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South Carolina Statehouse corruption investigation

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The South Carolina State House.

The South Carolina Statehouse corruption investigation was a probe into unlawful interactions between members of the South Carolina General Assembly, the political firm of Richard Quinn, Sr., and major state institutions and corporations from 2013 to 2021. The influence of Quinn's consulting firm was called the Quinndom. By the end of the investigation, four members of the South Carolina General Assembly were indicted on public corruption charges. This investigation is often considered the most significant political scandal in the history of the state of South Carolina since Operation Lost Trust in 1989. [1] [2][3][4] Lost Trust directly influenced the passing of South Carolina's Ethics Reform Act of 1991, and led to the restructuring of the state government in 1993. The investigation raised questions about the effectiveness of that reform in the face of political corruption and dark money influence.[5]

Investigation timeline

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South Carolina solicitor/acting Attorney General David Pascoe.

In 2013, a report on the campaign spending[6] of House Speaker Bobby Harrell was submitted to the Attorney General of South Carolina by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED). Based on this report, a State Grand Jury investigation was initiated, but attorneys for Harrell called for the recusal of Attorney General Alan Wilson.[7] Wilson designated solicitor David Pascoe to act as special prosecutor.[8]

In 2014, Harrell was indicted, removed from office and sentenced after a guilty plea of multiple state ethics law violations.[9] Additional legislators were named in the SLED report, and Pascoe sent a request to the Attorney General for expansion of the corruption probe to include these individuals.[10]

In 2015, almost nine months after Pascoe’s request, the Attorney General communicated to SLED that their report should be sent to Pascoe for determination on how to prosecute.

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson

In 2016, a case initiation form by Pascoe and SLED Chief Mark Keel referred the case to the State Grand Jury. The Attorney General argued that only he as the elected officer could sign the form, and that Pascoe had no standing, and fired Pascoe from the case. In response, Pascoe petitioned the South Carolina Supreme Court calling for a decision on his vested authority to move forward with the investigation.[11][12] On June 16, the case was heard before the Supreme Court, Pascoe arguing his own case. The Court ruled in favor of Pascoe, giving him “full authority to act as the Attorney General for purposes of the investigation.” From there, members of the State Grand Jury were selected and the investigation proceeded.[13]

Indictments

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  • Rick Quinn Jr., former member of the South Carolina House of Representatives, pled guilty to public corruption.[19] [20]
  • Richard Quinn, former consultant, pled guilty to lying to a grand jury and obstruction of justice.[21] [22]

Aftermath

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Legislative action

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Mandy Powers Norrell and Gary Clary, former members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, introduced a campaign finance and ethics reform bill in January 2017. The bill had a hearing by the House Judiciary Committee, but was not advanced.[23]

Publication of State Grand Jury Report

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In October 2018, South Carolina Circuit Court Judge Clifton Newman ruled that the request to publish the State Grand Jury Report on the public corruption investigation should be approved.[24] The State newspaper joined Pascoe in arguing before the court that the report should be made public.[25]

Impacts on actions by the governor

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Former Senator John Courson with Fred Thompson in 2007.

Governor Henry McMaster was among other public officials and corporate heads who contracted with Richard Quinn's consulting business. While he was not implicated in the corruption probe, McMaster was not immediately able to appoint replacements to retiring board members of the South Carolina Ports Authority (SCPA). The authority also contracted with Richard Quinn. After SCPA ended their contracts with Quinn, the state legislature allowed the appointments to go forward. McMaster subsequently ended his contract with Quinn.[26][27][28][29]

Corporate accountability

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Five corporations — the University of South Carolina, AT&T, SCANA, Palmetto Health, and the South Carolina Alliance for Justice — signed corporate integrity agreements with Pascoe to pay a fine and admit no wrongdoing in exchange for no prosecution.[30]


