S 1157 Session 110 (1993-1994)
S 1157 General Bill, By Senate Judiciary
A Bill to amend Section 2-25-10, as amended, Code of Laws of South Carolina,
1976, relating to the Joint Legislative Committee to Study Criminal Laws, so
as to increase the membership of the Committee; to amend Section 16-1-20, as
amended, relating to classes of felonies and misdemeanors, so as to provide
that the minimum term of imprisonment does not apply to misdemeanors listed in
Section 16-1-100 and to further provide that this provision does not apply
when the offense prohibits suspension of any part of the sentence; to amend
Section 16-1-57, relating to the classification of repeat offenders for
certain property crimes, so as to provide that third or subsequent offenses
are Class E felonies; to amend Section 16-1-60, as amended, relating to
violent crimes, so as to add the offense of trafficking in crack cocaine and
to repeal the provision requiring the crime to be defined as a violent crime
at the time it was committed; to amend Section 16-11-330, as amended, relating
to armed robbery, so as to require a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of
not less than ten years, no part of which may be suspended or probation
granted; to amend Section 16-13-10, as amended, relating to forgery, Section
16-13-210, as amended, relating to embezzlement, and Section 16-13-425, as
amended, relating to the failure to return video and cassette tapes, so as to
revise the penalties for these offenses; to amend Section 16-14-20, Sections
16-14-40, as amended, 16-14-60,as amended, and 16-14-70, as amended, relating
to financial transaction card fraud, so as to revise the penalties for these
offenses; to amend Section 16-15-305, relating to obscenity, so as to increase
the penalty to conform with the Crime Classification Act of 1993; to amend
Section 22-3-545, as amended, relating to the temporary authority to transfer
certain criminal cases from General Sessions Court to Magistrate's Court, so
as to make permanent the authority to transfer these cases; to amend Sections
44-53-370, as amended, and 44-53-375, as amended, relating to trafficking in
certain controlled substances and crack cocaine, respectively, so as to
provide for a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment without parole, work
release,or supervised furlough; and to provide for the prospective and
retrospective application of the provisions of this Act.
02/09/94 Senate Introduced, read first time, placed on calendar
without reference SJ-10
02/10/94 Senate Read second time SJ-18
02/10/94 Senate Ordered to third reading with notice of
amendments SJ-18
04/14/94 Senate Recommitted to Committee on Judiciary SJ-5
Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
INTRODUCED
February 9, 1994
S. 1157
Introduced by Judiciary Committee
S. Printed 2/9/94--S.
Read the first time February 9, 1994.
A BILL
TO AMEND SECTION 2-25-10, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS
OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE JOINT
LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE TO STUDY CRIMINAL LAWS, SO
AS TO INCREASE THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE COMMITTEE;
TO AMEND SECTION 16-1-20, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO
CLASSES OF FELONIES AND MISDEMEANORS, SO AS TO
PROVIDE THAT THE MINIMUM TERM OF IMPRISONMENT
DOES NOT APPLY TO MISDEMEANORS LISTED IN SECTION
16-1-100 AND TO FURTHER PROVIDE THAT THIS PROVISION
DOES NOT APPLY WHEN THE OFFENSE PROHIBITS
SUSPENSION OF ANY PART OF THE SENTENCE; TO AMEND
SECTION 16-1-57, RELATING TO THE CLASSIFICATION OF
REPEAT OFFENDERS FOR CERTAIN PROPERTY CRIMES, SO
AS TO PROVIDE THAT THIRD OR SUBSEQUENT OFFENSES
ARE CLASS E FELONIES; TO AMEND SECTION 16-1-60, AS
AMENDED, RELATING TO VIOLENT CRIMES, SO AS TO ADD
THE OFFENSE OF TRAFFICKING IN CRACK COCAINE AND TO
REPEAL THE PROVISION REQUIRING THE CRIME TO BE
DEFINED AS A VIOLENT CRIME AT THE TIME IT WAS
COMMITTED; TO AMEND SECTION 16-11-330, AS AMENDED,
RELATING TO ARMED ROBBERY, SO AS TO REQUIRE A
MANDATORY MINIMUM TERM OF IMPRISONMENT OF NOT
LESS THAN TEN YEARS, NO PART OF WHICH MAY BE
SUSPENDED OR PROBATION GRANTED; TO AMEND SECTION
16-13-10, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO FORGERY, SECTION
16-13-210, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO EMBEZZLEMENT,
AND SECTION 16-13-425, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO THE
FAILURE TO RETURN VIDEO AND CASSETTE TAPES, SO AS
TO REVISE THE PENALTIES FOR THESE OFFENSES; TO
AMEND SECTION 16-14-20, SECTIONS 16-14-40, AS AMENDED,
