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H. 3336
STATUS INFORMATION
General Bill
Sponsors: Rep. G.M. Smith
Document Path: l:\council\bills\bbm\9363zw03.doc
Companion/Similar bill(s): 125
Introduced in the House on January 16, 2003
Currently residing in the House Committee on Judiciary
Summary: Bureau of Protective Services Division and Criminal Justice Academy Police Division created within DPS
HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS
Date Body Action Description with journal page number ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/16/2003 House Introduced and read first time HJ-234 1/16/2003 House Referred to Committee on Judiciary HJ-234
View the latest legislative information at the LPITS web site
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
TO AMEND SECTION 23-6-100, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO DISTINCTIVE UNIFORMS AND EMBLEMS OF THE SOUTH CAROLINA HIGHWAY PATROL AND STATE POLICE DIVISIONS WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY, SO AS TO ESTABLISH THE BUREAU OF PROTECTIVE SERVICES DIVISION AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACADEMY POLICE DIVISION, TO RESTRICT THE SALE, MANUFACTURE, AND DISSEMINATION OF UNIFORMS AND EMBLEMS OF THE HIGHWAY PATROL AND STATE POLICE DIVISIONS, AND TO AUTHORIZE AN IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER OF EITHER A HIGHWAY PATROLMAN OR A STATE POLICE OFFICER KILLED IN THE LINE OF DUTY TO RECEIVE THE DECEDENT'S SERVICE SIDEARM.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Article 3, Chapter 6, Title 23 of the 1976 Code is renamed "South Carolina Department of Public Safety Law Enforcement Divisions".
SECTION 2. Section 23-6-100 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 51 of 1997, is further amended to read:
"Section 23-6-100. (A) There is created a South Carolina Highway Patrol Division, and a South Carolina State Police Division, Bureau of Protective Services Division, and a South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy Police Division within the Department of Public Safety. The South Carolina Highway Patrol Division shall have such troopers, officers, agents, and employees as the department may deem necessary and proper for the enforcement of the traffic and other related laws, and the South Carolina State Police Division shall have such troopers, officers, agents and employees as the department may deem necessary and proper for the enforcement of the commercial motor carrier related laws, the enforcement of which is devolved upon the department. The Bureau of Protective Services Division shall have such troopers, officers, agents, and employees as the department may deem necessary and proper to maintain the security of the Governor's Mansion Compound, and other governmental facilities, including the State Capitol Building, the facilities of the Capitol Complex, and other state buildings. The South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy Police Division shall have such officers, agents, and employees as the department may deem necessary and proper to provide security and other enforcement assistance at all academy buildings, facilities, and state property maintained on academy grounds. Such officers and troopers shall be commissioned by the Governor upon the recommendation of the Director of the Department of Public Safety. Such commissions may be terminated at the pleasure of the director.
(B) The department must provide the officers of the Highway Patrol and of the State Police with distinctive uniforms and suitable arms and equipment for use in the performance of their duties. Such officers and troopers shall at all times, when in the performance of their duties, wear complete uniforms with badges conspicuously displayed on the outside of their uniforms.
(C) The commanding officers of the South Carolina Highway Patrol and the South Carolina State Police respectively, with the approval of the director of the department, shall prescribe a unique and distinctive official uniform, with appropriate insignia to be worn by all officers when on duty and at such other times as the director shall order, and a distinctive color or colors and appropriate emblems for all motor vehicles used by the Highway Patrol and the State Police except those designated by the director. No other law enforcement agency, private security agency, or any person shall wear a similar uniform and insignia which may be confused with the uniform and insignia of the Highway Patrol or State Police. An emblem must not be used on a nondepartment motor vehicle, nor may such vehicle be painted in a color or in any manner which would cause the vehicle to be similar to a Highway Patrol or State Police vehicle or readily confused with it.
(D) The director shall file with the Legislative Council for publication in the State Register a description and illustration of the official highway patrol uniform with insignia and the emblems of the official highway patrol and motor vehicles including a description of the color of such uniforms and vehicles and a description and illustration of the official state police uniform with insignia and the emblems of the official state police and motor vehicles including a description of the color of such uniforms and vehicles.
(E) No badge, uniform, insignia, or emblems of the Highway Patrol of State Police may be reproduced, sold, or disseminated by any person or entity not authorized to do so by the director of the department. Any person wishing permission to use either department nomenclature or symbols may request permission in writing to the director. The director shall serve notice to the requesting party within thirty days after receipt of the request. If the director does not respond within the thirty day time period, then the request is presumed to have been denied. The grant of permission is at the discretion of the director under the conditions the director may impose.
(F) Whenever there is an actual or threatened violation of subsection (E), the director has the right to apply to the Circuit Court of South Carolina for an injunction to restrain the violation. In addition to any other relief or sanction for a violation of subsection (E) where the violation is willful, the director is entitled to collect a civil penalty in the amount of five hundred dollars for each violation. Further, when there is a finding of willful violation, the director is entitled to recover reasonable attorney's fees for bringing any action against the violator. The director is entitled to seek civil sanctions in the Circuit Court of South Carolina.
(G) The South Carolina Highway Patrol Division or the South Carolina State Police Division officer shall transfer the service sidearm of an active duty trooper officer killed in the line of duty to the trooper's officer's surviving spouse immediate family member upon request at no charge once the sidearm has been rendered permanently inoperable."
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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