Current Status Bill Number:3429 Type of Legislation:General Bill GB Introducing Body:House Introduced Date:19970212 Primary Sponsor:Fleming All Sponsors:Fleming, Knotts, Neal, Govan, Simrill, Canty, Lloyd, Littlejohn, Stuart, Moody-Lawrence, Meacham, Scott, Whipper, Jordan and Tripp Drafted Document Number:dka\4038mm.97 Companion Bill Number:71 Residing Body:House Current Committee:Judiciary Committee 25 HJ Subject:Grand jury system, environmental, income tax and insurance fraud offenses; Juries and Jurors
Body Date Action Description Com Leg Involved
______ ________ _______________________________________ _______ ____________
House 19970212 Introduced, read first time, 25 HJ
referred to Committee
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TO AMEND SECTION 14-7-1610, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE LEGISLATIVE INTENT AS TO THE STATE GRAND JURY, AND SECTION 14-7-1630, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO THE JURISDICTION OF THE STATE GRAND JURY, SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR EXPANDED JURISDICTION OF THE STATE GRAND JURY TO INCLUDE CRIMES INVOLVING ENVIRONMENTAL AND STATE INCOME TAX LAWS AND INSURANCE FRAUD.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 14-7-1610 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 335 of 1992, is further amended to read:
"Section 14-7-1610. It is the intent of the General Assembly to enhance the grand jury system and to improve the ability of the State to detect and eliminate criminal activity. The General Assembly recognizes the great importance of having the federal authorities available for certain investigations. The General Assembly finds that crimes involving narcotics, dangerous drugs, or controlled substances, as well as crimes involving obscenity, often transpire or have significance in more than one county of this State. When this occurs, these crimes are most effectively detected and investigated by a grand jury system which has the authority to cross county lines.
The General Assembly further finds that there is a need to enhance the grand jury system to improve the ability of the State to detect and eliminate public corruption. Crimes involving public corruption transpire at times in a single county, but often transpire or have significance in more than one county of this State. The General Assembly believes that a state grand jury, possessing considerably broader investigative authority than individual county grand juries, should be available to investigate public corruption offenses in South Carolina.
The General Assembly further finds that there is a need to enhance the grand jury system to improve the ability of the State to detect and investigate crimes involving the election laws, including, but not limited to, those named offenses as specified in Title 7, or any common law crimes involving the election laws where not superseded, or any a crime arising out of or in connection with the election laws, or any attempt, aiding, abetting, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit a crime involving the election laws.
The General Assembly finds that there is a need to enhance the grand jury system to improve the ability of the State to detect and investigate crimes involving environmental laws including, but not limited to, those specified in Titles 13, 16, 44, 48, and 49, or common law crimes involving environmental laws where not superseded, or crimes arising out of or in connection with such laws, or any attempt, aiding, abetting, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit a crime involving environmental laws. The General Assembly believes that the state grand jury, possessing considerably broader investigative authority than individual county grand juries, should be available to investigate environmental offenses in South Carolina.
The General Assembly finds that there is a need to enhance the grand jury system to improve the ability of the State to detect and investigate crimes involving state income tax laws including, but not limited to, those specified in Title 12, or common law crimes involving the state income tax laws where not superseded, or crimes arising out of or in connection with such laws, or any attempt, aiding, abetting, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit a crime involving the state income tax laws. The General Assembly believes that the state grand jury, possessing considerably broader investigative authority than individual county grand juries, should be available to investigate state income tax offenses in South Carolina.
The General Assembly finds that there is a need to enhance the grand jury system to improve the ability of the State to detect and investigate crimes involving insurance fraud including, but not limited to, those specified in Titles 16 and 38, or common law crimes involving insurance fraud where not superseded, or crimes arising out of or in connection with such laws, or any attempt, aiding, abetting, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit a crime involving insurance fraud. The General Assembly believes that the state grand jury, possessing considerably broader investigative authority than individual county grand juries, should be available to investigate insurance fraud in South Carolina.
The General Assembly finds that the state grand jury may investigate and prosecute public corruption, election law, environmental law, state income tax law, or insurance fraud cases where the crime transpired within a single county of this State, whether or not it has multicounty significance.
The General Assembly further finds that related criminal activity often arises out of or in connection with crimes involving narcotics, dangerous drugs, or controlled substances, obscenity, or public corruption, environmental laws, state income tax laws, or insurance fraud, and that the mechanism for detecting and investigating these related crimes must be improved also.
Accordingly, the General Assembly concludes that a state grand jury should be allowed to investigate certain crimes involving and related to narcotics, dangerous drugs, controlled substances, and obscenity, public corruption, election laws, environmental laws, state income tax laws, and insurance fraud and should also be allowed to investigate crimes involving public corruption and election laws.
Nothing herein limits the authority of a county grand jury, solicitor, or other appropriate law enforcement personnel to investigate, indict, or prosecute offenses within the jurisdiction of the state grand jury.
SECTION 2. Section 14-7-1630(A) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 335 of 1992, is further amended to read:
"(A) The jurisdiction of a state grand jury impaneled under pursuant to this article extends throughout the State. The subject matter jurisdiction of a state grand jury in all cases is limited to the following offenses:
(1) crimes involving narcotics, dangerous drugs, or controlled substances, or any a crime arising out of or in connection with a crime involving narcotics, dangerous drugs, or controlled substances, including, but not limited to, money laundering as specified in Section 44-53-475, obstruction of justice, perjury or subornation of perjury, and crimes involving obscenity or any attempt, aiding, abetting, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit any of the aforementioned those crimes if the crimes are of a multicounty nature or have transpired or are transpiring or have significance in more than one county of this State; and
(2) any a crime, statutory, common law or other, involving public corruption as defined in Section 14-7-1615, any a crime, statutory, common law or other, arising out of or in connection with a crime involving public corruption as defined in Section 14-7-1615, and any attempt, aiding, abetting, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit any a crime, statutory, common law or other, involving public corruption as defined in Section 14-7-1615; and
(3) crimes involving the election laws, including, but not limited to, those named offenses as specified in Title 7, or any common law crimes involving the election laws where not superseded, or any crime arising out of or in connection with the election laws, or any attempt, aiding, abetting, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit a crime involving the election laws.;
(4) crimes involving environmental laws including, but not limited to, those specified in Titles 13, 16, 44, 48, and 49, or common law crimes involving environmental laws where not superseded, or any attempt, aiding, abetting, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit a crime, statutory, common law or other involving environmental offenses;
(5) crimes involving state income tax laws including, but not limited to, those specified in Title 12, or common law crimes involving state income tax laws where not superseded, or any attempt, aiding, abetting, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit a crime, statutory, common law or other, involving state income tax offenses; and
(6) crimes involving insurance fraud, including, but not limited to, those specified in Title 16 and 38, or common law crimes involving insurance fraud where not superseded, or any attempt, aiding, abetting, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit a crime, statutory, common law or other, involving insurance fraud."
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.