References

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  1. ^ Monk, John (May 20, 2017). "Pascoe's corruption probe seen as eclipsing SC's Lost Trust Scandal of the 1990's". The State Newspaper. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  2. ^ Fincher, Tom (2018-01-11). "Pascoe was man of the year for 2017". The State Newspaper.
  3. ^ Hutchins, Corey (June 17, 2014). "An ethical mess in South Carolina". The Center for Public Integrity. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  4. ^ Greenblatt, Alan (February 9, 2017). "Are South Carolina Voters Too Tolerant of Corruption?". Governing. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  5. ^ "Unredacted 28th State Grand Jury Report". First Judicial Circuit Solicitor's Office. May 13, 2020. Archived from the original on December 27, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  6. ^ "One day later, still no word from Bobby Harrell". WIS-TV. July 11, 2013. Retrieved January 11, 2024.
  7. ^ Self, Jamie (2014-07-09). "SC Supreme Court: Harrell probe can continue". The State Newspaper.
  8. ^ Borden, Jeremy. "Bobby Harrell pleads guilty to 6 counts, resigns from House seat No details on reimbursements Harrell repaid self from campaign funds Harrell planning to plead guilty Palmetto Sunrise: Harrell's hearing and looming resignation". Post and Courier. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  9. ^ Fausset, Richard (October 23, 2014). "Harrell, South Carolina House Speaker, Pleads Guilty". The New York Times. Retrieved January 11, 2024.
  10. ^ Pascoe v. Wilson, 416 S.C. 628, 631, 788 S.E.2d 686, 688 (2016)
  11. ^ "Court News". South Carolina Judicial Branch. May 18, 2016. Archived from the original on January 2, 2024. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  12. ^ "Battle of the Prosecutors". Knight Lab. March 28, 2016. Archived from the original on November 8, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  13. ^ Smith, Glenn (December 25, 2016). "Newsmakers: David Pascoe and Alan Wilson". The Post and Courier. Archived from the original on January 2, 2024. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  14. ^ Borden, Jeremy (October 22, 2014). "Bobby Harrell pleads guilty to 6 counts, resigns from House seat". Post and Courier. Archived from the original on July 5, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  15. ^ Glenn Smith and, Andrew Brown (September 1, 2017). "Rep. Jim Merrill pleads guilty to misconduct, agrees to assist investigators in Statehouse corruption probe". The Post and Courier. Archived from the original on December 27, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  16. ^ "Richland Sen. John Courson Enters Guilty Plea, Resigns from Office". WLTX-TV. June 4, 2018. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  17. ^ Adcox, Seanna (December 21, 2021). "Former SC Statehouse leader released from prison in time for Christmas". The Post and Courier. Archived from the original on December 27, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  18. ^ Weaver, Emily (October 24, 2017). "Former NMB Rep. Tracy Edge accused of taking payouts in illegal S.C. lobbying scheme". The Sun News. Archived from the original on June 4, 2018. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  19. ^ Lanahan, Thomas (May 16, 2017). "Solicitor: Rep. Richard Quinn indicted". WPDE-TV. Archived from the original on January 2, 2024. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  20. ^ Collins, Jeffrey (December 13, 2017). "South Carolina Rep. Rick Quinn pleads guilty to corruption charge". Associated Press. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  21. ^ "Quinn Sr. gets 18 months home detention in corruption case". Associated Press. April 19, 2023. Archived from the original on December 27, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  22. ^ Monk, John (October 18, 2017). "Powerful SC Republican consultant Quinn, 4 others indicted by Grand Jury". The State Newspaper. Archived from the original on January 2, 2024. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  23. ^ "H 3514 General Bill, By Norrell and Clary". South Carolina Legislature. 2023. Archived from the original on January 2, 2024. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  24. ^ Lovegrove, Jamie (October 3, 2018). "Grand jury report on Statehouse corruption probe should be released, judge rules". Post and Courier. Archived from the original on December 27, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  25. ^ "Legislative corruption and the State Grand Jury". South Carolina Press Association. November 2018. Archived from the original on May 31, 2023. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  26. ^ Wren, David. "Gov. Henry McMaster wants to replace Ports board members who questioned payments to embattled political consultant Richard Quinn". The Post and Courier. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  27. ^ Brown, Andrew. "Corruption probe prompts South Carolina lawmakers to delay vote on Gov. McMaster's Ports Authority nominees". The Post and Courier. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  28. ^ Brown, Andrew. "Lawmakers advance South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster's ports board picks". The Post and Courier. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  29. ^ Wren, David. "South Carolina Ports agency suspends payments to consultant Richard Quinn during Statehouse corruption probe". The Post and Courier. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  30. ^ Monk, John (April 29, 2021). "$352K used to avoid prosecution could go to fight SC State House corruption". The State Newspaper. Archived from the original on January 2, 2024. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
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