Current Status Introducing Body:House Bill Number:5085 Primary Sponsor:T.C. Alexander Committee Number:25 Type of Legislation:GB Subject:Fugitives, bad checks Residing Body:House Current Committee:Judiciary Computer Document Number:GJK/20735SD.94 Introduced Date:19940414 Last History Body:House Last History Date:19940414 Last History Type:Introduced, read first time, referred to Committee Scope of Legislation:Statewide All Sponsors:T.C. Alexander Graham Type of Legislation:General Bill
Bill Body Date Action Description CMN Leg Involved
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5085 House 19940414 Introduced, read first time, 25
referred to Committee
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TO AMEND SECTION 17-9-10, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO EXTRADITION, SO AS TO PERMIT EXTRADITION OF FUGITIVES IN THIS STATE WHO HAVE COMMITTED OFFENSES IN OTHER STATES INVOLVING A CHARGE OF ISSUING OR UTTERING A FRAUDULENT CHECK OR INSTRUMENT WHICH IS A FELONY UNDER THE LAWS OF THAT STATE; AND SECTION 34-11-90, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO FRAUDULENT CHECKS, SO AS TO REVISE THE COURTS WHICH HAVE JURISDICTION TO TRY CERTAIN VIOLATIONS, TO REVISE THE PENALTIES FOR CERTAIN VIOLATIONS, TO REDUCE FROM FIVE THOUSAND TO FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS THE MINIMUM AMOUNT OF THE INSTRUMENT WHICH RESULTS IN THE OFFENSE BEING CLASSIFIED AS A FELONY, TO PROVIDE THAT THE PRESIDING JUDGE SHALL ALSO REQUIRE RESTITUTION WITHIN TEN DAYS OF THE SENTENCE IN ADDITION TO ANY OTHER PENALTIES IMPOSED, TO PROVIDE FOR THE AGGREGATION OF FRAUDULENT INSTRUMENTS WITHIN A PERIOD OF NINETY DAYS FOR PURPOSES OF JURISDICTION AND PUNISHMENT, AND TO REQUIRE UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS TWO TYPES OF IDENTIFICATION, ONE OF WHICH HAS THE MAKER'S OR ENDORSER'S PICTURE, FOR ANY PERSON TO CHARGE THE MAKER OR ENDORSER WITH ISSUING OR UTTERING A FRAUDULENT CHECK.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 17-9-10 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 17-9-10. Any officer in the State authorized by law to issue warrants for the arrest of any person charged with crime shall, on satisfactory information laid before him under the oath of any credible person that any fugitive in the State has committed, out of the State and within any other state, any offense which by the law of the state in which the offense was committed involves a charge of issuing or uttering a fraudulent check or instrument which is a felony under the laws of that State or which is punishable either capitally or by imprisonment for one year or upwards in any state prison, shall issue a warrant for such the fugitive and commit him to any jail within the State for the space of twenty days, unless sooner demanded by the public authorities of the state wherein where the offense may have been committed, agreeable to the act of Congress in that case made and provided. If no demand be made within such that time the fugitive shall be liberated, unless sufficient cause be shown to the contrary. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to deprive any person so arrested of the right to release on bail as in cases of similar character of offenses against the laws of this State."
SECTION 2. Section 34-11-90 of the 1976 Code, as amended by Act 609 of 1990, is further amended to read:
"Section 34-11-90. (A) A person violating the provisions of this chapter, upon conviction, for a first or second offense must be punished tried as follows:
(1) if the amount of the instrument is five hundred dollars or less, and it is a first, second, or third offense. it must be tried exclusively in a magistrate's court. A municipal governing body, by ordinance, may adopt by reference the provisions of this chapter as an offense under its municipal ordinances and by so doing authorizes its municipal court to try violations of this chapter.;
(2) if the amount of the instrument is over five hundred dollars, it must be tried exclusively in the court of general sessions or any other court having concurrent jurisdiction. Notwithstanding the provisions of this paragraph,; a person violating the provisions of this chapter, upon conviction for a third or subsequent conviction, may be tried in either a magistrate's court or in the court of general sessions.;
(3) a person committing a fourth or subsequent violation of the provisions of this chapter shall be tried exclusively in the court of general sessions regardless of the amount of the instrument.
