2008 Opinions

January
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December

January 2, 2008
Opinion concerning the eligibility of individuals serving abroad on military duty to serve on the Citadel Board of Vistors.
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Requested by: Mark C. Brandenburg, Esquire

January 2, 2008
Opinion concerning the validity of a City of Cayce ordinance and whether it violates “the dictates of due process as guaranteed by South Carolina’s Constitution as well as the United States Constitution.”
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Requested by: The Honorable Murrell Smith, Member, House of Representatives

January 2, 2008
Opinion concerning the State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) permitting bear-baying as referenced in S.C. Code Ann. 16-27-80.
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Requested by: The Honorable David R. Hiott, Member, House of Representatives

January 2, 2008
Opinion as to whether merchants can simultaneously bring both civil and criminal charges against shoplifters.
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Requested by: The Honorable Danny Verdin, Member, SC Senate

January 7, 2008
Opinion regarding the constitutionality of an ordinance of the City of Cayce that imposes certain proximity restrictions on residency and loitering of registered sex offenders in relation to schools, churches, daycare centers, parks and other designated facilities frequented by children and young people.
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Requested by: Charles E. McNair, Director, Cayce Department of Public Safety

January 9, 2008
Opinion referencing an opinion dated February 27, 2007, which questioned whether you may hold a position on the Spartanburg School District Three Board while remaining employed at the Daniel Morgan Technology Center. You have now questioned whether the Technology Center’s change of fiscal agent from School District Seven to School District Three changes the master-servant status and the ability to be a school board member of District Three.
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Requested by: Harvey A. Dailey

January 9, 2008
Opinion regarding the provision of S.C. Code Ann. 7-13-860, and affirming the principles and clarifying that poll watchers have the ability to examine the registration book as long as they do not interfere with the voting process.
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Requested by: The Honorable Todd Rutherford, Member, House of Representatives

January 9, 2008
Opinion whether a bail bondsman from outside South Carolina can arrest an individual in South Carolina on a warrant from another state revoking the bond from that state.
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Requested by: Jeffrey B. Moore, Executive Director, South Carolina Sheriffs’ Association

January 10, 2008
Opinion questioning the legality of actions taken by the cities of Welford and Duncan in collecting business license fees from members of the State towing and recovery association.
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Requested by: The Honorable Robert W. Hayes, Jr., Member, SC Senate

January 11, 2008
Opinion concerning sections 12-6-3520 and 50-15-55 of the South Carolina Code.
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Requested by: John E. Frampton, Director, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources

January 11, 2008
Opinion regarding, determination of domicile for voter registration purposes.
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Requested by: The Honorable Herb Kirsch, Member, House of Representatives

January 15, 2008
Opinion questioning the authority of the Greenwood County Sheriffs’ office enacting county ordinances.
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Requested by: Jeffrey B. Moore, Executive Director, South Carolina Sheriffs’ Association

January 16, 2008
Opinion questioning the applicability of S.C. Code Ann. 15-3-530 which establishes the statute of limitations to the Treasurer’s office responsibility for receiving court assessments pursuant to S.C. Code Ann. 14-1-206 through 14-1-208.
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Requested by: The Honorable Converse A. Chellis III, Treasurer, State of South Carolina

January 17, 2008
Opinion concerning a constituent who is serving as a member of the Bennettsville City Council and has been offered the position of Town Manager in Kingstree and if this constitutes as dual office holding.
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Requested by: The Honorable Kent M. Williams, Member, SC Senate

January 18, 2008
Opinion questioning the legality of serving as chairman of the Dillon County Democratic Party and holding a seat on the Dillon County Council.
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Requested by: James E. Moultrie

January 22, 2008
Opinion clarifying our December 5, 2007 opinion, which concluded, “that the Town of Summerville may enforce its sign ordinance in state rights of way”.
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Requested by: The Honorable Randy Scott, Member, SC Senate

January 24, 2008
Opinion regarding the arrest of out-of-state offenders who are supervised in South Carolina pursuant to the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision (the Compact).
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Requested by: Teresa A. Knox, Esquire

January 28, 2008
Opinion questioning, whether it is appropriate for the Town of Pendleton to assess property taxes against a disabled property owner in the same manner as all other citizens.
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Requested by: Daniel L. Draisen, Esquire

February 4, 2008
Opinion as to whether “simultaneous service by an individual on the Savannah River Maritime Commission and the Jasper Ocean Joint Project Office Board [would] be a violation of the South Carolina Constitution prohibition on dual office holding set forth in Article XVII section 1A”.
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Requested by: The Honorable Robert W. Harrell, Jr., Speaker of the House, House of Representatives

