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by WILL FOLKS
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A member of the Berkeley County, South Carolina planning commission drew a weapon – and chambered a round – during a contentious meeting on the issue of a residential housing development Tuesday evening (June 23, 2026).
The incident – captured on the county’s YouTube page – occurred approximately two hours into the meeting, which was held at the county’s administration building on Highway 52 in Moncks Corner, S.C.
Commissioner James Sineath pulled the weapon as he and his colleagues were voting on the development – a project which had prompting outrage from several residents in attendance at the meeting. As one of these residents yelled at council members, Sineath was seen (and heard) on camera making preparations with his sidearm.
In a video posted by the county, the 71-year-old Summerville, S.C. resident leaned forward in his chair, lifted his shirt and reached to his waistline, producing a handgun. Sineath proceeded to chamber a round in his weapon and visibly re-holster it – a deliberate motion accompanied by the telltale sound of a slide racking.
The sight and sound of Sineath loading his gun elicited shock from committeewoman Amber Campbell-Moore, who was seated to Sineath’s right.
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“I’m very uncomfortable with that,” Campbell-Moore told Sineath, telling him his reaction to the criticism commission members were receiving was “unnecessary.”
“Well,” Sineath responded, leaning toward his colleague, “you’re just going to have to be uncomfortable.”
“Absolutely not, I’m going to need you to get away,” Campbell-Moore replied. “We’re not doing that.”
“He literally just racked his gun,” Campbell-Moore continued, addressing the entire commission. “I’m not doing that.”
“Then you’re going to have to leave,” Sineath told her.
Berkeley County’s personnel manual strictly forbids employees from bringing weapons onto government property. Also, South Carolina’s code of laws (§ 23-31-240) clearly enumerates those individuals who are permitted to carry weapons inside areas where they are forbidden – and Sineath does not qualify under any of the listed exemptions.
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Members of the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) were present at the commission meeting and were handling the disturbance, multiple sources familiar with the situation told FITSNews.
Sineath’s intervention was, as Campbell-Moore attested, “unnecessary.”
Sineath told The (Charleston, S.C.) Post and Courier he was a “special deputy” with BCSO, and that he never drew his weapon during the meeting – however the video footage clearly contradicted that claim. As for the latter assertion, BCSO chief deputy Jeremy Baker told the paper Sineath’s conduct was “uncalled for” and that his special deputy status had since been revoked.
This is the second time this month a government official in the Lowcountry has landed in hot water as it relates to their firearms. On June 9, 2026 in Green Pond, S.C., state representative Michael Frank Rivers Sr. allegedly pointed a firearm at another individual outside of a polling place during partisan primary elections. Rivers was defeated by Shannon N. DeLoach in his bid for a sixth term in office.
Agents of the S.C. State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) were requested to investigate Rivers, and subsequently opened an investigation into the incident. As of this writing, it is not immediately clear whether SLED has been requested to investigate the incident involving Sineath.
Keep it tuned to FITSNews for updates…
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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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