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Supreme Court Seal
South Carolina
Judicial Branch
Court of Appeals - Roster of Cases for Hearing

   

The summary below each case is prepared to offer lawyers and the public a general overview of what issues are included in a case which will be argued. The summary is not a limit on what issues a party to a case may present at oral argument.

Tuesday, June 2, 2020
Webex
 10:00 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2017-001497   Team IA, Inc., Appellant, v. Cicero Lucas, Respondent.

Benjamin C. Bruner, of Bruner Powell Wall & Mullins, LLC, of Columbia, for Appellant. Julio E. Mendoza, Jr., of Nexsen Pruet, LLC, of Columbia, for Respondent.

This appeal involves Team IA's supplemental proceedings to collect on a 2015 judgment it obtained against Cicero Lucas after a jury found Lucas breached an employment agreement (the Agreement) with Team IA. Team IA argues the master-in-equity erred in finding it was not entitled to post-judgment attorney's fees in connection with the supplemental proceedings. Specifically, Team IA argues the master erred because: (1) the Agreement and the circuit court's order entering the 2015 judgment allowed for attorney's fees; (2) the Agreement's fee-shifting provision was not ambiguous; (3) the master did not consider evidence of the parties' intent, (4) the merger doctrine did not extinguish Team IA's right to attorney's fees upon the entry of the 2015 judgment; and (5) the master's findings were against the law of the case.

 
 10:40 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2017-002531   The State, Respondent, v. Angelita Wright, Appellant.

Chief Appellate Defender Robert Michael Dudek, of Columbia, and Jordan Christopher Calloway, of McGowan Hood & Felder, LLC, of Rock Hill, for Appellant. Senior Assistant Attorney General W. Edgar Salter, III, of Columbia, for Respondent.

Angelita Wright appeals her murder conviction, arguing the circuit court erred in qualifying Sergeant Letterman as an expert in cell phone mapping and allowing him to testify outside the scope of permissible rebuttal testimony.

 
Wednesday, June 3, 2020
Webex
 10:00 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2017-002107   The State, Respondent, v. John Ernest Perry, Jr., Appellant.

Chief Appellate Defender Robert Michael Dudek, of Columbia, for Appellant. Senior Assistant Deputy Attorney General William M. Blitch, Jr., of Columbia, for Respondent.

John Ernest Perry Jr. appeals his conviction of attempted murder. He maintains because he told the police his gun "went off" accidentally as he attempted to dispose of the gun during a police chase, the trial court erred in charging the jury "when the intent to do an act that violates the law exists, motive becomes immaterial," because attempted murder was a specific intent crime and this was essentially a general intent instruction.

 
 10:40 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2017-002406   The State, Respondent, v. Terrance L. Bland, Appellant.

Joanna Katherine Delany, of Columbia, for Appellant. Joshua Abraham Edwards, of Columbia, for Respondent.

 
 11:20 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2017-002577   Charles Eugene Carpenter, Appellant, v. South Carolina Department of Corrections and The State of South Carolina, Respondents.

Desa Ballard and Harvey M. Watson, III, both of Ballard & Watson, Attorneys at Law, of West Columbia, for Appellant. Damon Christian Wlodarczyk, of Riley Pope & Laney, LLC, of Columbia, for Respondent South Carolina Department of Corrections. Senior Assistant Deputy Attorney General Megan Harrigan Jameson, of Columbia, for Respondent The State.

Charles Carpenter appeals the circuit court's denials of his Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus and Declaratory Judgment. Carpenter asserts the trial court erred in finding: (1) Carpenter's petition for a writ of habeas corpus was not proper for the circuit court; (2) Carpenter's current claims against the State should have been raised in a petition for post-conviction relief; (3) Carpenter's sentencing judge had proper jurisdiction to sentence Carpenter to two consecutive twenty-five year terms of imprisonment; and (4) the State Department of Corrections (SCDC) did not violate Carpenter's due process rights. Carpenter also asserts the circuit court erred in failing to rule on Carpenter's declaratory judgment claims and, finally, Carpenter argues the circuit court was biased in favor of Respondents.

 
Tuesday, June 16, 2020
Webex
 10:00 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2017-001736   Road, LLC and Pinckney Point, LLC, Plaintiffs, of which Road, LLC is the Appellant, v. Beaufort County, a political subdivision of the State of South Carolina, Respondent.

