February 10, 2012

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Columbia Councilman E.W. Cromartie faces federal charges

March 8, 2010 By

The U.S. Attorney has filed criminal charges against Columbia City Councilman Ernest W. Cromartie.  Acting United States Attorney Kevin F. McDonald announced Monday that a three count felony has been filed charging Cromartie with one count of tax evasion and two counts of structuring monetary transactions to evade reporting requirements.

The maximum penalty Cromartie could receive if convicted on the first count  is five years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000, and the maximum sentence he could receive on counts two and three is 10 years imprisonment and a fine of $500,000 on each count.

Cromartie has agreed in a plea agreement to waive the presentation of an indictment to a grand jury.

McDonald says a hearing will be scheduled after the case is assigned to a United States district judge.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, News, Politics & Government

Winthrop University fire under investigation

March 8, 2010 By

While the fire is now out at Winthrop University’s Owens Hall, the investigation continues. Rock Hill firefighters extinguished the flames around 3 o’clock Sunday afternoon nearly 24 hours after the initial blaze. Winthrop officials have canceled classes today as fire investigators begin their investigation into what caused the fire to break out on the two-year-old classroom building.

Winthrop president Tony DiGiorgio said that anyone who has been by the campus will be able to see the damage. “If you’ve been by the campus at all you will see that they’ve hacked up the roof. The roof is just kind of an open sore at the moment. The firefighters expect to leave the scene on Monday, then investigators will control the site for a limited time to try to find what the cause of the fire was,” he said.

School officials said classes usually scheduled for Owens Hall, as well as those located in nearby Bancroft Hall and Bancroft Annex will be relocated for the remainder of the semester. Access to the affected buildings is restricted for students, faculty and staff until the damage assessments are complete.

DiGiorgio continued to describe the damage. “You can imagine hundreds of thousands of gallons of water having been poured on the roof and have seeped through both Owen’s Hall and Bancroft Annex. Bankcroft Hall has some collateral damage and Kinard has some smoke damage and a few electrical things that need to be taken care of.”

One firefighter was injured when he fell down a stairwell inside the building. He was taken to a nearby hospital where he was treated and released.

Filed Under: Accidents & Disasters, Education, News

SC State receives support for nuclear education program

March 8, 2010 By

(as reported by Matt Long)

U-S Representative Jim Clyburn is participating in a ceremony at South Carolina State University today, as the school receives a one-hundred-thousand dollar check. The check from Shaw/AREVA, a corporation that operates in the Savannah River Site, will support the school’s Summer Nuclear Science Institute.  The Institute is designed to expose high school students to nuclear science and different engineering fields.

The Institute attracts more than 60 participants each year. The ceremony is being held at the school’s Stanbeck Museum and Planetarium.

Filed Under: Business, Education, News

SC officers accused of misconduct could have more say (Audio)

March 8, 2010 By

If a South Carolina police officer is accused of misconduct and terminated, he or she loses his or her certification. Once that officer re-applies with another agency, that agency will ask for a pre-employment review. South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy Director Hubert Harrell says they normally tell the agency why the officer was terminated. However- “The officer usually will appeal it. If they think that they were done wrong when they were terminated, they will appeal my decision. Currently, we put it before a review panel, but that’s a costly incidence when we do that. We have to pay a court reporter and all that. My question when I talked with a group of chiefs what that when these guys appeal, I want to be fair to everybody,” says Harrell.

So, Harrell wants to give the officers a fair say. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, News

New Clerk of Court takes her position in Spartanburg

March 8, 2010 By

(as reported by Matt Long)

Spartanburg County is in its first week with a new Clerk of Court. The new clerk hopes to clean up an office racked by scandal. 

Hope Blackley brings years of legal experience to her new job. The former crime victims advocate was appointed to the position Friday as a replacement for former Clerk Marcus Kitchens who faces drug charges.

Blackley says she hopes to restore confidence in an office riddled with corruption, smeared in the public’s eyes after authorities accused Kitchens of stealing drugs from the County Courthouse’s evidence room and attempting to sell them. He was indicted last month.

Blackley was Governor Mark Sanford’s crime victims ombudsman for the past four years. Sanford says he based his decision to hire Blackley on her experience at the state level.  Blackley is believed to be the first black woman to hold the office.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, News, Politics & Government
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