STATEHOUSE REPORT | ISSUE 23.02 | Jan. 12, 2024
BIG STORY: Biden attacks white supremacy in Monday speech
MORE NEWS: We’re no longer number one!
LOWCOUNTRY, Ariail: No vacancy
COMMENTARY, Brack: 35 years later, 2 murder arrests’
SPOTLIGHT: The Felkel Group
MY TURN, Whiting: Poor, misguided Andy Brack
MYSTERY PHOTO: In the news
FEEDBACK: Send us your thoughts
Biden attacks white supremacy in Monday speech
By Lily Levin | President Joe Biden criticized the stain of white supremacy and the rise of hatred in America during an emotional 2024 campaign speech Monday at Charleston’s historic Emanuel AME Church, site of the racist killing of nine worshippers in 2015 during a Bible study meeting.
“The word of God was pierced by bullets and hate and rage, propelled by not just gunpowder, but by a poison – a poison that for too long has haunted this nation. What is that poison? White supremacy. That’s all it is – a poison.
“Throughout our history, it has ripped this nation apart. This has no place in America. Not today. Not tomorrow or ever.”
Biden praised the families of survivors and members of the church for how they forgave the shooter, Dylann Roof, in spite of the pain and chaos he left behind.
“This nation saw this congregation, this community, demonstrate one of the greatest acts of strength I have ever seen – I mean it sincerely – the act of forgiveness. The act of grace. It was as President Obama sang from here, Amazing Grace. It changed hearts.”
Later, Biden got emotional when he recalled how members of Emanuel AME helped him and his family heal from the loss of his son just 22 days before the Charleston shooting.
“We were in more pain than we knew,” Biden reflected on his visit as vice president. “We came here to offer comfort and received comfort from you. As I listened in the pews and spent time with the families and visited Reverend [Clementa] Pinckney’s office, visited the memorial of the victims outside, I grew stronger. My family grew stronger. We prayed together. We grieved together. We found hope together for real, for real. It reminds me that each of us must find purpose throughout the pain.”
Later in the speech, Biden further addressed the rise of hatred in America and the importance of unity. There are some people, he said, who believe that “if I hold you down, I lift myself up.” But that is wrong, he continued, advising the crowd to “choose the truth; choose America.”
Reactions to the president’s visit
State Rep. J.A. Moore, a Berkeley County Democrat whose sister was one of the nine victims in the shooting, said Biden’s words were vital to the country.
“I think that it’s critical in a moment such as this that you have the president of the United States come to the sacred grounds where my sister unwittingly gave her life along with eight other parishioners praising a God of justice, a God of understanding and passion.”
Moore added he felt Biden should “demand that the [state] Senate finally pass the hate crime bill that’s been sitting on their side for almost a year now,” noting how South Carolina was only one of two states in the nation to not have such a law in the books.
Colleen Condon, a former county council member who serves as the state Democratic Party’s first vice-chair, praised Biden for his work as president.
“President Biden has looked out for South Carolinians in his first term, and we understand the importance of South Carolina, a state with a large percentage of African Americans, kicking off the reelection process.
“The president’s visit to Mother Emanuel shows the stark contrast of Biden’s accomplishments for real Americans versus more MAGA hate talk.”
Charleston Realtor Ed Sutton, a candidate for state Senate, said Biden has delivered as president for the Palmetto State with big infrastructure investments.
“We can thank Biden for the pending $29 million electric transportation hub at Shipwatch Square in North Charleston. President Biden deserves another 4 years as President, no question in my mind,” he told the Charleston City Paper.
Lily Levin is a reporter with the Charleston City Paper, where a version of this story first appeared. Have a comment? Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com.
We’re no longer number one!
Staff reports | S.C. no longer has the least number of women in its Senate.
Thanks to this week’s swearing-in of Tameika Isaac Devine of Columbia as South Carolina’s sixth woman in the state Senate, the Palmetto State no longer has the lowest percentage of women in its upper chamber in the United States. Devine was elected in a special election to replace the late S.C. Sen. John Scott, D-Richland.
“Devine’s election means women now make up 13% of the South Carolina Senate, up from a previous lowest-in-the-nation rank of 10%,” according to the Associated Press. “Alabama has the least, with 11%; West Virginia, the second-least, at 11.8%; and Louisiana the third-least, at 12.8%, according to the Center for American Women and Politics.”
In other recent news:
Republicans fast-track ban on transgender health care. This bill would ban minors in South Carolina from undergoing “gender-transition procedures,” including surgeries, hormone therapy and puberty blockers. Meanwhile, parents, advocates are decrying the push from lawmakers. Also this week during the first week of the legislative session:
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- Senate panel backtracks on prescription drug notification for minors
- Some S.C. lawmakers want ID requirements for social media, porn sites
- Sunday alcohol sales, delivery under consideration at S.C. House
- Statehouse weighs limiting bill debate causing friction among Republican factions
- S.C. lawmakers to consider if nonbank lenders violate trade laws
- Setzler, state Senate’s longest-serving member, won’t seek reelection
- S.C. Sen. Dick Harpootlian announces re-election bid.
