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State of South Carolina

The Honorable Jim Burnett Coroner, Spartanburg County

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In a letter to this Office you referenced a provision in recently-enacted legislation, R-356, which states: (c)opies of death certificates may be issued to members of the deceased's family or their respective legal representatives. Others who demonstrate a direct and tangible interest may be issued copies when information is needed for the determination of a personal or property right. Other applicants may be provided with a statement that the death occurred, the date, and county of death. However, when fifty years have elapsed after the date of death, these records become public records and any person may obtain copies upon submission of an application containing sufficient information to locate the record. You stated that the Book of Inquisition maintained by your office contains the same information provided on death certificates in addition to autopsy results, results of toxicological studies, and the cause of death. You questioned whether the Book of Inquisition remains open in light of the provision cited above which generally restricts the availability...

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South Carolina Attotney General Re: Proposed “Sheriffs First” Legislation.

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The proposed legislation requires federal employees who would act in a county for the purpose of making federal arrests, searches or seizures, and who are not designated by South Carolina law as South Carolina peace officers, to first obtain ·written permission from the county sheriff or designee of the county sheriff in which the arrest, search or seizure will occur. The legislation also provides that the county sheriff or designee of the county sheriff "may refuse permission for any reason that the sheriff or designee considers sufficient." An exception exists when the arrest, search or seizure will take place on a federal enclave for which jurisdiction has been ceded to the United States by a South Carolina statute. A federal employee may also obtain written permission from the South Carolina Attorney General, who also "may refuse the permission for any reason that the attorney general considers sufficient." The legislation sets forth information which must be included in the request for written permission, including the name of...

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Incident Report Instructions Released by: South Carolina Law Enforcement Division

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1 Introduction

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program‘s primary objective is to collect reliable and detailed criminal information for use in law enforcement administration, operation, and management. Criminologists, sociologists, legislators, municipal planners, the media and students of criminal justice use the data for varied research and planning purposes. SLED‘s UCR Program prepared this manual to assist Law Enforcement Agencies (LEA) in reporting crime statistics via South Carolina Incident-Based Reporting System (SCIBRS). It addresses both National Incident-Based Reporting (NIBRS) and SCIBRS policies, the types of offenses reported and guidelines for an agency to become certified to submit NIBRS and SCIBRS data.

1.1 Background of the South Carolina Incident-Based Reporting System

South Carolina was the first state to implement an operational state UCR program, SLED administered the program. The information collected and the uniform classification under which it is collected are based directly upon the guidelines developed by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)....

See Also: South Carolina Incident Based Reporting System (SCIBRS) TRAINING MANUAL (2253 downloads )

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The State Of South Carolina Office Of The Attorney General

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Dear Coroner Watts:

You seek an opinion regarding a new statute recently enacted, S. C. Code Ann. Sec. 17-5-53 5. This new law makes autopsy photographs or videos confidential and provides criminal penalties for violation thereof. Both you, as well as the Coroners' Association, "agree with keeping videos and photographs out of the hands of the general public." However, you also are of the opinion that "photographs and/or videos are an intricate part of our continuing education and are often used in training sessions and seminars." You request "a written ... opinion that clears us to use photographs and/or videos in appropriate training circumstances."

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Joe Perry and Osteen Publishing Co., Inc., Appellants, v. Harvin Bullock, in his capacity as Sumter County Coroner, Respondent.

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FACTUAL/PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Joe Perry, a reporter for The Item, a newspaper, sent a FOIA request to Harvin Bullock, the Sumter County Coroner, for the report of the autopsy performed on Aaron Leon Jacobs. Sumter County denied Perry's request on the basis that pursuant to the FOIA, the autopsy report is a "medical record" and is therefore by definition not a public record subject to disclosure. Perry, along with Osteen Publishing Company, Inc. (collectively, Appellants), filed this declaratory judgment action against Bullock in his official capacity as Sumter County Coroner. Appellants sought injunctive relief, alleging the autopsy report is not a medical record and therefore must be disclosed pursuant to the FOIA. Appellants therefore requested production of the records and attorney's fees. Bullock answered, asserting the records are exempt from the FOIA as medical records. He also asserted the records are subject to the authorization and consent provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996,

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Book of Inquisition

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In a letter to this Office you referenced a provision in recently-enacted legislation, R-356, which states: (c)opies of death certificates may be issued to members of the deceased's family or their respective legal representatives. Others who demonstrate a direct and tangible interest may be issued copies when information is needed for the determination of a personal or property right. Other applicants may be provided with a statement that the death occurred, the date, and county of death. However, when fifty years have elapsed after the date of death, these records become public records and any person may obtain copies upon submission of an application containing sufficient information to locate the record. You stated that the Book of Inquisition maintained by your office contains the same information provided on death certificates in addition to autopsy results, results of toxicological studies, and the cause of death. You questioned whether the...

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