Lawmaker: Lessening S.C. sex offender penalty necessary

In June, South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford signed a new sex offender law that makes it illegal for a convicted sex offender to live within 1,000 feet of a school, playground, daycare, or church.

State Representative Joan Brady of Columbia introduced the bill in Dec. 2006 and fought to have the 1,000 feet rule set, but said the lessening of the penalty came in just before the bill was approved by both House and Senate members.

BY THE NUMBERS

Click here to find every offender registered in Chesterfield, Darlington, Dillon, Florence, Marlboro, Marion, Horry and Georgetown counties. We've highlighted details like how many offenders are registered by county, and which offender has been missing the longest in each county. You can also find a direct link to the SLED database of registered sex offenders in South Carolina.

Missing, undocumented sex offenders mark SC registry

New SC sex offender law lessens penalties on sex offenders

Under the previous sex offender law, the first time an offender fails to register annually with their sheriff’s office; state law required a judge to sentence the offender to a mandatory 90 days in jail. No part of the sentence could be suspended or given probation.

The Brady Bill reduced that penalty to allow a magistrate judge to sentence an offender anywhere from one day in jail up to 30 and/or fine the offender $500.

The problem Brady said is that with the 90 days sentence, first-offense registry violation cases are stuck in circuit courts where they may not be heard for years, “They’re dealing with sex offenders who are committing other crimes. They’re dealing with murders, they’re dealing with drug dealers, so consequently an offender who is not registered, these cases are way down on the totem pole and offenders know this,” Brady told News13.

In Horry County, the 15th Circuit solicitor’s office has 10 first-offense registry violation cases awaiting trial in circuit court.

The oldest case in Horry County dates back to Jan. 2006, the latest pending case is Oct. 2008.

“We want these cases to be heard. If they’re heard in magistrate’s court, you get a conviction. When you get a conviction, then you have something to go for the second time around, which is a much stronger penalty,” Brady said.

A second offense sex offender registry violation carries a mandatory one year prison sentence, where an offender must pull each and every day of the sentence.

A third offense is a felony punishable by five years in prison, but only three years of the sentence is mandatory.

“We want convicted sex offenders to know they have to register, that if they don’t register their case is going to magistrate court and it’s going to be heard in a timely fashion; they’re going to get that conviction and then that’s going to be on the books so the second time around, it’s going to be a whole different ball game for them,” Brady said.

The Brady Bill won’t become law until 90 days after the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division implements mapping software on the state’s sex offender registry.

SLED said it does not have the funds to provide the service and that the division was looking into a federal grant to help get the software on the state’s online registry.

The mapping feature would allow citizens to enter a street address and see where an offender lives within a one to five mile radius.

Brady said if lessening the penalty doesn’t help push violation cases through the courts faster or if law enforcement runs into troubles over the reduced penalty, she will lead the effort in changing that part of the law back.