Scroll to History Page
Scroll to Previous Versions Links List
Scroll to Full Text
Download This Bill in Microsoft Word format

Bill 1122

                    Current Status

Bill Number:                      1122
Type of Legislation:              General Bill GB
Introducing Body:                 Senate
Introduced Date:                  20020314
Primary Sponsor:                  Pinckney
All Sponsors:                     Pinckney, Ford
Drafted Document Number:          l:\council\bills\ggs\22387cm02.doc
Residing Body:                    Senate
Current Committee:                Judiciary Committee 11 SJ
Subject:                          Emergency medical service providers, 
                                  firefighters, health care workers, and public 
                                  transportation workers; offense of assault and 
                                  battery upon


                        History

Body    Date      Action Description                     Com     Leg Involved
______  ________  ______________________________________ _______ ____________
Senate  20020314  Introduced, read first time,           11 SJ
                  referred to Committee


              Versions of This Bill

TO AMEND SECTION 16-3-635, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO ASSAULT AND BATTERY UPON A MEDICAL SERVICE PROVIDER, FIREFIGHTER, OR HOME HEALTH CARE WORKER, SO AS TO DEFINE "PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION WORKER", AND PROVIDE THAT THIS PROVISION APPLIES TO ASSAULT AND BATTERY UPON A PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION WORKER; TO AMEND SECTION 58-23-1830, RELATING TO UNLAWFUL ACTS COMMITTED BY PASSENGERS ONBOARD A PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION VEHICLE, AND PENALTIES, SO AS TO REVISE THE PENALTIES, AND PROVIDE THAT A NOTICE MUST BE DISPLAYED IN EACH PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION VEHICLE THAT CERTAIN ACTS COMMITTED BY A PERSON ONBOARD THE VEHICLE CONSTITUTE A FELONY.

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

SECTION 1. Section 16-3-635 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 55 of 1997, is amended to read:

"Section 16-3-635. (A) As used in this section:

(1) 'Emergency medical service provider' means an individual or employee of a health care provider who provides medical or health care services in the course of his employment or training which includes, but is not limited to, emergency physicians, nurses, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, members of rescue squads, and anyone directed by these individuals.

(2) 'Firefighter' means an employee of a town, city, county, or state fire service including, but not limited to, firefighters, volunteer firefighters, fire investigators, fire inspectors, and any one directed by these individuals.

(3) 'Home health care worker' means a licensed nurse who provides health care in a home under the direction of a physician, county or state public health agency, or medical facility.

(4) 'Public transportation worker' means an operator of a public transportation vehicle, bus dispatcher, station clerk, cleaner, maintainer, station supervisor, or station manager employed by a transit agency, authority or company, public or private, whose operation is authorized by the State of South Carolina or any of its political subdivisions, in the course of performance of duty.

(B) A person is guilty of the misdemeanor of assault and battery upon an emergency medical service provider, firefighter, or home health care worker, or public transportation worker and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned not less than two months nor more than three years, or both, if he knowingly or wilfully resists or obstructs a person listed in subsection (A), or commits an assault on a person listed in subsection (A), in the lawful discharge of that person's official duties and the resistance, obstruction, or assault is unaccompanied by any of the circumstances of aggravation listed in subsection (C).

A person sentenced under this section for a second or subsequent offense shall not have his sentence suspended to less than six months' imprisonment nor shall the person be eligible for parole until after service of six months.

(C) A person is guilty of the felony of assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature upon an emergency medical service provider, firefighter, or home health care worker, or public transportation worker and, upon conviction, must be fined not less than one thousand dollars nor more than ten thousand dollars or imprisoned not less than one year nor more than ten years, or both, if he knowingly or wilfully resists or obstructs a person listed in subsection (A), or commits an assault on a person listed in subsection (A), in the lawful discharge of that person's official duties and the resistance, obstruction, or assault is accompanied by at least one of the following circumstances of aggravation:

(1) physical injury to a person listed in subsection (A);

(2) the use of a deadly weapon;

(3) great disparity in the physical conditions of the parties;

(4) great disparity in the ages of the parties;

(5) great disparity in the sizes of the parties; or

(6) indecent liberties with a female.

As used in this section 'deadly weapon' means any instrument which can be used to inflict death or serious physical injury."

SECTION 2. Section 58-23-1830 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 58-23-1830. (a) It is unlawful for any a passenger to commit any of the following acts in a bus or any other another public transportation vehicle:

(1) discard litter, except into receptacles designated for that purpose;

(2) play any a radio, cassette, cartridge, tape player, or similar device unless controlled by the operator, unless the device is connected to an earphone that limits the sound to the hearing of the individual user;

(3) carry or possess any weapon, explosives, acids, other dangerous articles, or live animals, except for a seeing eye dog or a hearing ear dog properly harnessed and accompanied by its owner, small animals properly packaged, or weapons carried by or animals used by a law enforcement official;

(4) obstruct, hinder, interfere with, or otherwise disrupt or disturb the operation or operator of a public transportation vehicle;

(5) board a public transportation bus through the rear exit door, unless so directed by an employee or agent of the carrier;

(6) use profane, indecent, or obscene language or actions on a public transportation vehicle, or conduct himself in a boisterous fashion while on a public transportation vehicle.

(b) Intoxicated persons may be excluded from riding in any a public transportation vehicle by the vehicle's driver or operator.

(c) The driver of any a public transportation vehicle may refuse to transport any a person who insists on boarding the vehicle in a manner that will obviously violate any of the above provisions.

(d) Any A person violating the provisions of subsection (a) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction for a first offense must be imprisoned for not more than thirty days or fined not more than two hundred dollars, for a second offense, imprisoned for not more than sixty days one year or fined not more than five hundred dollars, or both, and for a third or subsequent offense, imprisoned for not more than ninety days three years or fined not more than one thousand dollars, or both.

(e) A notice shall be prominently displayed in each public transportation vehicle which must state that a person who assaults or harms an individual whom he or she knows to be a public transportation worker commits a felony punishable by up to ten years imprisonment pursuant to Section 16-3-635 of the South Carolina Code of Laws."

SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

This web page was last updated on Tuesday, December 8, 2009 at 11:16 A.M.