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South Carolina
Judicial Department
Supreme Court Published Opinions - May 2024

Note: Beginning in June 2012, opinions will be posted as Adobe PDFs. You can download a free copy of Adobe Reader here.

The summary following each opinion is prepared to offer lawyers and the public a general overview of what a particular opinion decides. The summary is not necessarily a full description of the issues discussed in an opinion.


5-1-2024 - Opinions

28200 - In the Matter of the Care and Treatment of Thomas Griffin

The Court dismisses the writ of certiorari as improvidently granted.

28201 - Andrew Waldo v. Michael Cousins

We granted certiorari to review the decision of the court of appeals reversing the trial court's vacatur of an arbitration award to Petitioner. Because the arbitration panel flouted controlling law, we take the rare step of vacating the award and, consequently, reverse the court of appeals.

28202 - United States of America v. Clemons

n response to the Fourth Circuit's certified questions, the Court holds, under some circumstances, a person may be found guilty of Criminal Domestic Violence of a High and Aggravated Nature (CDVHAN), S.C. Code Ann. § 16-25-65, and Assault and Battery Second Degree (AB2d), S.C. Code Ann. § 16-3-600(D), with a mens rea of recklessness as defined by the Model Penal Code.

5-8-2024 - Opinions

28203 - State v. Thomas C.F. Jones

A Greenville County Sheriff's Deputy tased Thomas Jones until he lost consciousness before handcuffing and arresting him. The conduct that justified this? Jones asked questions of two deputies as he observed them carry out a traffic stop. Jones argues the Greenville County ordinance under which he was convicted was unconstitutionally applied to him. The State concedes Jones is correct. Jones also asks this Court to strike down the entire ordinance as unconstitutional under the First Amendment and the Due Process Clause of the United States Constitution. We reverse Jones's conviction because the ordinance is unconstitutional as applied to him. We decline to address his other arguments.

5-15-2024 - Opinions

28204 - Road, LLC and Pinckney Point, LLC v. Beaufort County

This case concerns the scope of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing we held long ago is implied in every contract. Today we hold a party's obligations under such an implied covenant are tied to the rights and duties the parties agreed upon in the contract and the covenant may not be relied upon to create new duties not expressly stated or otherwise implied. Our holding requires we uphold the trial court's decision to grant judgment notwithstanding the verdict to the defendant. We affirm the court of appeals.

5-22-2024 - Opinions

28194 - O'Shields v. Columbia Automotive Co.

The Court affirms in full the decision of the court of appeals, particularly upholding the court of appeals' affirmance of the trial court's reduction of the punitive damages award on the basis that the reduced punitive damages award represents the highest award due process allows considering the particular facts of this case. The matter is remanded to the trial court for consideration of additional matters.

5-29-2024 - Opinions

28205 - Travis Hines v. State

Travis Hines brought this post-conviction relief (PCR) action, seeking to set aside his guilty plea to distribution of heroin because he claims he was not adequately warned of the dangers of representing himself. He also claims the State violated discovery rules by refusing to let him watch a video police made of a confidential informant buying heroin from him. The PCR court dismissed Hines' petition, a ruling the court of appeals affirmed. The court of appeals held that the warnings Hines received about representing himself satisfied the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution. It further held there was no discovery violation. We affirm.