H 3144 General Bill, By Lanford
 A Bill to amend Section 16-17-220, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976,
 relating to violations against the flag, standard, color, or ensign of the
 United States, the Confederate States of America, or this State, so as to
 revise the violations to include only a prohibition against the flag,
 standard, color, or ensign of the United States or of this State being
 knowingly utilized in manner that is likely to provoke or incite an imminent
 violent reaction.

   12/27/90  House  Prefiled
   12/27/90  House  Referred to Committee on Judiciary
   01/08/91  House  Introduced and read first time HJ-79
   01/08/91  House  Referred to Committee on Judiciary HJ-79

A BILL

TO AMEND SECTION 16-17-220, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO VIOLATIONS AGAINST THE FLAG, STANDARD, COLOR, OR ENSIGN OF THE UNITED STATES, THE CONFEDERATE STATES OF AMERICA, OR THIS STATE, SO AS TO REVISE THE VIOLATIONS TO INCLUDE ONLY A PROHIBITION AGAINST THE FLAG, STANDARD, COLOR, OR ENSIGN OF THE UNITED STATES OR OF THIS STATE BEING KNOWINGLY UTILIZED IN A MANNER THAT IS LIKELY TO PROVOKE OR INCITE AN IMMINENT VIOLENT REACTION.

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

SECTION 1. Section 16-17-220 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 16-17-220. Any A person who in any manner, for exhibition or display, shall

(a)knowingly place or cause to be placed a word, inscription, figure, mark, picture, design, device, symbol, name, characters, drawing, notice or advertisement of any nature upon any flag, standard, color or ensign of the United States, the Confederate States of America or this State or upon a flag, standard, color or ensign purporting to be such,

(b)knowingly display, exhibit or expose or cause to be exposed to public view any such flag, standard, color or ensign upon which shall have been printed, painted or otherwise placed or to which shall be attached, appended, affixed or annexed word, inscription, figure, mark, picture, design, device, symbol, name, characters, drawing, photographs, notice or advertisement of any nature,

(c)expose to public view, manufacture, sell, expose for sale, give away or have in possession for sale, to give away, or for use for any purpose, any article or substance, being an article of merchandise or a receptacle of merchandise or article or thing for camping or transporting merchandise upon which shall have been printed, painted, attached or otherwise placed a representation of any such flag, standard, color or ensign to advertise, call attention to, decorate, mark or distinguish the article or substance on which placed,

(d)publicly mutilate, deface, defile, defy, jeer at, trample upon or cast contempt, either by word or act, upon any such flag, standard, color or ensign may not knowingly utilize the flag, standard, color, or ensign of the United States, or this State in a manner that is likely to provoke or incite an imminent violent reaction.

A person who violates the provisions of this section is shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall, upon conviction, must be punished by a fine fined not exceeding more than one hundred dollars or by imprisonment imprisoned for not more than thirty days, or both, in the discretion of the court, and shall he also shall forfeit a penalty of fifty dollars for each offense, to be recovered with costs in a civil action or suit in any a court having jurisdiction. Such The action or suit may be brought by and in the name of any a citizen of this State, and such the penalty when collected, less the reasonable cost and expense of action or suit and recovery to be certified by the clerk of court of the county in which the offense is committed, shall must be paid into the State Treasury. Two or more penalties may be sued for and recovered in the same action or suit."

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