NEWS BRIEFS: Charleston reps call for curbs on citizen arrests

Staff reports  |  Charleston-area lawmakers on Tuesday introduced two bills intended to stop citizen’s arrests in South Carolina.  Both bills, which face a slim chance of passage because of an abbreviated legislative year, were proposed in reaction to Ahmaud Arbery’s shooting death near Brunswick, Ga.

Pendarvis

Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, was killed in February while out for a jog a few miles from home. Officials initially declined to prosecute two men involved in the altercation that led to Arbery’s death, citing Georgia’s citizen’s arrest laws. The men, a father and son, have since been charged with murder.

“This type of arrest could have effectively been made here,” said North Charleston Democratic Rep. Marvin Pendarvis, a sponsor of both bills (H.5492 and H.5487).  Another Charleston-area rep, Krystle Matthews, said she signed onto the H.5487 to reform what she believes is an antiquated section of law. 

According to South Carolina Code of Laws, any person may arrest another individual if they witness a felony or larceny or have “certain information” that a felony has been committed. Such broad statutes could lead to fatal incidents similar to Arbery’s in South Carolina, Pendarvis said.  “Law enforcement should be the only one that should be able to make any kind of arrest,” he told the Charleston City Paper. “If you’re a citizen that wants to do that, then you need to go to the [police] academy. They could use it. There’s a shortage of police officers, so go ahead and get the training, get the certification to do that. What we don’t need is vigilante justice.”  More.

In other news:

Digital divide causing trouble for schools.  South Carolina’s crash course in virtual learning for K-12 students has left some of them further behind academically, according to state Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman.  By next month, the S.C. Department of Education will develop recommendations for the state’s 79 school districts on how to reopen schools safely as national experts say the virus will likely disrupt how people work and how students are educated through 2020 and into 2021. 

“We’re looking at safety with protocols in place, how it’s all going to work,” Spearman told Statehouse Report last week. “It’s not going to ever be back to normal but for us to operate as close to normal as possible.” She said the digital divide — the ability for a  household to access the technology and internet needed for education — is one of the biggest obstacles leading up to the fall semester. But whether a family has the technology isn’t the only obstacle, she said. Teachers and students will also have to interact differently, and there may be additional precautions taken to keep teachers, staff, students and families safe. Read the full story here.

You can vote by mail.  No-excuse absentee voting will be allowed for the June 9 primary and any runoffs after special legislation passed last week at the Statehouse.  Contact your county election commission to learn more or click here to learn more from the S.C. Election Commission.

Bridge Run cancelled.  The annual Cooper River Bridge Run won’t be held for the first time in its history, announced the mayors of Charleston and Mount Pleasant on Friday.  “These are truly unprecedented times and, as the situation is constantly evolving, we believe that this decision is in the best interest of all our citizens and visitors,” Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg and Mount Pleasant Mayor Will Haynie announced in a joint statement.  “We are grateful to Cooper River Bridge Run leadership and staff for their partnership and guidance as we reached this tough decision and we look forward to working with them to make next year’s race the best one yet.”

Moving on.  Harry Lesesne, executive director of the Charleston Parks Conservancy since 2012, is stepping down to lead the Darla Moore Foundation.  Moore, a local philanthropist, founded the Conservancy in 2007.  The Foundation is her broader, philanthropic organization.  Leslie Wade will serve as the Conservancy’s interim executive director.

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