COLUMBIA, S.C. — A bill related to bond reform in South Carolina has been signed into law by the governor.
Channel 9′s Glenn Counts delved into the proposal and why Gov. Henry McMaster didn’t seem to be on board yet.
PREVIOUS STORIES:
- Bond restrictions for repeat criminal defendants passed by South Carolina Legislature
- Bond limits for people with violent charges clears SC senate
- SC Gov. McMaster urges lawmakers to act on illegal guns, bond reform
The bill makes it much more difficult for suspects who are accused of a violent crime to get another bond if they re-offend. The consequence of re-offending will result in the accused having to pay the full bond, not just a bondman’s fee, which is considerably less.
While McMaster supports parts of the bill, he believes it doesn’t go far enough. He wants to add an extra five years to those who qualify.
In a tweet, McMaster expressed his concerns saying: “The General Assembly did not close the revolving door for criminals.”
Channel 9 spoke with resident Ashely Maier about the bill. She said she was not sure if an extra 5 years would make a difference.
“I guess I would have mixed feelings about it I guess it depends on the crime. You have to take into consideration each individual case and kind of go from there. I don’t think everybody should be clumped into one category,” Maier explained.
However, resident Christian Carney feels differently and supports McMaster’s point of view.
“I truly believe people don’t care about the consequences. So just to make everybody else safer in this community, at least give us some type of validation or some type of security. So that we know they are not gonna be back on the streets again soon,” Carney told Channel 9.
VIDEO: Man denied bond in Rock Hill mom′s drive-by shooting death
This browser does not support the video element.