Traditionally the road tests have taken place on neighborhood streets where there is little traffic

Agency spokeswoman Beth Parks said the new tests would put drivers into more realistic situations with heavier traffic. “The truth of the matter is: that’s where they’re going to do most of their driving,” Parks told South Carolina Radio Network, “Not through the neighborhoods, but out in traffic.”

She said the agency will also change how it grades the test. Right now, a driver is given the grade of “good,” “fair,” or “bad.” By the summer, it will be a pass/fail exam.

40-year-old Brenda Poston faces a five-year prison sentence and a fine of up to $250,000, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Poston worked as a customer service representative at the Florence DMV office when proseuctors say she admitted falsely entering information into a state database saying that a certain person had passed the written and driving skills tests required for the license when, in fact, they had not taken the test at all. She also admitted giving the person a fraudulent social security number in order for them to get the license.

Although Thursday’s plea was only for one license, a grand jury had originally indicted her on fraudulently obtaining five licenses. The DMV says it has since revoked those licenses.

Shawn McManus was arrested after he tried to flee from his vehicle after the high-speed chase from Mount Pleasant to Awendaw.  Cannon said the chase started after McManus committed a traffic violation. Deputies say they reached speeds of 120 miles per hour during their pursuit.

In a written statement, Cannon said he walked up to the handcuffed McManus after the latter had been arrested. Cannon said he angrily asked, “What the (expletive) is wrong with you?!” to which McManus replied “Ain’t nothing wrong with me, man.” The sheriff said he then slapped McManus and said “You could have killed a lot of people.”

Cannon said he has reported his actions to the State Law Enforcement Division. SLED was already investigating the incident because deputies shot at McManus’s tires during the chase. State law requires the agency to step in any time an officer fires a gun.

Cannon said he is prepared to accept the consequences of his actions.

Rep. Don Bowen (R-Anderson)

A House panel advanced a bill Wednesday that would ban texting while driving in South Carolina.

There have been several attempts to do this over the past two years, but each has been unsuccessful. Rep. Don Bowen (R-Anderson), who led one of those efforts in 2010, says he’s confident the bill can pass this year because there is now statistical data showing more highway deaths due to texting than those due to driving while intoxicated.

The transportation subcommittee unanimously voted to give the bill a favorable report Wednesday. No one in attendance spoke against the legislation, either. It now heads to the full Education and Public Works Committee.

The bill would charge a $100 fine and put two points on the driving record of a person who is caught. However, if the distraction causes a fatal accident, the driver could face at least a $5,000 fine and up to 10 years in prison.

“We hope that will be a deterrent and make people stop (texting) without having to enforce it,” Bowen told South Carolina Radio Network.

Bowen said he expects more support from fellow legislators this year because he lowered the proposed fine and made a simple texting offense a misdemeanor.

However, while it could pass the House, it’s not clear whether the bill is any more likely to pass the Senate than a previous effort that failed last year. At the time, several legislators said it was unfair to single out texting and purposely held up the bill by adding “poison pill” amendments that banned other forms of distracted driving, as well.

Governor Nikki Haley has also not indicated whether would sign the bill if it even reached her desk. As a representative, Haley voted against Bowen’s first bill in 2010.

“You show me the data that eating a hamburger or putting on makeup have created serious problems on the highway and we’ll address it,” Bowen said. “We have the data to show that texting is a serious cause of accidents on the highway.”

Opponents also say legislators are infringing on personal freedoms. However, Bowen says it becomes a safety issue once a person drives on a public road and puts other drivers at risk by their actions.

35 other states have text messaging bans on drivers.

This Army Corps of Engineers graphic shows how containers ships have gotten longer, wider, and larger in the past 30 years

Trying to speed up a study needed before the deepening of the Charleston Harbor can begin, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) met last week with local harbor pilots to determine part of the study’s focus.

The harbor pilots were brought in because they know the river channels as well as anyone else, according to ACE’s Charleston District commander Col. Edward Chamberlayne.

“Instead of going through a list of hundreds of alternatives to consider, which would make our feasibility study longer, they would really narrow it down to the most productive and most feasible alternatives,” he said. “It would make the most bang for our buck.”

The Corps has partnered with the State Ports Authority to help pay the estimated $20 million the feasibility study will cost. Port officials say the channel needs to be deepened to 50 feet in order to handle the new, larger ships that will begin arriving along the East Coast once the Panama Canal expansion is complete in 2014. The overall project is expected to cost around $300 million.

The study is currently in a public comment period that ends February 10. Once that passes, the Corps will take the recommendations and begin developing possible alternatives.

The entire study is expected to take about five to eight years. Chamberlayne said the agency would do everything within its power to speed up the process. “I don’t want someone to think that we’re going as fast as possible and ignore a lot of concerns,” he said “That’s not what we’re trying to do. We’re trying to streamline what we’re doing and cut out wasted time.”

Several prominent South Carolina officials, including Governor Nikki Haley, have said they want the amount of time shortened. Chamberlayne said the amount of time was due to federal laws the Corps has to follow, not intra-agency bureaucracy.

He said the Corps does not usually get the harbor pilots involved in the process this early, instead consulting them about final recommendations towards the end. “By then, it’s too late. They’re giving us their input, but we’ve already gone through the process.”

