Beaufort County council moves ahead with drafting hate intimidation ordinance

BEAUFORT, S.C. (WTOC) - Beaufort County leaders want to create a hate crime ordinance, similar to ones already in place in Hardeeville, Bluffton and the City of Beaufort. The ordinances make it illegal to intimidate or threaten someone based on gender, sexual orientation, race, religion and other factors.

Monday night, the Beaufort County attorney presented pros and cons of ordinances from other South Carolina cities and counties. Several municipalities already have an ordinance, but one has not been enforced in unincorporated parts of the county or on Hilton Head Island.

During Monday night’s discuss, council members said they are ready to draft their own ordinance for Beaufort County.

“Rather than using all the models that we have, get a model for us that we can look at,” said county council member Lawrence McElynn. “Have an adequate discussion about it. And if there are some objections about holding parents accountable, take it out. But let’s do something to go on the record that we do not believe that this should be happening.”

Beaufort County Council also plans to draft a letter or resolution to encourage state lawmakers to pass a statewide hate crime bill.

South Carolina and Wyoming are the only two states in the U.S. without one.