Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said he had no choice but to investigate suspected marijuana use by Olympic swimming champion Michael Phelps. But, in the end, deputies couldn't find enough evidence to charge Phelps, Lott said Monday, though the winner of a record eight gold medals in the Summer Olympics admitted being pictured holding a marijuana pipe at a November party in Columbia. "We had no physical evidence; we had a picture," Lott told reporters. "We didn't have enough where we could go arrest him." [continues 1081 words]
The Michael Phelps investigation intensified Saturday morning with armed deputies raiding a Lake Murray home, then proceeding to a Five Points-area party house where the Olympic champion was pictured in November holding a marijuana pipe, lawyers involved in the case say. Before the day was over, seven people were charged with misdemeanor marijuana charges. Three people were charged with simple marijuana possession after a small amount was seized in the raid at the home in a lakefront neighborhood. Four others were charged with simple marijuana possession in the second raid, longtime Columbia attorneys Dick Harpootlian and Joe McCulloch told The State on Thursday. [continues 787 words]
As many as eight people have been arrested on drug charges in an effort to build a marijuana possession case against Olympic swimming champion Michael Phelps, an attorney for one of the defendants confirmed this morning. Longtime Columbia attorney Dick Harpootlian said Richland County Sheriff's deputies arrested his client - whom he declined to identify - -- in a raid Saturday at his Lake Murray-area home after seizing a small amount of marijuana. "He's sitting there on Saturday, and 12 cops kick in the door with guns drawn, search his house and find 5, maybe 6, grams of pot," Harpootlian said."They never asked him, 'Who sold you the pot?' ... They were asking, 'Were you at the party with Michael Phelps? Did you see him using marijuana?' It was all about Michael Phelps." [continues 801 words]
Former S.C. Treasurer Indicted But Federal Guidelines Indicate He Could Get 6 Months' House Arrest COLUMBIA -- If convicted on a federal drug charge, former S.C. Treasurer Thomas Ravenel could receive as little as six months' house arrest and probation, according to an analysis of federal sentencing guidelines by The State. The most prison time that Ravenel likely would face would be about four years. The guidelines are not mandatory but are followed in about 70 percent of federal criminal cases in South Carolina. [continues 411 words]
Law Officers Like Cold-Remedy Rules; Pharmacy Group Raises Concerns Proposed state legislation calling for tighter controls on the sale of certain cold remedy drugs would put a major dent in methamphetamine production, the bill's sponsor says. But a pharmacy group has concerns that the bill would create a paperwork burden on its members. A bill proposed by Rep. Joan Brady, R-Richland, would require that all stores-- from pharmacies to convenience stores -- place drugs containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine as the sole active ingredient behind sales counters. [continues 291 words]
Horry County Woman Was Convicted In 2001 Of Killing Her Fetus By Using Cocaine Pregnant women who use illegal drugs likely will not face a new wave of prosecutions in South Carolina despite a U.S. Supreme Court ruling Monday clearing the way, state prosecutors said. The nation's top court without comment declined to hear the appeal of Regina McKnight, an Horry County woman convicted in 2001 of killing her fetus by using cocaine. The court's decision, in effect, upholds her conviction. [continues 760 words]
An Horry County woman convicted of killing her fetus by using cocaine wants the nation's top court to decide her controversial case. Regina McKnight filed a petition Tuesday with the U.S. Supreme Court asking the nine justices to overturn a January ruling by the S.C. Supreme Court. The state's top court upheld her 2001 conviction. "South Carolina alone has said that a woman who has suffered a stillbirth can be treated as a depraved-heart murderer, despite the fact that a majority of South Carolinians believe that treatment is the proper response to drug problems," said Lynn Paltrow of New York, one of McKnight's lawyers. [continues 327 words]
COLUMBIA - An Horry County woman convicted of killing her fetus by using cocaine wants the nation's top court to decide her controversial case. Regina McKnight filed a petition Tuesday with the U.S. Supreme Court asking the nine justices to overturn a January ruling by the S.C. Supreme Court. The state's top court upheld her 2001 conviction. "South Carolina alone has said that a woman who has suffered a stillbirth can be treated as a depraved-heart murderer, despite the fact that a majority of South Carolinians believe that treatment is the proper response to drug problems," said Lynn Paltrow of New York, one of McKnight's lawyers. [continues 263 words]
Justices Rule Regina McKnight is Guilty of Homicide By Using Cocaine That Killed Her Fetus A sharply divided S.C. Supreme Court on Monday upheld the conviction of an Horry County woman charged with killing her fetus by using cocaine. In a 3-2 vote, the state's top court said there was "sufficient evidence" to convict Regina McKnight of homicide by child abuse and that her constitutional rights have not been violated. In siding with the state, the three justices upheld an earlier ruling that says a fetus that can survive on its own outside the womb is a person under child abuse and neglect laws. [continues 351 words]
S.C. Supreme Court To Hear Arguments Involving Sale Of 'Adulterant' To Hide Use Of Marijuana When a Richland County store ran an ad that read "Taking a drug test? Want to cleanse your system?" narcotics agents checked it out. This week, South Carolina's highest court will hear arguments about whether the owner of Nicki's Novelty Store did anything wrong when his store sold a bottle of Zydot to an undercover agent in 1999. A clerk at the Broad River Road store said it would hide the presence of marijuana in a drug test, court documents show. [continues 349 words]
All three Republican candidates for S.C. attorney general have experience in the criminal justice system, though each would have different priorities as the state's top prosecutor. The three candidates in the June 11 primary are: . Henry McMaster, 55, of Columbia, former U.S. attorney for South Carolina and former chairman of the state Republican Party; . Jon Ozmint, 37, of Columbia, former chief prosecutor with the state grand jury, a division of the S.C. Attorney General's Office; . _Larry Richter, 55, of Mount Pleasant, former state senator and municipal, family and circuit court judge. [continues 832 words]
As Charlie Condon Makes His Bid To Be Governor, His High-profile Record Draws Differing Views Since taking office nearly seven years ago, South Carolina Attorney General Charlie Condon has never run out of things to say, churning out more than 500 news releases through his in-house media operation. The former Charleston solicitor has tackled issues his lower-profile predecessors never dreamed of touching. Some of his positions, such as his prosecution of pregnant, drug-addicted women or his declaration of "open season" on home intruders, have drawn national attention. [continues 2655 words]
Justices Hear Appeal Of Woman Accused Of Using Cocaine While Pregnant A landmark state Supreme Court ruling that said a "viable fetus" is a person should be overturned because it violates women's rights and has contributed to rising infant death rates, a lawyer said Wednesday. "This court cannot afford to continue ... to isolate itself from the world," Rauch Wise, who represents Brenda Kay Peppers, said during oral arguments on her case at the Supreme Court. The central issue in the case is whether a viable fetus -- a fetus that can survive on its own outside the womb -- is considered a person under state child abuse and neglect laws. The Supreme Court ruled in 1997 that a viable fetus is a person under those laws. [continues 499 words]