Other proposed ways to shorten the process include concurrent reviews and trying to determine every possible recommendation in advance, to prevent a second study if a different alternative emerges in the future.

The law bans using cameras to issue speeding tickets based on photographic evidence.

The Beaufort Gazette reports the commission made its recommendation to continue the ban earlier this month. The commission report says the state does not have enough judges to handle all of the cases that would be created if local governments began using the cameras.

The commission says only the state Department of Public Safety should ever be allowed to use the cameras.

The panel consisted of several legislators, Supreme Court Chief Justice Jean Toal, and several representatives from the South Carolina Sheriffs Association and other law enforcement groups.

Review bill H. 4627

Gov. Nikki Haley has defended the decision by the DHEC board to allow Georgia to dredge the river in order to improve its port in Savannah. She asserts that the Port of Charleston will still be deeper and offer more to larger ships coming from the Panama Canal.

 House leaders say the decision first must go to the state’s Savannah River Maritime Commission, which is charged with oversight of   “navigability, depth, dredging, sludge disposal and other collateral issues in regard to the Savannah River.”  Charleston Republican Jim Merrill serves on that commission, which is mainly made up of legislative appointees. 

AUDIO: Merrill says the dredging plan had plenty of opposition.

AUDIO: Rep. Leon Stavrinakis (D-Charleston) says this is an environmental issue that needs another look.

 House Speaker Bobby Harrell (R-Charleston) issued a statement in support of this measure:  “Based solely on the merits of this case, DHEC was correct to deny this permit.  But given the Board’s sudden reversal, the intentional bypassing of the Maritime Commission and state law, the irrefutable environmental damage and the uncompetitive disadvantage to our ports; this was a terrible decision by the DHEC Board.”

U.S.S. Laffey (File)

As a result, the museum is closed to the public until the weekend, although the Laffey’s return will depend on the tides and weather of Charleston harbor.

The ship has been berthed in North Charleston for the past two years as it underwent badly-needed repairs. In order to tow the Laffey back into position, crews will have to remove a pedestrian bridge that connects the shore with the museum’s docks. Since the public will be unable to access the museum’s ships without the bridge, there’s no reason to reason to keep Patriots Point open, officials say.

The Patriots Point Development Authority borrowed $9 million from the state to repair the ship in 2009 and has struggled to pay the loan back. It still owes approximately $8.7 million. It has until June 2013 to come up with a repayment plan, which director Mac Burdette says the museum is developing.

The Laffey will be displayed at the spot currently home to the submarine Clamagore. The museum plans to move the sub further down the museum docks to make room.

Laffey is one of only two Sumner-class destroyers that remain in existence. It was commissioned in 1944. It participated in the D-Day landings in Normandy, as well as the later invasions of the Philippines, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa.

A judge revoked John Ludwig’s probation Friday and sentenced him to serve three years in prison. Ludwig was charged with domestic violence against his wife in November.

His attorney argued that Ludwig and his wife were having an argument about finances and that it was not a violent encounter.

Ludwig had previously been found guilty of reckless homicide in 2009 after he lost control of his car while speeding and crashed into a house, killing 62-year-old Bill Bardsley inside. Investigators said Ludwig had been driving 85 miles per hour at the time.

Company officials made the announcement during a ceremony commemorating the company’s milestone of producing 2 million vehicles since its 1994 opening.

Frank-Peter Arndt, the BMW Group board member responsible for production, said the company’s intention is to expand its popular X-model. Arndt said production of the new BMW X4 will begin with the expansion of the plant.

“We look forward to a new model with great anticipation. For nearly 20 years, this team has always proven their steadfast commitment to producing quality vehicles for our customers around the world,” said Josef Kerscher, president of BMW Manufacturing.

The company says this addition is expected to raise production capacities up to 300,000 units by their mid-term, and by the end of the year they expect to have more than 7,500 employees at their 4 million-square-foot facility.

South Carolina Radio Network’s Tripp Girardeau contributed to this article.

The plan will still have to be approved by the state Transportation Commission before it can take control.

“It just appeared that nothing was happening fast one way or the other,” said Chip Limehouse, a Charleston legislator who serves on the bank’s board, “The County Council was not rejecting the project. But they were not moving forward and accepting the project.”

The proposed $435 million extension would connect I-526′s terminus on U.S. 17 with the James Island Expressway. The county accepted the Infrastructure Bank funds in 2007, but massive opposition from some James Island and John Island residents stalled the project.

Environmentalists have accused state officials of forcing the highway onto Charleston residents who overwhelmingly opposed it at the county level. The county council voted in April not to move forward with the project. However, they reconsidered after Infrastructure Bank officials warned the county would have to repay the Bank $12 million for right-of-way acquisitions and other work that has already been completed.

Limehouse said the board wants action after years of delay and decided to take the controversial issue out of the county’s hands, “We’ve given everybody an opportunity to get out and toss the political hot potato back to the state,” he told South Carolina Radio Network, “Hopefully the state… will either make mashed potatoes with it or toss it away.”

He said he understood residents’ concerns, however. Limehouse added that, if the project does proceed, transportation officials could look to limit the number of interchanges on the new highway or Charleston County could have strict zoning along the road to keep development from destroying the rural character of James and Johns islands.