February 5, 2008
Opinion questioning the types of restrictions that a homeowners’ association may place on homeowners generally.
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Requested by: The Honorable Raymond E. Cleary, III, Member, SC Senate

February 15, 2008
Opinion questioning whether a defendant has completed his entire sentence of the court if he served hiRead full opinion
s jail time but did not pay his fine, and if not, what is the proper procedure to ensure that the defendant complies with the entire sentence.
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Requested by: The Honorable D. W. Cannon, Judge, Honea Path Municipal Court

February 19, 2008
Opinion questioning whether filing of election candidates is to be opened on March 16th and close March 30th, though both dates are on Sundays in 2008 in relation to S.C. Code Ann. 7-11-15.
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Requested by: Marci Andino, Executive Director, South Carolina Election Commission

February 20, 2008
Opinion regarding the validity of school facility impact fees imposed by York County.
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Requested by: The Honorable Chauncey K. Gregory, Member, SC Senate

February 25, 2008
Opinion regarding the legality of the form of school district governance by the Horry County School District referred to as “Policy Governance”.
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Requested by: The Honorable The Honorable Raymond E. Cleary, III, Member, SC Senate

February 26, 2008
Opinion regarding Allendale County wanting to require CSX Railroad to open the Boogaloo Railroad Crossing north of Sycamore in Allendale County.
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Requested by: Walter H. Sanders, Jr., Esquire

February 29, 2008
Opinion questioning the law in South Carolina regarding the purchase of ammunition.
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Requested by: The Honorable Nelson L. Hardwick, Member, House of Representatives

March 3, 2008
Opinion concerning the interpretation of S.C. Code Annotated Sections 5-9-10 through 5-9-40.
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Requested by: Lee Zimmerman, Esquire, Blythewood Town Attorney

March 4, 2008
Opinion regarding S.C. Code Ann. 7-13-15, concerning primaries to be conducted by the State Election Commission and county election commissions on the second Tuesday in June.
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Requested by: Michael J. Young, Director of Registration and Elections, Florence County Voter Registration and Elections Commission

March 6, 2008
Opinion questioning whether the local legislative delegation of Myrtle Beach or Horry County has the authority to create the airport authority and at what cost.
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Requested by: The Honorable Raymond E. Cleary III, Member, SC Senate

March 6, 2008
“Opinion regarding two statutory provisions (S.C. Code Ann. 8-11-30 and 8-11-35) that affect the statewide payroll that [your] …Office processes and …. the Department of Mental Health’s inability to recruit and retain adequate numbers of nursing staff”.
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Requested by: The Honorable Richard Eckstrom, Comptroller General, State of South Carolina

March 6, 2008
Opinion questioning whether a Barnwell County salaried employee can also legally serve as clerk of court.
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Requested by: Debra Fickling, Barnwell County

March 6, 2008
Opinion questioning the legality of police checkpoints and roadblocks.
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Requested by: The Honorable William D. Witherspoon, Member, House of Representatives

March 7, 2008
Opinion questioning the applicability of S.C. Code Ann. 56-5-195, known as “Jacob’s Law”, to three charter buses purchased by the Mid-Carolina High School Band Booster Club.
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Requested by: The Honorable Ronnie W. Cromer, Member, SC Senate and The Honorable Walton J. McLeod, Member, House of Representatives

March 7, 2008
Opinion concerning whether a state employee whose job responsibilities include supervising forest firefighters and performing law enforcement activities also fulfill responsibilities as a county councilman.
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Requested by: Charles H. Smith, South Carolina Forestry Commission

March 10, 2008
Opinion regarding recent action by the Denmark-Olar School District Two Board of Trustees (“ the Board”) regarding their per diem pay.
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Requested by: Alvin Maynor, Chairman, Board of Trustees, Bamberg School District Two

March 10, 2008
Opinion questioning the validity of a fee used to pay for fire and rescue protection in Allendale County, as it applies to all real property and the position has been taken that an acre is not a valid indicator of the users of the fee being collected.
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Requested by: Walter H. Sanders, Jr., Esquire, Allendale County Attorney

March 14, 2008
Opinion requesting an interpretation of S.C. Code Ann. 23-3-115 with regard to the costs of disseminating criminal history record information (CHRI) at a reduced fee to the South Carolina Association of Personal Care Providers (“ the Association”).
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Requested by: Major Mark A. Keel, South Carolina Law Enforcement Division

March 17, 2008
Opinion questioning whether a felon or an individual with a CDV conviction may hunt with a muzzleloader in South Carolina.
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Requested by: The Honorable John M. Knotts, Jr., Member, SC Senate

March 19, 2008
Opinion which references provisions S.C. Code Ann. 16-3-1750 through 16-3-1800 and questions whether a defendant in a restraining order hearing has the right to a jury trial.
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Requested by: The Honorable C. Ryan Johnson, Magistrate, Greenwood County