George Trenholm Walker and John Phillips Linton, Jr., both of Walker Gressette Freeman & Linton, LLC, of Charleston, for Appellants. C. Mitchell Brown, Allen Mattison Bogan, and Nicholas Andrew Charles, all of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP, of Columbia, for Respondent. Mary Bass Lohr and Robert W. Achurch, III, both of Howell Gibson & Hughes, PA, of Beaufort, for Respondent. Caroline Dolores Gimenez, of Anderson, for Respondent.

In this breach of contract action, Road, LLC and Pinckney Point, LLC appeal the trial court's order granting Beaufort County's motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict. Road, LLC argues the trial court erred by finding that (1) there was no evidence to support the jury's finding of breach of contract, (2) the $5 million in damages were speculative, and (3) the contract was a nullity.

 
 10:40 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2017-002517   Fine Housing, Inc., Appellant, v. William H. Sloan, Jr., Respondent.

Charles S. Altman, of The Law Offices of Charles S. Altman, of Charleston, for Appellant. Patrick John Norton, of Chicago, Illinois, for Appellant. Meredith L. Coker, of Charleston, for Appellant. Stephanie Holmes Burton, of Gibbes Burton, LLC, of Spartanburg, for Respondent.

In this professional negligence action, Fine Housing, Inc., appeals the circuit court's order granting William Sloan Jr.'s motion to disqualify Fine Housing, Inc.'s counsel, Charles Altman, as a necessary witness.

 
 11:20 a.m. (Time Limits: 15-15-5)  
2017-001464   In the Matter of the Care and Treatment of Micah A. Bilton, Appellant.

David Alexander, of Columbia, for Appellant. Senior Assistant Deputy Attorney General Deborah R.J. Shupe, of Columbia, for Respondent.

Micah Bilton appeals the finding that he is a sexually violent predator and argues the trial court erred in allowing a psychologist to testify about the results of a diagnostic test that allegedly measured Bilton's arousal to deviant images and audio. He argues the psychologist did not administer the test, review the raw data, that the test results were not peer-reviewed, and that this evidence's admission violates the Confrontation Clause and due process.

 
Tuesday, June 23, 2020
Webex
 10:00 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2017-002469   Neal Truslow, Respondent, v. Stephen Bretzinger, Lindsey Holsinger, and Rikard & Protopapas, Defendants, Of whom Stephen Bretzinger and Lindsey Holsinger are the Appellants.

Alexandre Nicolas MacClenahan, of The MacClenahan Law Firm, LLC, of Greenville, for Appellants. Desa Ballard and Harvey M. Watson, III, both of Ballard & Watson, Attorneys at Law, of West Columbia, for Respondent.

Stephen Bretzinger and Lindsey Holsinger appeal the circuit court's failure to set aside the entry of default and default judgment awarded to Neil Truslow in his action against them for breach of contract.

 
 10:40 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2017-002299   Treva C. Flowers, Tristan Flowers, and Ashley F., an infant under the age of fourteen (14) years, by and through her next friends, Treva C. Flowers and Tristan Flowers, Appellants, v. Bang N. Giep, M.D., and Spartanburg & Pelham OB-GYN, P.A. (formerly Spartanburg OB-GYN. P.A.), Respondents.

Charles L. Henshaw, Jr., of Furr & Henshaw, of Columbia, for Appellants. C. Mitchell Brown and Brian Patrick Crotty, both of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP, of Columbia, for Respondents. Dennis Gary Lovell, Jr., of Copeland, Stair, Kingma & Lovell, LLP, of Charleston, for Respondents. Caroline Dolores Gimenez, of Anderson, for Respondents.

Treva C. Flowers, Tristan Flowers, and Ashley F. (Appellants) sued Dr. Bang N. Giep and Spartanburg & Pelham OB-GYN (Respondents) for injuries suffered by Child during birth. Appellants assert the circuit court erred in denying its motion to strike Respondents' affirmative defense of emergency medical care.

 
Cases to be Submitted Without Oral Argument
2017-001455    Terence Graham, Appellant, v. Brandi Graham, Respondent.

2018-001219    The State, Respondent, v. Shykiem Universal Smith, Appellant.

2018-001509    The State, Respondent, v. Denzil Torre Jordan, Appellant.

2018-001369    John Cleveland, Jr., Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2017-002373    Jeffrey Michaelson, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2018-001915    The State, Respondent, v. Daemon Michael Crim, Appellant.

2018-001552    The State, Respondent, v. Johnathan Devon Moss, Appellant.

2017-001610    James Whaley, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2018-000491    The State, Respondent, v. Peter Lynn Coffey, Appellant.

2018-000099    The State, Respondent, v. Laparis Shmel Flowers, Appellant.