16-14-60, AS AMENDED, AND 16-14-70, AS AMENDED,
RELATING TO FINANCIAL TRANSACTION CARD FRAUD, SO
AS TO REVISE THE PENALTIES FOR THESE OFFENSES; TO
AMEND SECTION 16-15-305, RELATING TO OBSCENITY, SO
AS TO INCREASE THE PENALTY TO CONFORM WITH THE
CRIME CLASSIFICATION ACT OF 1993; TO AMEND SECTION
22-3-545, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO THE TEMPORARY
AUTHORITY TO TRANSFER CERTAIN CRIMINAL CASES
FROM GENERAL SESSIONS COURT TO MAGISTRATE'S
COURT, SO AS TO MAKE PERMANENT THE AUTHORITY TO
TRANSFER THESE CASES; TO AMEND SECTIONS 44-53-370,
AS AMENDED, AND 44-53-375, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO
TRAFFICKING IN CERTAIN CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES AND
CRACK COCAINE, RESPECTIVELY, SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR
A MANDATORY MINIMUM TERM OF IMPRISONMENT
WITHOUT PAROLE, WORK RELEASE, OR SUPERVISED
FURLOUGH; AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE PROSPECTIVE AND
RETROSPECTIVE APPLICATION OF THE PROVISIONS OF THIS
ACT.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 2-25-10 of the 1976 Code, as last amended
by Act 184 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"Section 2-25-10. There is created a permanent joint
legislative committee to conduct a continuing study of the criminal
laws of this State. The committee shall be composed of
sixteen eighteen members appointed as follows:
(1) two members from the Senate Judiciary Committee
appointed by the chairman of that committee;
(2) two members from the House Judiciary Committee
appointed by the chairman of that committee;
(3) the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee or his
designee from the membership of that committee;
(4) the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee or
his designee from the membership of that committee;
(5) the chairman of the Senate Corrections and Penology
Committee or his designee from the membership of that committee;
(6) the chairman of the House Medical, Military, Public and
Municipal Affairs Committee or his designee from the membership of
that committee;
(7) one member from the Senate appointed by the President Pro
Tempore;
(8) one member from the House of Representatives appointed
by the Speaker;
(9) one member shall be a circuit solicitor appointed by the
Chairman of the Commission on Prosecution Coordination;
(10) one member shall be a public defender appointed by the
President of the South Carolina Public Defenders' Association;
(11) one member shall be a family court judge appointed by the
Chief Justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court;
(12) one member shall be a circuit court judge appointed by the
Chief Justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court; and
(13) two members shall be appointed by the Governor;
(14) one member shall be an attorney practicing in the area
of criminal defense and appointed by the South Carolina Association
of Criminal Defense Lawyers; and
(15) one member shall be appointed by the Board of Directors of
the South Carolina Victim Assistance Network.
At its first meeting the committee shall organize by selecting from
its membership a chairman, vice-chairman, secretary, and other
officers the committee may determine. The committee shall meet on
the call of the chairman or a majority of the members. Terms of
committee members who are members of the General Assembly are
coterminous with their terms of office. Appointees of the Chairman
of the Commission on Prosecution Coordination, the President of the
South Carolina Public Defenders' Association, the South Carolina
Supreme Court, and the Governor must be appointed for terms of two
years and until their successors are appointed. The committee shall
report its initial findings and recommendations to the General
Assembly on March 15, 1994, and shall make a report to the General
Assembly each year thereafter."
SECTION 2. Section 16-1-20(B) of the 1976 Code, as last
amended by Act 184 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"(B) For all offenders sentenced on or after July 1, 1993, the
minimum term of imprisonment required by law does not apply to the
offenses listed in Section Sections 16-1-90 and 16-1-100 unless the offense refers to a mandatory minimum sentence
or the offense prohibits suspension of any part of the
sentence. Offenses listed in Section 16-1-10(C) and (D) are
exempt and minimum terms of imprisonment are applicable. No
sentence of imprisonment precludes the timely execution of a death
sentence."
