South Carolina Injury Lawyer Blog

Today your Charleston negligence attorney took note of an article coming from the South Carolina Upstate in which a Greenville man was sentenced after pleading guilty to felony driving under the influence in connection to a fatal car accident. The accident occurred back in January 2011 when the 34-year-old man drove his wife's SUV off the side of a road in Cleveland, SC--located about 20 miles from Greenville, SC. The Travelers Rest Tribune reported that after driving off the road the man proceeded down a steep embankment and struck several trees, causing serious injury to passenger. Once the vehicle came to a stop, the man fled the scene leaving the vehicle's passenger still buckled in his seat. A passing motorist noticed the wrecked vehicle and had the good sense to dial 911, but, unfortunately, the passenger in the SUV was found deceased upon the arrival of EMS.

The man's departure from the scene of the accident reportedly led emergency personnel to believe the driver of the vehicle had been ejected from the SUV. Subsequent investigation by troopers of the South Carolina Highway Patrol, however, found that the crashed vehicle was registered to the driver's wife. An open container of beer and milk jug smelling strongly of some undisclosed type of alcohol were found inside the wrecked SUV. According to reports, an unidentified man came to the scene of the drunk driving accident and informed authorities that the driver-in-question had approached him earlier at his home, and solicited a ride to his own.

Authorities were able to apprehend the drunk driver after his wife brought him back to the scene of the accident. Authorities took note of the smell of alcohol about his person, and scrapes on his face, according to The Travelers Rest Tribune, prior to the man admitting he was the driver of the crashed SUV. The man was transported by EMS to a local emergency room, where a blood sample revealed marijuana metabolites and a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.111--well in excess of the legal limit of 0.08.

Continue reading " Greenville Man Sentenced in Connection with Fatal, Single-Vehicle Drunk Driving Accident " »

Back in March of 2011 your Charleston, SC lawyers at Howell and Christmas, LLC posted a blog entry concerning a sexual assault on an elderly woman living in a Mt. Pleasant hospice. A week ago last Thursday the 56-year-old alleged attacker was convicted of raping the elderly woman, found guilty (but mentally ill) of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, and subsequently sentenced to 30 years in prison. According to a Local News Report, the solicitor for the Ninth Judicial Circuit actively sought the maximum imposed sentence upon the defendant, but disclosed that a 30-year prison sentence for the 56-year-old man is likely to serve as a life sentence.

The attack occurred in the early morning hours of February 12, 2011, when the then 54-year-old man entered an unlocked door at a Mt. Pleasant hospice, walked across the corridor to the victim's room, and proceeded to sexually assault the then 86-year-old patient. It was not until a nurse reportedly heard a scream that the attacked was discovered in the facility atop the hospice resident. Reportedly, in a statement given to authorities, the man imparted that he peered into one of the facility's windows before finding an entrance.

According to authorities, the convicted attacker was a homeless man with an extensive criminal history; including an 1982 arrested on charges of committing a lewd and lascivious act, and an 1987 arrest for buggery, which is a term adopted from British English and close in meaning to sodomy. As a criminal charge in South Carolina, it is classified under "Offenses Against Morality and Decency."

In connection with the instant case, the convicted attacker was also charged with trespassing, criminal domestic violence, petty larceny, possession of cocaine and meth, and public disorderly conduct. As mentioned, the man was determined to be mentally ill, but the presiding judge ruled him competent to stand trial after hearing from two psychiatrists. Mental competency may have become an issue once the attacker decided to waive his right to a jury trial, and, generally, the first question asked by the presiding court is, "Was the waiver given voluntarily?"

Continue reading " Update of Previous Entry Concerning a Sexual Assault at a Mt. Pleasant Hospice; Assailant Receives 30-Year Prison Sentence " »