted for approved long-term capital improvements did not have to be remitted to the…
Did a South Carolina physician have to disclose publicly traded stock before referring a patient to the company’s subsidiary in 1995?
No, if the investment met the 1993 Act’s publicly held corporation exception as described in the opinion. The writer said a physician could refer patients to the corporation’s diagnostic-services…
Could a South Carolina textile processor claim a lien on a customer's patterns and screens ahead of a bank's security interest?
The 1995 AG concluded that the processor's lien covered the customer's patterns and screens, as well as fabric, while the processor held them. Assuming its work was in the ordinary course of…
Could a South Carolina magistrate hear a juvenile's beer-possession or open-container charge?
The 1994 AG concluded that only family court had jurisdiction over those charges against a child under 17. The limited magistrate and municipal court exceptions for juvenile traffic and wildlife…
Could a South Carolina locality vote on Sunday beer and wine sales at the same election as a mini-bottle referendum?
The 1994 AG said no for localities without prior mini-bottle approval: they first needed a favorable mini-bottle referendum, then a separate beer-and-wine vote. Localities that already had approval…
Could a South Carolina locality vote on Sunday beer and wine sales at the same election as a mini-bottle referendum?
The 1994 AG said no for localities without prior mini-bottle approval: they first needed a favorable mini-bottle referendum, then a separate beer-and-wine vote. Localities that already had approval…
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Attorney general opinions in South Carolina are written by the South Carolina Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.