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Much to the dismay of a few of my fellow bloggers and some of my readers, I’ve yet to really write anything about the “Bar Exam Scandal” (editor’s note: Dun-dun-dun!) because: a. I wasn’t all that interested and; b. There were at least two other Websites and a number of newspapers covering every angle of this story from front to back to front to back and around and around and around, etc. But there’s a new angle beginning to take form, the legislative branch’s apparent use of the issue to to make a power grab.
In light of the South Carolina Supreme Court’s controversial decision to override the grades of 20 people who flunked the July bar exam — a move some say was fueled by nepotism — there is a new push in the General Assembly to create a “commission” to oversee the regulation of the legal profession.
S.C. Chief Justice Jean Toal doesn’t believe that’s a wise idea. She pointed out that no other state in the union has such a system.
That sounds familiar, doesn’t it? No other state in the union has a Budget and Control Board either. That board allows the General Assembly to control most of the executive branch of government. A new commission to regulate lawyers would give lawmakers more control over the judicial branch.
Such a commission would technically be part of the executive branch of government, but it’s unlikely lawmakers would give the governor control over the commission. It’s much more likely lawmakers would give themselves the power to appoint the members of the commission. [Spartanburg Herald-Journal]
Let me get this straight, we should fix a messy problem by creating a “commission” that will (dys)function in the same manner as the inept Budget and Control Board? Really? Sorry guys, I’m not with you on this.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m usually a big fan of power grabs. But this would be REALLY, REALLY BAD for the people of South Carolina.
Thomas Ravenel cocaine sentencing delayed, No new sentencing date was set
January 28, 2008
Ravenel cocaine sentencing delayed
A federal sentencing hearing scheduled for today for former State Treasurer Thomas Ravenel and a co-defendant has been postponed, U.S. District Judge Joe Anderson ruled today.
Prosecutors in court papers asked Anderson to cancel the Columbia hearing because an FBI agent involved in the case had a scheduling conflict.
No new sentencing date was set, though Anderson in his order said prosecutors and defense lawyers must notify the court of the “first date” the agent will be available.
Ravenel, 45, who is free on bond, pleaded guilty in September to one count of conspiracy to possess and distribute less than 500 grams of cocaine. He is accused of sharing cocaine with friends at his Charleston mansion, though not selling it.
Ravenel faces a maximum 20-year prison sentence, though the U.S. Probation Office has recommended a sentence of 10 to 16 months.
Ravenel was indicted in June and resigned his $92,000-a-year treasurer’s post after a July court hearing.
Co-defendant Michael L. Miller, 26, of Mt. Pleasant, who authorities said sold cocaine to Ravenel, pleaded guilty in November to two federal charges. He was arrested later on unrelated state charges that he struck a police officer, though he was freed on bail.
Adam:
Nobody in America will probably see this late entry, but I just read Sunday’s paper and saw your comments on the creation of an oversite commission for the South Carolina Supreme Court. If you have a better way to stop the tyranny and proven corruption by this particular South Carolina Supreme Court, please post it. It’s an unpleasant topic, like the increasing veneral diseases among high school students, but it can only be ignored so long. The South Carolina BAR has shown the last three years, it cannot gather the strength to police this spiraling downward group. Time is the enemy of absolute power……..