2017-001574    JK Trading, Inc., Appellant, v. Karl & Sasha, Inc., Respondent.

2018-000055    Deshaun A. Drafts, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2018-001908    Dorothy Jackson, Individually, and as Guardian ad Litem for Jordan B., a minor under the age of eighteen (18) years, Appellant, v. Allen Clack and Claudia Dean, Defendants, Of whom Claudia Dean is Respondent.

2017-001876    The State, Respondent, v. Sidney Moorer, Appellant.

2017-001242    Ryan F. Trojan, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2018-000466    Timothy L. Frady, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2017-002377    The State, Respondent, v. John W. McCarty, Appellant.

2018-000426    In the Matter of the Care and Treatment of Robert Powell, Appellant.

2016-000976    The State, Respondent, v. Jake Dale Lake, Appellant.

2018-000438    Valerie Green, Appellant, v. The Estate of Jake Green a/k/a Jacob Green, Margaret Wilder (deceased), Mary Harrell a/k/a Mary Cromedy (deceased), Henry Green (deceased), Thomas Henry Green (deceased), Ethel Bengall, Rebecca Alls (deceased), Rena Mae Green-Calvin, Barbara Green, Linda Cromedy, Walter Harrell, Laverna Green, Kathleen Pinkston, Robert Kinloch, Oliver Alls, Jackie Alls, Norman Alls , Isaac Alls (deceased), Isaac Alls, Jr., Evelyn Alls Terry, Patricia Spratton, Hazel Owens, Suzette Ford, Linda Beauford, Lanny Venning, Thomas Wilder (deceased), Thomas Wilder, Jr., Savona Green, Terrance Green, Nathaniel Green, Henry Green, Jr., Marcella Brown, Valerie Green, John Doe and Mary Roe, fictitious names used to designate persons in the military service within the meaning of Title 50, United States Code, commonly referred to as the Service Members Civil Relief Act of 2003 as amended, if any, and the unknown heirs at law, devisees, widows, widowers, executors, personal representatives, successors and assigns firms or corporations of the Estate of Jake Green and any of the defendants who may be deceased, and all other persons claiming any right, title, estate, interest in or lien upon the real estate described in the complaint of in the complaint or any part thereof, Defendants, Of whom The Estate of Jake Green a/k/a Jacob Green, Margaret Wilder (deceased), Mary Harrell a/k/a Mary Cromedy (deceased), Henry Green (deceased), Thomas Henry Green (deceased), Ethel Bengall, Rebecca Alls (deceased), Rena Mae Green-Calvin, Barbara Green, Linda Cromedy, Walter Harrell, Laverna Green, Kathleen Pinkston, Robert Kinloch, Oliver Alls, Jackie Alls, Norman Alls, Isaac Alls (deceased), Isaac Alls, Jr., Evelyn Alls Terry, Patricia Spratton, Hazel Owens, Suzette Ford, Linda Beauford, Lanny Venning, Thomas Wilder (deceased), Thomas Wilder, Jr., Savona Green, Terrance Green, Nathaniel Green, Henry Green, Jr., and Marcella Brown are Respondents.

2017-001347    The State, Respondent, v. Robert Lee Miller, III, Appellant.

2018-001181    David Aldean Dickerson, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2018-001516    Johnnie Bias, Employee, Appellant, v. SCANA Corporation, Self-Insured Employer, Respondent.

2018-001004    Jovan Mitchell, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2018-002097    Gary Selin, Respondent, v. Doris Selin, Appellant.

2018-000532    Misty A. Morris, Claimant, v. BB&T Corporation, d/b/a BB&T Bank, Employer, and Hartford Accident & Indemnity Co., Carrier, IN RE: Attorney's Fee Petition of David Proffitt, Appellant, v. South Carolina Workers' Compensation Commission, Respondent.

2018-001083    Allen Bobo, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2018-000740    Henry Antonio Burgess, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2017-001147    Aminah A. Richburg, Appellant, v. E.A. "Rico" Williams, Director, District One S.C. Basketball Officials Association, and the South Carolina High School League, Respondents.

2018-002281    Donquavious Dashon Davis, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2018-000210    The State, Respondent, v. Tiffany Ann Sanders, Appellant.

2017-002478    The State, Respondent, v. Stewart Jerome Middleton, Appellant.

2018-001415    The State, Respondent, v. Mikel Terrell Francis, Appellant.

2017-002457    Kenneth Jordan Bell, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2017-001534    James Dawkins, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

2017-001718    William Bruce Justice, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.