Tuesday’s storm causes damage across the state. A semi-truck overturned in the northbound lanes of the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge in Charleston about 4 p.m. Tuesday during a gusty storm, leading to an hours-long closure of the entire bridge while first responders were on scene. Elsewhere in the state, the severe storm system led to flooding, road closures and property damage, especially in Bamberg, where a tornado left buildings in rubble and toppled trees across roads. Four people across three states are said to have died due to the storm conditions.
S.C. technical colleges sign deal with 2 state universities. A statewide transfer agreement was announced between the state’s technical college system, the University of South Carolina and Clemson University, which guarantees students who complete 30 hours of credit at a South Carolina technical college in core curriculum classes will have those credits accepted if they transfer to one of the two universities.
Mount Pleasant passes hate crimes ordinances. Mount Pleasant Town Council unanimously voted Wednesday night to enact two different ordinances to address hate crimes — something the state of South Carolina, one of two states without an anti-hate crime statute, has failed to do. Mount Pleasant leaders began discussing ways to fight back against hate crimes after antisemitic flyers were passed around neighborhoods in last September and October. Two Mount Pleasant council members received antisemitic postcards at their homes in December.
Haley, DeSantis spar in 5th Republican presidential debate; Christie bows out. Former S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis squared off Wednesday night in their first one-on-one matchup ahead of the first Republican presidential primary. Meanwhile with former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie out of the race, Haley has gained an advantage in New Hampshire where Christie had spent significant time trying to woo voters.
U.S. Supreme Court delays decision on Leatherman Terminal labor dispute. The U.S. Supreme Court did not rule Jan. 8 on whether it will hear a dispute over who should operate the ship-to-shore cranes at the Leatherman Terminal in North Charleston, leaving attorneys confused as to when a decision will be made.
No vacancy
Award-winning cartoonist Robert Ariail generally has a biting or funny comment about the great state of South Carolina in his weekly cartoon. This week, he takes on the increasing population of the Palmetto State, suggesting we don’t need more people.
- Love the cartoon? Hate it? What do you think: feedback@statehousereport.com.
35 years later, 2 murder arrests made in grisly Berkeley County case
By Andy Brack | In my mind’s eye, the image of a white pickup-truck camper with a light blue accent stripe continues to haunt me. Inside it 35 years ago, a dead boy had been found.
The camper was parked outside of a rural Moncks Corner home, maybe a white trailer. Buzzing around were law enforcement officers trying to figure out what happened to 5-year-old Justin Lee Turner. I remember there seemed to be a lot of yellow crime scene tape.
The boy went missing on March 3, 1989. Two days later with police on the scene, the boy’s father discovered his son stuffed into a cabinet in the camper near the home that had been searched earlier. The boy had been strangled. There was evidence he may have been sexually assaulted.
This cold case has haunted seasoned investigators and reporters for years. It came during a simpler time when fast-growing Berkeley County was half its size. Mobile phones were new, but available only in bulky bags. Web sites were more than two years away. Local news organizations scrummed to get the latest sensational scoop.
This week, Berkeley County authorities arrested the boy’s 69-year-old father, Victor Lee Turner, and 63-year-old stepmother, Megan R. Turner, on murder charges. They’re currently in jail pending a bond hearing later this month. Back in late 1989, officials arrested the boy’s stepmother, who changed her name from Pamela K. Turner, in the death. The following year, they dropped charges for lack of evidence. In 1992, the case went to a grand jury, but it returned no indictment.
And then the case just seemed to fizzle. But Berkeley County authorities, in coordination with the State Law Enforcement Division and its forensic lab and others, kept poking away. According to old newspaper reports, they reportedly always thought they knew what happened, but didn’t have enough evidence.
“We believe that they in concert moved his body to that camper to make it look like a stranger had murdered him,” Berkeley County Sheriff Duane Lewis said in a Thursday interview. Earlier, he noted, “Every sheriff from M.C. Cannon to Ray Isgett, Wayne DeWitt and myself – they’ve all looked into this case to some degree and tried to solve it. We were fortunate enough that we were able to do some things that we were not able to do before. It compressed the timeline.”
Lewis said authorities preserved evidence, but recently were able to subject it to new forensics tests.
“We had the leash that we believe was used to strangle Justin,” he said. “We’ve always had that. We were able to extract fibers from that leash onto Justin’s shirt collar. So you had transfer of particles from his shirt collar to the leash, and the leash to the shirt collar.”
That evidence, in coordination with more analysis of everything from what the boy had for breakfast to supposed inconsistencies in suspect statements led to this week’s charges, the sheriff said.
“It’s not just about DNA any more,” he said. “There’s a lot of things we can do that we couldn’t do back then – we didn’t have the means to do it.
“In this case, time was good to us. In others, it’s not. We just kept at it and kept trying things and reaching out to solve some mysteries of the case. It worked out to where we were able to get enough probable cause to arrest them.”
Arrests came in the cold case of Justin Lee Turner for three main reasons. First, police used science to make connections. Second, governments made investments in forensic technology, such as the $63 million State Law Enforcement Division forensic lab that opened last year. Third, authorities diligently kept at it to figure out what happened.
