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S-CAROL.LGF
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1994-01-01
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155 lines
CONSTITUTION
OF THE
STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA
(as revised to 1981)
ARTICLE I
DECLARATION OF RIGHTS
Sec. 1. All political power is vested in and derived from the people
only, therefore, they have the right at all times to modify
their form of government.
Sec. 2. The General Assembly shall make no law respecting an estab-
lishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise there-
of, or abridging the freedom of speech or of the press; or
the right of the people to peaceably to assemble and peti-
tion the government or any department thereof for a redress
of grievances.
Sec. 3. The privileges and immunities of citizens of this State and
of the United States under this Constitution shall not be
abridged, nor shall any person be deprived of life, liberty,
or property without due process of law, nor shall any person
be denied the equal protection of the laws.
Sec. 4. No bill of attainder, ex post facto law, law impairing the
obligation of contracts, nor law granting any title of
nobility or hereditary emolument, shall be passed, and no
conviction shall work corruption of blood or forfeiture of
estate.
Sec. 5. All elections shall be free and open, and every inhabitant
of this State possessing the qualifications provided for in
this Constitution shall have an equal right to elect offi-
cers and be elected to fill public office.
Sec. 6. Temporary absence from the state shall not forfeit a resi-
dence once obtained.
Sec. 7. The power to suspend the laws shall be exercised only by the
General Assembly or by its authority in particular cases ex-
pressly provided for by it.
Sec. 8. In the government of this State, the legislative, executive,
and judicial powers of the government shall be forever sep-
arate and distinct from each other, and no person or persons
exercising the functions of one of said departments shall
assume or discharge the duties of any other.
Sec. 9. All courts shall be public, and every person shall have
speedy remedy therein for wrongs sustained.
Sec. 10. The right of the people to be secure in their persons,
houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches
and seizures and unreasonable invasions of privacy shall not
be violated, and no warrants shall issue but upon probable
cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly
describing the place to be searched, the person or thing to
be seized, and the information to be obtained.
Sec. 11. No person shall be held to answer for any crime where the
punishment exceeds a fine of two hundred dollars or im-
prisonment for thirty days, unless on a presentment or in-
dictment of a grand jury of the county where the crime shall
have been committed, except in cases arising it the land or
naval forces or in the militia when in actual service in
time of war or public danger. The General Assembly may pro-
vide for the waiver of an indictment by the accused.
Sec. 12. No person shall be subject for the same offense to be twice
put in jeopardy of life or liberty, nor shall any person be
compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against him-
self.
Sec. 13. Except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, private
property shall not be taken for private use without the con-
sent of the owner, nor for public use without just compensa-
tion being first made therefor.
Sec. 14. The right of trial by jury shall be preserved inviolate. Any
person charged with an offense shall enjoy the right to a
speedy and public trial by an impartial jury; to be fully
informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be
confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compul-
sory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to be
fully heard in his defense by himself or by his counsel or
both.
Sec. 15. All persons shall, before conviction, be bailable by suffi-
cient sureties, but bail may be denied to persons charged
with capital offenses or offenses punishable by life im-
prisonment, giving due weight to the evidence and to the
nature and circumstances of the event. Excessive bail shall
not be required; nor shall excessive fines be imposed; nor
shall cruel; nor corporal, nor unusual punishment be in-
flicted; nor shall witnesses be unreasonably detained.
Sec. 16. In all indictments or prosecutions for libel, the truth of
the alleged libel may be given in evidence, and the jury
shall be the judges of the law and facts.
Sec. 17. Treason against the State shall consist alone in levying war
or in giving aid and comfort to enemies against the State.
No person shall be held guilty of treason, except upon tes-
timony of at least two witnesses to the same overt act, or
upon confession in open court
Sec. 18. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be sus-
pended unless when, in case of insurrection, rebellion or
invasion, the public safety may require it.
Sec. 19. No person shall be imprisoned for debt except in cases of
fraud.
Sec. 20. A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of
a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms
shall not be infringed. As, in times of peace, armies are
dangerous to liberty, they shall not be maintained without
the consent of the General Assembly. The military power of
the State shall always be held in subordination to the civil
authority and be governed by it. No soldier shall in time
of peace be quartered in any house without the consent of
the owner nor in time of war but in a manner prescribed by
law.
Sec. 21. No person shall in any case be subject to martial law or to
any pains or penalties by virtue of that law, except those
employed in the armed forces of the United States, and ex-
cept the militia in actual service, but by the authority of
the General Assembly.
Sec. 22. No person shall be finally bound by a judicial or quasi-
judicial decision of an administrative agency affecting pri-
vate rights except on due notice and an opportunity to be
heard; nor shall he be subject to the same person for both
prosecution and adjudication; nor shall he be deprived of
liberty or property unless by a mode of procedure prescribed
by the General Assembly, and he shall have in all such in-
stances the right to judicial review.
Sec. 23. The provisions of the Constitution shall be taken, deemed,
and construed to be mandatory and prohibitory, and not
merely directory, except where expressly made directory or
permissory by its own terms.
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