SECTION 3. Section 16-1-57 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act
184 of 1993, is amended to read:
"Section 16-1-57. A person convicted of an offense for
which the term of imprisonment is contingent upon the value of the
property involved must, upon conviction for a third or subsequent
offense, for such violation involving the value of property
in an equal or greater amount, be fined, imprisoned, or both based
upon the classification above the punishment provided for the principal
offense be punished as prescribed for a Class E
felony."
SECTION 4. Section 16-1-60 of the 1976 Code, as last amended
by Act 184 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"Section 16-1-60. (A) For purposes of definition
under South Carolina law a violent crime includes the offenses of
murder (Section 16-3-10); criminal sexual conduct in the first and
second degree (Sections 16-3-652 and 16-3-653); criminal sexual
conduct with minors (Section 16-3-655); assault with intent to commit
criminal sexual conduct (Section 16-3-656); assault and battery with
intent to kill (Section 16-3-620); kidnapping (Section 16-3-910);
voluntary manslaughter (Section 16-3-50); armed robbery (Section 16-11-330); drug trafficking as defined in Section
Sections 44-53-370(e) and 44-53-375(C); arson in the
first degree (Section 16-11-110(A)); burglary in the first degree
(Section 16-11-311); and burglary in the second degree (Section 16-11-312(B)).
(B) For a person to be considered guilty of a violent crime, the
offense must be defined as a violent crime pursuant to subsection (A)
at the time of the commission of the crime."
SECTION 5. Section 16-11-330 of the 1976 Code, as last amended
by Act 184 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"Section 16-11-330. (A) A person convicted for the crime
of robbery while armed with a pistol, dirk, slingshot, metal knuckles,
razor, or other deadly weapon must be imprisoned not for
a mandatory minimum term of not less than ten years nor more
than thirty years, no part of which may be suspended or probation
granted. A person convicted under the provisions of this
subsection is not eligible for parole until he has served at least seven
years of his sentence.
(1) A person under the age of twenty-one sentenced under the
provisions of Chapter 19 of Title 24 (Youthful Offenders Act)
convicted of armed robbery shall receive and serve a minimum
sentence of at least three years, no part of which may be suspended.
The person is not eligible for parole or probation until he has served
a three-year minimum sentence.
(2) A person between the ages of twenty-one and twenty-five,
who is convicted of armed robbery, may not be sentenced under the
provisions of Chapter 19 of Title 24 (Youthful Offenders Act).
(B) A person convicted for attempted robbery while armed with a
pistol, dirk, slingshot, metal knuckles, razor, or other deadly weapon
must be imprisoned not more than twenty years."
SECTION 6. Section 16-13-10 of the 1976 Code, as last amended
by Act 184 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"Section 16-13-10. (A) It is unlawful for a person to:
(1) falsely make, forge, or counterfeit; cause or procure to be
falsely made, forged, or counterfeited; or wilfully act or assist in the
false making, forging, or counterfeiting of any writing or instrument
of writing;
(2) utter or publish as true any false, forged, or counterfeited
writing or instrument of writing;
(3) falsely make, forge, counterfeit, alter, change, deface, or
erase; or cause or procure to be falsely made, forged, counterfeited,
altered, changed, defaced, or erased any record or plat of land; or
(4) willingly act or assist in any of the premises, with an
intention to defraud any person.
(B) A person who violates the provisions of this section is guilty
of a:
(1) felony and, upon conviction, must be fined in the discretion
of the court or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both,
if the amount of the forgery is five thousand dollars or more;
(2) felony and, upon conviction, must be fined in the discretion
of the court or imprisoned not more than five years, or both,
if the amount of the forgery is less than five thousand dollars.
but more than one thousand dollars;
(3) misdemeanor triable in magistrate's court if the amount
of the forgery is one thousand dollars or less. Upon conviction, the
person must be fined or imprisoned not more than is permitted by law
without presentment or indictment by the grand jury.
If the forgery does not involve a dollar amount, the person is guilty
of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined in the
discretion of the court or imprisoned not more than three years, or
both."
SECTION 7. Section 16-13-210 of the 1976 Code, as last amended
by Act 184 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"Section 16-13-210. It is unlawful for an officer or other
person charged with the safekeeping, transfer, and disbursement of
public funds to embezzle these funds. A person who violates the
provisions of this section is guilty of a:
(1) felony and, upon conviction, must be fined, in the discretion
of the court, to be proportioned to the amount of the
embezzlement, and imprisoned not more than ten years if the
amount of the embezzled funds is five thousand dollars or more;
(2) felony and, upon conviction, must be fined, in the discretion
of the court, to be proportioned to the amount of
embezzlement, and imprisoned not more than five years if the
amount of the embezzled funds is more than one thousand dollars
but less than five thousand dollars;
(3) misdemeanor triable in magistrate's court if the amount of the
embezzled funds is one thousand dollars or less. Upon conviction, the
person must be fined or imprisoned not more than is permitted by law
without presentment or indictment by the grand jury.