(a) (B) Convictions in a magistrate's court are misdemeanors and are punishable as follows: for a first offense conviction by a fine of not less than fifty dollars nor more than two hundred dollars or by imprisonment for not more than thirty days; for a second or subsequent third offense conviction by a fine of two hundred dollars or by imprisonment for thirty days.
(b)(C) Convictions in the court of general sessions or any other court having concurrent jurisdiction are felonies and are punishable as follows: for a first offense conviction by a fine of not less than three five hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars or by imprisonment for not more than two three years, or both; and for a second and each subsequent offense conviction by a fine of not less than five hundred dollars nor more than two thousand dollars and imprisonment for not less than thirty days nor more than ten years.
(c)(D) After a first offense conviction for drawing and uttering a fraudulent check or other instrument in violation of Section 34-11-60 within its jurisdiction, the court shall, at the time of sentence, suspend the imposition or execution of a sentence upon a showing of satisfactory proof of restitution and payment by the defendant of all reasonable court costs accruing not to exceed twenty dollars require restitution within ten days of the sentence in addition to the other penalties authorized by this section. The restitution must be in an amount determined by the court and failure to make restitution as required by the court is punishable as contempt. For a second and subsequent convictions for violation of Section 34-11-60, the suspension of the imposition or execution of the sentence shall be discretionary with the court.
(d)(E) After a conviction or plea for drawing and uttering a fraudulent check or other instrument in violation of Section 34-11-60 and the defendant is charged or fined, he shall pay, in addition to the fine and restitution, all reasonable court costs accruing, not to exceed twenty dollars, and the service charge provided in Section 34-11-70.
(e)(F) After a conviction under this section on a first offense, the defendant may, after one year from the date of the conviction, may apply, or cause someone acting on his behalf to apply, to the court for an order expunging the records of the arrest and conviction. This provision does not apply to any crime classified as a felony. If the defendant has had no other conviction during the one-year period following the conviction under this section, the court shall issue an order expunging the records. No person has any rights under this section more than one time. After the expungement, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division is required to keep a nonpublic record of the offense and the date of its expungement to ensure that no person takes advantage of the rights permitted by this subsection more than once. This nonpublic record is not subject to release under Section 34-11-95, the Freedom of Information Act, or any other provision of law except to those authorized law or court officials who need to know this information in order to prevent the rights afforded by this subsection from being taken advantage of more than once.
(G) As used in this section the term `conviction' shall include the entering of a guilty plea, the entering of a plea of nolo contendere, or the forfeiting of bail. A conviction is classified as a felony if the instrument drawn or uttered in violation of this chapter exceeds the amount of five thousand hundred dollars.
(H) Each instrument drawn or uttered in violation of this chapter shall constitute constitutes a separate offense. If the amount of an instrument is five hundred dollars or less but exceeds five hundred dollars when added to the amounts of any other fraudulent instruments which the person was convicted of issuing within a period of ninety days of the date of the last instrument, the person shall be tried and punished as if the last instrument exceeded five hundred dollars.
(I) For any person to charge another person with issuing or uttering a fraudulent check or instrument under the provisions of this chapter, he must secure two pieces of identification from the maker or endorser of the fraudulent instrument both of which have an identification number on them and one of which has the maker's or endorser's picture and place these numbers on the face or back of the instrument. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection, however, no identification is required if the maker or endorser of the instrument is personally known to the person to whom it is given. In this event, that person must sign an affidavit that the maker or endorser of the instrument was personally known to him before the maker or endorser may be charged with issuing or uttering a fraudulent instrument under this chapter."
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.