In 2022, § 23-3-437 was enacted, providing for removal from the registry for a juvenile convicted of a registerable offense in family court who had their record expunged, sealed, or pardoned. See 2022 Act No. 221 (H. 4075). That same Act allows a person to submit a petition for termination from the registry if denied based on a subsequent conviction that was pardoned. See § 23-3-462(D)(2).

A pardon does not expunge the record of conviction, but an entry is added showing the conviction was pardoned.  Code of Regs, ch. 73, art. 3, § O.  A pardoned conviction must be reported on job applications.  See Frequently Asked Questions on the SCDPPPS website; 1984 S.C. Op. Att’y Gen. No. 84-115.

D.  Process

The application process is described in the How to Apply for a Pardon document on the SCDPPPS website, which also includes the Pardon Application. In addition to the eligibility requirements, applications require three letters of support by people not related to the petitioner and a certified statement that all financial obligations have been paid in full.  The statutory application fee is $100.  § 24-21-960(A).

The process of investigation prior to the hearing date being scheduled takes seven to nine months, and longer for out-of-state applicants given the necessity of verifying all references and information.    The Board is required to hold hearings at least four times a year, and in recent years, it has held hearings every two months, at which it is required to allow the applicant to appear.  S.C. Code Ann. §§ 24-21-30(A), 24-21-50.   Hearings are before the full Board, unless directed by the chairman to meet as a three-member panel “to hear matters relating to paroles and pardons.”  § 24-21-30(A).  A non-unanimous vote shall be referred to the full Board to decide by majority.  Id.  An order of pardon must be signed by two-thirds of the Board.  § 24-21-930.  If denied, the applicant must wait one year to reapply.  See § 24-21-960(B).

E.  Frequency of grants

Between 2007 and 2017, the Board approved about 60 pardons at each bi-monthly hearing (or about 400 per year), about 65% of the cases heard.  See the Greenville News Online article by Jamie Self (Oct. 18, 2018).  South Carolina Appleseed reported in 2019 that “In 2017, almost 70% of the people who applied for a pardon were given a pardon. 692 people applied for a pardon and 481 of those people received a pardon.” These numbers are up from about 200 per year prior to 2005 (same proportion of applications granted.)  Hearing results are posted on the SCDPPPS website, but requires a search of each hearing date to see whether an applicant was pardoned or rejected. At a typical recent hearings (October 2024) 32 pardons were granted while 29 applications were rejected.  The results only date back two years. There are few applications from misdemeanants.

F.  Contact

Paroles, Pardons and Release Services

Attn: Pardon Application Processing

293 Greystone Blvd.

Columbia, SC 29210

803-734-8989

III.  Expungement, sealing & other record relief

   In general – Expungement authorities

The Uniform Expungement of Criminal Records Act of 2009, S.C. Code Ann. §§ 17-22-910 et seq., consolidated provisions for expungement of both conviction and non-conviction records, placed responsibility for processing all eligible conviction records in the county solicitor’s office, and expanded eligibility in a few cases.  The South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice Center publishes a helpful Expungement Reference Guide on its website.

In 2018, the South Carolina legislature overrode a governor’s veto to extend eligibility for expungement in several modest but significant ways, including making first-offender drug possession offenses eligible for the first time, eliminating first offender limits on eligibility of minor misdemeanor and summary offenses, and authorizing retroactive relief to first offenders prosecuted prior to passage of the Youthful Offender Act of 2010 who would have been eligible for sentencing under that law upon completion of sentence.  Convictions for misdemeanors that carry a maximum sentence of 30 days and/or $1000 fine are eligible after a 3-year conviction-free waiting period (five years if the conviction is for domestic violence). See H.3209 (2018); Legislature overrides bill to expunge low-level criminal records, GSA Business Report (June 29, 2018). In certain circumstances, the new law also allows multiple convictions to be treated as one conviction for expungement purposes if closely connected and arising out of the same incident, for which the individual received sentences at a single sentencing proceeding.  

A.  Minor misdemeanor/summary offenses

Records of misdemeanors and summary offenses carrying a penalty of not more than thirty days imprisonment or a fine of one thousand dollars, or both, may be expunged upon application to the circuit court if no other conviction after 3 years from completion of sentence, or 5 years in the case of domestic violence, and no charges are pending.  S.C. Code Ann. §§ 22-5-910(A), (B), (F). Traffic offenses are not eligible.  § 22-5-910(A).  In 2018, a provision limiting eligibility to first offenders was repealed by H. 3209. In 2024, a first offense for possession of a firearm was added to eligibility by H.3594.  Id. Expungement of records under this statute may only be granted one time. § 22-5-910(F).

B.  First-time drug possession offenses

In 2018, H. 3209 extended eligibility for expungement to first-time drug possession offenses after a 3-year waiting period from completion of sentence, see S.C. Code Ann. § 22-5-930(A), and to first-time possession with intent to distribute offenses after a 20-year waiting period from completion of sentence. § 22-5-930(B).  These authorities are retroactive, although relief is available only once under these provisions.  § 22-5-930(D).

C.  Youthful Offender Act

The Youthful Offender Act (2010) provides that individuals between the ages of 17 and 25 who are convicted of certain non-violent misdemeanors and Class D, E, or F felonies (felonies which carry a possible term of imprisonment up to 15 years) may be sentenced to probation and/or treatment (certain burglary charges have a mandatory minimum).  S.C. Code Ann. § 24-19-50; § 24-19-10(d) (specifying eligible offenses based on age and offense).  Section 22-5-920(B)(1) allows for expungement of records of first offenders sentenced pursuant to the YOA following completion of sentence, after five² conviction-free years:

If the defendant has had no other conviction during the five-year period following completion of his sentence, including probation and parole, for a first offense conviction as a youthful offender . . . the circuit court may issue an order expunging the records.  No person may have his records expunged under this section more than once

A 2023 amendment created a limited exception to the “no other conviction” proviso for “driving under suspension” and “disturbing schools” offenses.  § 22-5-920, as amended by H. 3890.