The person convicted of a felony is disqualified from holding any
office of honor or emolument in this State; but the General Assembly,
by a two-thirds vote, may remove this disability upon payment in full
of the principal and interest of the sum embezzled."
SECTION 8. Section 16-13-425 of the 1976 Code, as last amended
by Act 184 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"Section 16-13-425. A person having a video or cassette tape
in his possession or under his control by virtue of a lease or rental
agreement, who wilfully and fraudulently fails to return the video or
cassette tape within seventy-two hours after the lease or rental
agreement has expired, or who fraudulently secretes or appropriates
this property to any use or purpose not within the due and lawful
execution of his lease or rental agreement is guilty of:
(1) petit larceny if the dollar amount of the video or cassette tape
lease or rental agreement is one thousand dollars or less. Upon
conviction, the person must be fined or imprisoned as provided for
petit larceny;
(2) grand larceny and, upon conviction, must be fined in the
discretion of the court or imprisoned not less more
than five years, or both, if the dollar amount of the video or
cassette tape lease or rental agreement is more than one thousand
dollars but less than five thousand dollars;
(3) grand larceny and, upon conviction, must be fined in the
discretion of the court or imprisoned not more than ten years, or
both, if the original dollar amount of the video or cassette tape
lease or rental agreement is five thousand dollars or more."
SECTION 9. Section 16-14-20 of the 1976 Code is amended to
read:
"Section 16-14-20. (a) A person is guilty of
financial transaction card theft when he:
(1) He takes, obtains, or withholds a financial
transaction card from the person, possession, custody, or
control of another without the cardholder's consent and with the intent
to use it; or who, with knowledge that it has been so taken,
obtained, or withheld, receives the financial transaction card
with intent to use it, or to sell it, or to transfer
it to a person other than the issuer or the cardholder;
(2) He receives a financial transaction card that he knows to
have been lost, mislaid, or delivered under a mistake as to the identity
or address of the cardholder, and who retains possession with intent
to use it, or to sell it, or to transfer it
to a person other than the issuer or the cardholder;
(3) He, is not being the issuer, and
sells a financial transaction card or buys a financial transaction card
from a person other than the issuer;
(4) He, is not being the issuer, and
during any twelve-month period, receives financial transaction cards
issued in the names of two or more persons which he has reason to
know were taken or retained under circumstances which constitute a
violation of item (3) of this section and Section 16-14-60(a)(3) and subdivision (3) of subsection (a) of this section.
(b) Taking, obtaining or withholding a financial transaction card
without consent is included in conduct defined as grand larceny.
Conviction of A person who commits financial
transaction card theft is punishable as provided in Section 16-14-100(b) guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be
sentenced as provided in Section 16-14-100(b)."
SECTION 10. Section 16-14-40(e) of the 1976 Code, as added by
Act 184 of 1993, is amended to read:
"(e) A person who violates the provisions of this section is
guilty of a misdemeanor felony and, upon conviction,
must be fined not less than three thousand dollars nor more than five
thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than three
five years, or both."
SECTION 11. Section 16-14-60 of the 1976 Code, as last amended
by Act 184 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"Section 16-14-60. (a) A person is guilty of financial
transaction card fraud when, with intent to defraud the issuer, a person
or organization providing money, goods, services, or anything else of
value, or any other person, he:
(1) uses for the purpose of obtaining money, goods, services, or
anything else of value a financial transaction card obtained or retained,
or which was received with knowledge that it was obtained or
retained, in violation of Sections 16-14-20 or 16-14-40 or a financial
transaction card which he knows is forged, altered, expired, revoked,
or was obtained as a result of a fraudulent application in violation of
Section 16-14-40(c);
(2) obtains money, goods, services, or anything else of value by:
a. representing without the consent of the specified
cardholder that he has permission to use it;
b. presenting the financial transaction card without the
authorization or permission of the cardholder;
c. representing that he is the holder of a card and the card
has not in fact been issued;
d. using a financial transaction card to knowingly and
wilfully exceed:
(i) the actual balance of a demand deposit account or time
deposit account;
(ii) an authorized credit line in an amount which exceeds
the authorized credit line by five hundred dollars or fifty percent of
the authorized credit line, whichever is greater, if the cardholder has
not paid to the issuer of the financial transaction card the total amount
of the excess over the authorized credit line within ten days after
notice to the cardholder by certified mail to the last known address
that the credit line has been exceeded. Failure to pay the amount in
excess of the authorized credit line after the notice, is prima
facie evidence of an intent to defraud;
(3) obtains control over a financial transaction card as security
for debt;
(4) deposits into his account or any account, by means of an
automated banking device, a false, fictitious, forged, altered, or
counterfeit check, draft, money order, or any other document not his
lawful or legal property;
(5) receives money, goods, services, or anything else of value
as a result of a false, fictitious, forged, altered, or counterfeit check,
draft, money order, or any other document having been deposited into
an account by means of an automated banking device, knowing at the
time of receipt of the money, goods, services, or item of value that the
document deposited was false, fictitious, forged, altered, or counterfeit
or that the above deposited item was not his lawful or legal property.
A person who violates the provisions of this subsection except
subsection (a)(2)d. is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction,
must be fined not more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned not
more than one year, or both, if the value of all money, goods,
services, and other things of value furnished in violation of this
section or if the difference between the value actually furnished and
the value represented to the issuer to have been furnished in violation
of this section, does not exceed five hundred dollars in any six-month
period. If the value exceeds five hundred dollars in a six-month
period, then, a person is guilty of a felony and, upon
conviction, a person must be fined not less than three thousand
dollars or more than five thousand dollars or imprisoned not more
than three five years, or both.
A person who violates the provisions of subsection (a)(2)d. is guilty
of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than
one thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than one year, or both.
(b) A person who is authorized by an issuer to furnish money,
goods, services, or anything else of value upon presentation of a
financial transaction card by the cardholder, or any agent or employee
of such person is guilty of a financial transaction card fraud when,
with intent to defraud the issuer or the cardholder, he:
(1) furnishes money, goods, services, or anything else of value
upon presentation of a financial transaction card obtained or retained
in violation of Section 16-14-20, or a financial transaction card which
he knows is forged, expired, or revoked;
(2) fails to furnish money, goods, services, or anything else of
value which he represents in writing to the issuer that he has
furnished.
A person who violates the provisions of this subsection is guilty of
a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than one
thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than one year, or both, if the
value of all money, goods, services, and other things of value
furnished in violation of this section or if the difference between the
value actually furnished and the value represented to the issuer to have
been furnished in violation of this section, does not exceed five
hundred dollars in any six-month period. If the value exceeds five
hundred dollars in a six-month period, then, a person is
guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, a person must be
fined not less than three thousand dollars nor more than five thousand
dollars or imprisoned not more than three five years,
or both.
(c) A person is guilty of financial transaction card fraud when,
upon application for a financial transaction card to an issuer, he
knowingly makes or causes to be made a false statement or report
relative to his name, occupation, financial condition, assets, or
liabilities; or wilfully and substantially overvalues any assets, or
wilfully omits or substantially undervalues any indebtedness for the
purpose of influencing the issuer to issue a financial transaction card.
A person who violates the provision provisions of this
subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be
fined not more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than
one year, or both.
(d) A cardholder is guilty of financial transaction card fraud when
he wilfully, knowingly, and with an intent to defraud the issuer, a
person or organization providing money, goods, services, or anything
else of value, or any other person, submits, verbally or in writing, to
the issuer or any other person, any false notice or report of the theft,
loss, disappearance, or nonreceipt of his financial transaction card. A
person who violates the provisions of this subsection is guilty of a
misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than one
thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than one year, or both.
(e) In any prosecution for violation of Section 16-14-60, the State
is not required to establish and it is no defense that some of the acts
constituting the crime did not occur in this State or within one city,
county, or local jurisdiction.
(f) For purposes of this section, revocation is construed to include
either notice given in person or notice given in writing to the person
to whom the financial transaction card or personal identification code
was issued. Notice of revocation is immediate when notice is given
in person. The sending of a notice in writing by registered or certified
mail in the United States mail, duly stamped and addressed to the
person at his last address known to the issuer, is prima facie evidence
that the notice was duly received after seven days from the date of the
deposit in the mail. If the address is located outside the United States,
Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Canal Zone, and Canada, notice
is presumed to have been received ten days after mailing by registered
or certified mail.
