S 0517 General Bill, By Senn
 A BILL TO AMEND SECTION 16-17-600 OF THE 1976 CODE, RELATING TO THE
 DESTRUCTION OR DESECRATION OF HUMAN REMAINS OR REPOSITORIES, TO PROVIDE FOR
 ENHANCED PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS MOTIVATED IN WHOLE OR IN PART BY THE
 OFFENDER'S BIAS AGAINST A RACE, RELIGION, DISABILITY, ETHNICITY, OR GENDER.

   03/08/17  Senate Introduced and read first time (Senate Journal-page 10)
   03/08/17  Senate Referred to Committee on Judiciary
                     (Senate Journal-page 10)
   03/31/17  Senate Referred to Subcommittee: Massey (ch), McElveen, Senn

TO AMEND SECTION 16-17-600 OF THE 1976 CODE, RELATING TO THE DESTRUCTION OR DESECRATION OF HUMAN REMAINS OR REPOSITORIES, TO PROVIDE FOR ENHANCED PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS MOTIVATED IN WHOLE OR IN PART BY THE OFFENDER'S BIAS AGAINST A RACE, RELIGION, DISABILITY, ETHNICITY, OR GENDER.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION    1.    Section 16-17-600 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 16-17-600.    (A)(1)    It is unlawful for a person wilfully and knowingly, and without proper legal authority to:

(1)(a)    destroy or damage the remains of a deceased human being;

(2)(b)    remove a portion of the remains of a deceased human being from a burial ground where human skeletal remains are buried, a grave, crypt, vault, mausoleum, Native American burial ground or burial mound, or other repository; or

(3)(c)    desecrate human remains.

(2)(a)    A person violating the provisions of subsection item (A)(1) is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than five thousand dollars or imprisoned not less than one year nor more than ten years, or both.

(b)    In addition to penalties imposed pursuant to item (A)(2)(a), a violation of item (A)(1) motivated in whole or in part by the offender's bias against a race, religion, disability, ethnicity, or gender constitutes an aggravating circumstance for which the offender may be fined up to two thousand five hundred dollars or imprisoned for up to six months, or both.

(3)    A crematory operator is neither civilly nor criminally liable for cremating a body which (1) has been incorrectly identified by the funeral director, coroner, medical examiner, or person authorized by law to bring the deceased to the crematory; or (2) the funeral director has obtained invalid authorization to cremate. This immunity does not apply to a crematory operator who knew or should have known that the body was incorrectly identified.

(B)(1)    It is unlawful for a person wilfully and knowingly, and without proper legal authority to:

(1)(a)    obliterate, vandalize, or desecrate a burial ground where human skeletal remains are buried, a grave, graveyard, tomb, mausoleum, Native American burial ground or burial mound, or other repository of human remains;

(2)(b)    deface, vandalize, injure, or remove a gravestone or other memorial monument or marker commemorating a deceased person or group of persons, whether located within or outside of a recognized cemetery, Native American burial ground or burial mound, memorial park, or battlefield; or

(3)(c)    obliterate, vandalize, or desecrate a park, Native American burial ground or burial mound, or other area clearly designated to preserve and perpetuate the memory of a deceased person or group of persons.

(2)(a)    A person violating the provisions of subsection (B) is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be imprisoned not more than ten years or fined not more than five thousand dollars, or both.

(b)    In addition to penalties imposed pursuant to item (B)(2)(a), a violation of item (B)(1) that was motivated in whole or in part by the offender's bias against a race, religion, disability, ethnicity, or gender constitutes an aggravating circumstance for which the offender may be fined up to two thousand five hundred dollars or imprisoned for up to five years, or both.

(C)(1)    It is unlawful for a person wilfully and knowingly to steal anything of value located upon or around a repository for human remains or within a human graveyard, cemetery, Native American burial ground or burial mound, or memorial park, or for a person wilfully, knowingly, and without proper legal authority to destroy, tear down, or injure any fencing, plants, trees, shrubs, or flowers located upon or around a repository for human remains, or within a human graveyard, cemetery, Native American burial ground or burial mound, or memorial park.

(2)    A person violating the provisions of item (1) is guilty of:

(a)    a felony and, upon conviction, if the theft of, destruction to, injury to, or loss of property is valued at four hundred dollars or more, must be fined not more than five thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than five years, or both, and must be required to perform not more than five hundred hours of community service;

(b) a misdemeanor triable in magistrates court or municipal court, notwithstanding the provisions of Sections 22-3-540, 22-3-545, 22-3-550, and 14-25-65, if the theft of, destruction to, injury to, or loss of property is valued at less than four hundred dollars. Upon conviction, a person must be fined not more than one thousand dollars, or imprisoned not more than thirty days, or both, and must be required to perform not more than two hundred fifty hours of community service.

(3)    In addition to penalties imposed pursuant to item (C)(2)(a) or (b), a violation of item (C)(1) motivated in whole or in part by the offender's bias against a race, religion, disability, ethnicity, or gender constitutes an aggravating circumstance for which the offender may be:

(a)    fined up to two thousand five hundred dollars or imprisoned for up to two years, or both, if the offender is sentenced pursuant to item (C)(2)(a); or

(b)    fined up to five hundred dollars or imprisoned not more than thirty days, or both, if the offender is sentenced pursuant to item (C)(2)(b).

(D)    A person who owns or has an interest in caring for the property, in the case of private lands, or the State, in the case of state lands, may bring a civil action for a violation of this section to recover damages, and the cost of restoration and repair of the property, plus attorney's fees and court costs."

SECTION    2.    This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.