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A South Carolina Democrat wants to establish new legal standards – and tougher penalties – in the hopes of holding those responsible for drive-by shootings accountable for their actions.
State representative Wendell Gilliard of Charleston, S.C. has pre-filed legislation ahead of the upcoming 2025-2026 session of the S.C. General Assembly that would fundamentally rewrite the Palmetto State’s current drive-by shooting laws to incorporate incidents in which victims are wounded.
The current S.C. Code of Laws (§ 16-23-440) makes it a felony to discharge a firearm into “a dwelling house, other building, structure, or enclosure regularly occupied by persons.” Those found guilty of violating the law are subject to a fine of not more than $1,000 and a prison term of “not more than ten years, or both.”
Gilliard’s bill – H. 3040 – would add “outdoor areas” as well as “schools, churches or places of worship, indoor or outdoor shopping areas or malls, movie theaters, parking lots, or any other public gathering where three or more persons have come together as a group.”
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In addition to broadening the list of venues and types of venues impacted by drive-by shootings, Gilliard’s proposed legislation would impose a new mandatory minimum sentence of life imprisonment (without the possibility of parole) in the event a victim of a drive-by were “to suffer any type of bodily injury as a result” of the shooting.
The only exception to this mandatory minimum would be if a drive-by shooter was “otherwise charged and sentenced for murder” in connection with such an incident.
Gilliard, 70, has served in the S.C. House since 2009. His heavily gerrymandered district includes significant portions of the Charleston peninsula and West Ashley – including low-income areas which have seen upticks in drive-by shootings in recent years. Prior to that, he spent eleven years as a member of Charleston city council.
Gilliard ran unsuccessfully for the S.C. Senate in 2023, narrowly losing a Democratic primary runoff to Deon Tedder.
FITSNews has editorialized repeatedly in favor of stronger statutes and tougher penalties for those who engage in violent crime – especially gang activity. While we are still in the process of vetting Gilliard’s bill with our network of criminal justice sources, it seems like precisely the sort of legislation a “tough on crime” legislature should embrace.
Gilliard’s drive-by shooting bill was referred to the S.C. House judiciary committee, incidentally, a (mostly) GOP-controlled panel which has seen plenty of drama ahead of the upcoming legislative session.
BANNER VIA: GETTY IMAGES
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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2 comments
It needs a lot of work, first. For one thing, this should not apply if gunfire from a defensive shooting lands in one of those named places. If it is allowed to stand, then it should apply to EVERYone, including Law Enforcement.
Why wouldn’t these types of activities already be encompassed in an attempted murder charge? Shooting into a house or any other structure regularly occupied by people (or any of the other scenarios the bill describes) is in fact, an attempt to commit murder.