(g) (1) A person who is authorized by an acquirer to furnish
money, goods, services, or anything else of value upon presentation
of a credit card or a credit card account number by a cardholder, or
any employee of that person, who presents to the issuer or acquirer,
for payment, a credit card transaction record of a sale, which sale was
not made by that person or employee, violates this subsection and is
guilty of a misdemeanor, felony and, upon
conviction, must be fined not less than three thousand dollars nor
more than five thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than
three five years, or both.
(2) A person without the acquirer's express authorization,
employs, or solicits authorized merchants, or any agent or employee
of the merchant, to remit to an issuer or acquirer, for payment, a
financial transaction card record of a sale, which sale was not made by
the merchant, his agent, or employee, is guilty of a felony and, upon
conviction, is punishable as provided in Section 16-14-100(b)."
SECTION 12. Section 16-14-70 of the 1976 Code, as last amended
by Act 184 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"Section 16-14-70. (A) A person is guilty of criminal
possession of financial transaction card forgery devices when:
(1) he is a person other than the cardholder and possesses two
or more incomplete financial transaction cards, with intent to complete
them without the consent of the issuer;
(2) he possesses, with knowledge of its character, machinery,
plates, or any other contrivance designed to reproduce instruments
purporting to be financial transaction cards of an issuer who has not
consented to the preparation of such financial transaction cards.
(B) A financial transaction card is incomplete if part of the matter
other than the signature of the cardholder, which an issuer requires to
appear on the financial transaction card before it can be used by a
cardholder, has not yet been stamped, embossed, imprinted, encoded,
or written upon it.
A person who violates the provisions of this section is guilty of a
misdemeanor felony and, upon conviction, must be
fined not less than three thousand dollars nor more than five thousand
dollars or imprisoned not more than three five years,
or both."
SECTION 13. Section 16-15-305(H) of the 1976 Code, as added by
Act 168 of 1987, is amended to read:
"(H) A person who violates this section is guilty of a felony
and, upon conviction, must be imprisoned for not more than
three five years or fined not more than ten thousand
dollars, or both."
SECTION 14. Section 22-3-545(A) of the 1976 Code, as last
amended by Act 174 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"(A) Notwithstanding the provisions of Sections 22-3-540
and 22-3-550 and effective from July 1, 1993, until July 1,
1994, a criminal case, the penalty for which the crime in the case
does not exceed five thousand dollars or one year imprisonment, or
both, may be transferred from general sessions court if the provisions
of this section are followed."
SECTION 15. The last three paragraphs of Section 44-53-370(e) of
the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 184 of 1993, are further
amended to read:
"Sentences for a violation of the provisions of this
subsection may not be suspended and probation may not be
granted. A person convicted and sentenced under this
subsection to a mandatory term of imprisonment of twenty-five years,
a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of twenty-five years, or
a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of not less than twenty-five years nor more than thirty years is not eligible for parole,
extended work release, as provided in Section 24-13-610, or
supervised furlough, as provided in Section 24-13-710.
Notwithstanding Section 44-53-420, any a person
convicted of conspiracy pursuant to this subsection must be sentenced
as provided herein in this section with a full sentence
or punishment and not one-half of the sentence or punishment
prescribed for the offense.
The weight of any controlled substance in this subsection includes
the substance in pure form or any compound or mixture of the
substance.
The offense of possession with intent to distribute described in
Section 44-53-370(a) is a lesser included offense to the offenses of
trafficking based upon possession described in this subsection."
SECTION 16. Section 44-53-375(D) of the 1976 Code, as last
amended by Act 184 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"(D) Except for a first offense, as provided in subsection (A)
of this section, sentences for violation of the provisions of this section
may not be suspended and probation may not be granted. A person
convicted and sentenced under this subsection to a mandatory term of
imprisonment of twenty-five years, a mandatory minimum term of
imprisonment of twenty-five years, or a mandatory minimum term of
imprisonment of not less than twenty-five years nor more than thirty
years is not eligible for parole, extended work release, as provided in
Section 24-13-610, or supervised furlough, as provided in Section 24-13-710."
SECTION 17. All proceedings pending and all rights and liabilities
existing, acquired, or incurred at the time this act takes effect are
saved. The provisions of this act apply prospectively to crimes and
offenses committed after the effective date of this act. The provisions
of this act apply prospectively to all sentences pronounced on or after
the effective date of this act, except where a penalty greater than the
one in effect on the date the offense was committed would be
required. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, Section 16-1-60 applies retroactively and prospectively.
SECTION 18. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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