March 19, 2008
Opinion concerning who has the authority to enforce S.C. Code Ann. 7-9-50.
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Requested by: Chris Whitmire, Public Information Officer, South Carolina State Election Commission

March 24, 2008
Opinion regarding S.C. Code Ann. 16-17-490 and the propriety of the use by law enforcement officers of a seventeen year old informant to arrange and make a purchase of a controlled substance.
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Requested by: Marvin Brown, Commander, York County Multijurisdictional Task Force

March 24, 2008
Opinion concerning the ramifications to the State of South Carolina of the federal Real ID Act of 2005.
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Requested by: The Honorable Mark Sanford, Governor of the State of South Carolina

March 27, 2008
Opinion questioning whether S.C. Code Ann. 56-1-85 would prohibit private industry from requesting an exemption from implementation of the REAL ID Act as it relates to their security clearance practices.
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Requested by: The Honorable Bill Sandifer, Member, House of Representatives

March 31, 2008
Opinion regarding 1) what determines an individuals place of legal residence; and 2) when an individual files to run for a Board seat in a particular congressional district or judicial circuit, whether the individual has to be a resident in the district or circuit at that time or whether he can move into the area once elected .
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Requested by: The Honorable Olin R. Phillips, Chairman, Committee to Screen Candidates for the Board of Trustees of State Colleges and Universities

April 2, 2008
Opinion regarding providing the names and badge numbers of all officers employed by Rock Hill Police Department who work openly with the public.
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Requested by: Ken Fields, Investigator, Office of Professional Standards

April 2, 2008
Opinion questioning if 6% assessment ratio owners of owner-occupied residential property are entitled to property tax relief (exempt from property taxes imposed for school operating purposes) as a result of the passage of Act Number 388 of 2006.
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Requested by: The Honorable James H. Harrison, Member, House of Representatives

April 2, 2008
Opinion regarding the “qualification of a school board trustee who has been adjudicated as failing to comply with specific provisions of the South Carolina Ethics Act.”
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Requested by: The Honorable Alvin Maynor, Chairman, Bamberg School District Two Board of Trustees

April 4, 2008
Opinion questioning “whether an internal auditor for Anderson County, which operates under the council/administrator form of government, may be employed by and supervised by Anderson County Council, directly, or whether such internal auditor must be under the direction and control of the Anderson County Administrator.”
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Requested by: Thomas L. Martin, Esquire

April 7, 2008
Opinion regarding sentencing after a post conviction relief hearing. Can an individual receive a longer sentence than his original sentence?
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Requested by: The Honorable Gene G. Reese, Member, SC Senate

April 7, 2008
Opinion regarding the special tax district created in Savannah Lakes Village (“SVP”) by McCormick County Ordinance.
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Requested by: G.P. Callison, Jr., Esquire

April 7, 2008
Opinion referencing S.C. Code Ann. 56-5-730 and questioning whether such provision establishes a criminal offense, particularly, whether a police officer could issue a ticket under this provision and whether a solicitor could use this statute for plea bargaining.
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Requested by: The Honorable Jane Pittman Modla, Judge, Rock Hill Municipal Court

April 17, 2008
Opinion questioning whether a certified deputy officer can operate a business with his wife as a citizen which provides drug sweeps of schools and business using his own personal drug sniffing dog.
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Requested by: Jeffery Moore, Executive Director, South Carolina Sheriffs’ Association

April 7, 2008
Opinion questioning whether there is a time restriction on when handicapped parking enforcement is permissible.
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Requested by: The Honorable James R. Metts, Sheriff, Lexington County

April 21, 2008
Opinion questioning whether S.C. Code Ann. Section 22-3-230 which states that “[e]ither party to a suit before a magistrate shall be entitled to a trial by jury” would change the result of a previous opinion dated March 19, 2008. That opinion dealt with the question of whether a defendant in a restraining order hearing pursuant to S.C. Code Ann. 16-3-1750 et seq. has the right to a jury trial.
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Requested by: The Honorable C. Ryan Johnson, Magistrate, Greenwood County

April 21, 2008
Opinion concerning the one-cent local option sales tax statute. Specifically, to clarify “whether the current statute permits voters in a single county to put both one-penny local option sales taxes in place.”
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Requested by: The Honorable Ted Pitts, Member, House of Representatives

April 24, 2008
Opinion regarding whether “South Carolina Citizens for Life, Inc. aka Choose Life S.C. has met all requirements of S.C. Code Section 56-3-8000 for issuance of a license plate in its name.”
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Requested by: Marcia S. Adams, Executive Director, South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles