Current Status Introducing Body:House Bill Number:3084 Primary Sponsor:Rama Committee Number:21 Type of Legislation:GB Subject:Schools, corporal punishment prohibited in Residing Body:House Current Committee:Education and Public Works Computer Document Number:3084 Introduced Date:Jan 08, 1991 Last History Body:House Last History Date:Jan 08, 1991 Last History Type:Introduced and read first time, referred to Committee Scope of Legislation:Statewide All Sponsors:Rama Whipper Type of Legislation:General Bill
Bill Body Date Action Description CMN
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3084 House Jan 08, 1991 Introduced and read first 21
time, referred to Committee
3084 House Dec 12, 1990 Prefiled, referred to 21
Committee
View additional legislative information at the LPITS web site.
TO AMEND SECTION 59-63-260, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO ALLOWING CORPORAL PUNISHMENT IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF THIS STATE, SO AS TO PROHIBIT CORPORAL PUNISHMENT, PROVIDE EXCEPTIONS, AND DEFINE CORPORAL PUNISHMENT.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 59-63-260 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 59-63-260. The governing body of each school district may provide corporal punishment for any pupil that it deems just and proper.
No teacher, principal, or other person employed by a school district or employed in a school operated by the State may subject a student to corporal punishment. This prohibition of corporal punishment does not prevent the use of:
(1) incidental, minor, or reasonable physical contact or other actions designed to maintain order and control;
(2) reasonable and necessary force to quell a disturbance or remove a student from the scene of a disturbance which threatens physical injury to persons or damage to property;
(3) reasonable and necessary force to prevent a student from inflicting physical harm on himself;
(4) reasonable and necessary force for self-defense or the defense of others; or
(5) reasonable and necessary force to obtain possession of weapons or other dangerous objects or controlled substances or paraphernalia which are upon the person of the student or within his control.
In determining whether a person was acting within the exceptions provided in this section, consideration must be given to reasonable judgments at the time of the event which were made by a teacher, principal, or other person employed by a school district or employed in a school operated by the State.
For the purpose of this section, 'corporal punishment' means the intentional infliction of, or intentionally causing the infliction of, physical pain on a student as a punishment for disapproved behavior. This definition does not include physical pain or discomfort caused by participation in practice or competition in an interscholastic sport, or participation in physical education, or an extracurricular activity."
SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 1991.