Lessons to remember: Trust in science; don’t discount it. Invest in government infrastructure. Employ dedicated people who won’t give up.
Justin Lee Turner. Rest in peace.
Andy Brack is editor and publisher of Statehouse Report and the Charleston City Paper. Have a comment? Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com.
The Felkel Group
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Poor, misguided Andy Brack
Editor’s Note: Greenwood Index-Journal Executive Editor Richard Whiting last week penned the following “response” to columnist Andy Brack’s thoughts on legislators serving as nannies. Republished with permission.
By Richard Whiting | Andy, Andy, Andy. You poor, misguided Andy Brack.
As readers know, we try to share a variety of opinions on these pages. We do like sharing Andy Brack’s weekly column as it primarily relates to happenings in our great state, and we carry South Carolina-based columnists Kathleen Parker and Eugene Robinson because, well, because they’re South Carolina-based columnists. By the way, Robinson is back after a rather lengthy hiatus. Don’t know if it was a health issue, but he’s resuming his writing, much to the dismay of some readers.
However, back to poor Andy Brack and today’s column on the opposite page.
I called him “misguided” because he seems to have lost touch with the purpose of government. Government is, by design, established to improve our lives.
Andy should know there is no higher calling for lawmakers than protecting us. That is why lawmakers want to ban abortions. It is essential that mothers be made to give birth to the baby they helped create. And really, that should apply in all instances. No exceptions. Making exceptions is kind of hypocritical, isn’t it?
Granted, there are no laws or proposals from lawmakers that would then provide a mother help once that baby is born, but that’s not really the primary purpose of abortion bans. Once anyone is born, really, it’s a roll of the dice as to what kind of life they’ll have.
Now, once that baby reaches the age where certain interests and desires surface, this is where government can once again fulfill its role of protecting.
You see, if some proposed legislation makes its way through the House and Senate and gets signed by the governor, teenagers won’t be able to get birth control prescriptions or treatment for STDs without first getting permission from their parents or guardians.
Andy, you should realize the incredibly positive impact this legislation could have. Why, any teenager who even thinks about exploring those desires, those interests will immediately come to their senses and stop. No way they’ll take the chance of becoming pregnant, getting someone pregnant or getting an STD. You’re right about one thing, Andy. They won’t want their parents or guardians to know what they did. That, Andy, is a great method of birth control, a great way to stop the spread of STDs and unwanted pregnancies.
However, if one or two teens do let those interests, those desires, those urges get the best of them, well, then they get what they deserve. Wait till Mom or Dad gets a hold of them. Well, maybe after the treatments are finished or the baby is born. But yeah, they’ll not repeat that mistake, will they?
One more thing, Andy. You should know that all these lawmakers you refer to as nannies not only have the best interests of South Carolinians at heart, they are the very best South Carolinians themselves. They legislate from experience because, without a doubt, not a one of those men has ever experienced those interests, those desires, those urges. They haven’t even listened to “Paradise by the Dashboard Light.” And most assuredly, not a one of them has ever uttered “Whew!” when a girlfriend said she missed her visit from Aunt Rose, but then Aunt Rose showed up. Just later than expected.
Whiting is executive editor of the Index-Journal. Have a comment? Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com.
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In the news
This view might pose a few difficulties for even the sleuthiest of photo sleuths, so we’ll give a hint: It’s been in the news lately in South Carolina. Send us your guess of what and where this photo is – as well as your name and hometown – to feedback@statehousereport.com.
Last week’s mystery photo, “Old building” shows the old Finch Hotel, also known as the Franklin Hotel, in Spartanburg, as Allan Peel of San Antonio, Texas, explained:
“The building was built by W.T. Finch, a local business man and meat market operator, between 1918 and 1922. It was intended to be an expansion of the original Finch Hotel that was located on an adjacent tract of land at 123 South Liberty Street. Finch never completed the expansion and it was later sold at public auction to Frank Hodges who did complete the structure and opened it as The Franklin Hotel. It remained in operation for over 40-years, before being sold again in the 1970s and converted into a boarding house. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 28, 1983. Then in August 1988, the city of Spartanburg purchased the property and had it demolished to make room for a high-rise office complex.”
Congratulations to a shorter-than-normal list of people who identified the mystery: Jay Altman of Columbia; Kimberly Chancey of Jacksonville, Fla.; Penny Forrester of Tallahassee, Fla.; Pat Keadle of Wagener; and George Graf of Palmyra, Va.
- Send us a mystery picture. If you have a photo that you believe will stump readers, send it along (but make sure to tell us what it is because it may stump us too!) Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com and mark it as a photo submission. Thanks.
Send us your thoughts
We encourage you to send in your thoughts about policy and politics impacting South Carolina. We’ve gotten some letters in the last few weeks – some positive, others nasty. We print non-defamatory comments, but unless you provide your contact information – name and hometown, plus a phone number used only by us for verification – we can’t publish your thoughts.
- Have a comment? Send your letters or comments to: feedback@statehousereport.com. Make sure to provide your contact details (name, hometown and phone number for verification. Letters are limited to 150 words.
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