Expungement pursuant to this authority is available only once.  § 22-5-920(B)(3). The expungement authority prior to 2018 applied only to those sentenced pursuant to the 2010 Youthful Offender Act, so that individuals otherwise YOA-eligible sentenced prior to 2010 pursuant to that Act were not eligible to have the record expunged.  § 22-5-920(B)(3).

In 2018, the South Carolina legislature extended eligibility for expungement to anyone sentenced prior to 2010 who would have been eligible for YOA treatment, overriding the governor’s veto.   See H. 3209.   The legislature also authorized graduates of the South Carolina Youth Challenge Academy and the South Carolina Jobs Challenge Program (administered for at-risk youth by the South Carolina Army National Guard), to expunge eligible records immediately upon graduation from both programs, without being subject to the longer waiting periods that would otherwise apply. § 17-22-1010; H. 3789.

D.  Miscellaneous expungement authorities, including for victims of human trafficking

Expungement is also available one year from the date of conviction for misdemeanor first offender fraudulent check offenses, S.C. Code. Ann. § 34-11-90(e); persons successfully completing an alcohol education program for an alcohol-related offense, § 17-22-530(A); and misdemeanor first offender failure to stop for law enforcement after three years from date of completion of the terms and conditions of the sentence without any convictions during that period.  § 56-5-750(F).

Victims of human trafficking convicted of prostitution, trafficking, or any other nonviolent misdemeanor or Class F felony may move the court to expunge the record.  S.C. Code Ann. § 16-3-2020(F). In 2024, the legislature removed the ability to vacate the conviction, maintaining only the expungement provision under S. 142 (effective July 2, 2024). That same bill expanded the eligible convictions beyond trafficking and prostitution, to other “nonviolent misdemeanor or Class F felony” and also included juvenile adjudications in addition to convictions eligible for relief.

E.  Diversionary dispositions

Deferred adjudication for first-time drug offenses: The court may defer adjudication and place a person with a first-time minor drug offense, and charges will be dismissed if the probation is completed successfully.  S.C. Code Ann. § 44-53-450(A).  Moreover, no conviction results, including for predicate offense purposes.  Id.  Upon dismissal and discharge, the person may apply for expungement of the official records.  § 44-53-450(B).³

“The effect of the [expungement] order is to restore the person, in the contemplation of the law, to the status he occupied before the arrest or indictment or information.  No person as to whom the order has been entered may be held pursuant to another provision of law to be guilty of perjury or otherwise giving a false statement by reason of his failure to recite or acknowledge the arrest, or indictment or information, or trial in response to an inquiry made of him for any purpose.” Id.

Pretrial Intervention:  Most non-violent first offenses are eligible for pretrial intervention, eventual non-criminal disposition (defined as dismissal of the charge without prejudice), and expungement.  S.C. Code Ann. § 17-22-10 et seq. Admission to and completion of pretrial intervention programs are controlled by county solicitors, though application for admission may also be made to the court. Per section 17-22-60, intervention is only appropriate where

“(1) there is substantial likelihood that justice will be served if the offender is placed in an intervention program; (2) it is determined that the needs of the offender and the State can better be met outside the traditional criminal justice process; (3) it is apparent that the offender poses no threat to the community; (4) it appears that the offender is unlikely to be involved in further criminal activity; (5) the offender, in those cases where it is required, is likely to respond quickly to rehabilitative treatment; (6) the offender has no significant history of prior delinquency or criminal activity; (7) the offender has not previously been accepted in a pretrial intervention program.”

The solicitor (or court if applicable) receives and considers recommendations from the arresting law enforcement agency and the victim (if any).  § 17-22-80.

Section 17-22-150(a) provides for non-criminal disposition upon successful completion of the program, “the offender may apply to the court for an order to destroy all official records relating to his arrest and no evidence of the records pertaining to the charge may be retained by any municipal, county, or state entity.”  Id.  Successful completion of the program requires restitution to the victim, if any. § 17-22-140.  If granted, “the arrest and booking record, associated bench warrants, mug shots, and fingerprints of the person must be destroyed and no evidence of the record pertaining to the charge may be retained by any municipal, county, or state law enforcement agency,” but law enforcement and prosecutors shall retain those records for three years and one hundred twenty days under seal. § 17-1-40(B)(1)(a).  “The effect of the order is to restore the person, in the contemplation of the law, to the status he occupied before the arrest.  No person as to whom the order has been entered may be held thereafter under any provision of any law to be guilty of perjury or otherwise giving a false statement by reason of his failure to recite or acknowledge the arrest in response to any inquiry made of him for any purpose.”  § 17-22-150(a).

F.  Non-conviction records – dismissals, acquittals

A person may petition for expungement if charges are dismissed or the person is found not guilty. S.C. Code Ann. § 17-22-950(B).  A statewide Application for Expungement Pursuant to §17-22-950(B) is available on the South Carolina Judicial Branch website, as required by the statute. § 17-22-950(G). Upon expungement all law enforcement records “must be destroyed and no evidence of the record pertaining to the charge . . . may be retained by any municipal, county or state law enforcement agency.” S.C. Code Ann. §§ 17-1-40(B)(1); 17-22-910.  As amended in 2016, this section provides that records may be kept by law enforcement and prosecution agencies for three years and 120 days, or indefinitely in case of an on-going investigation, before destruction for administrative purposes.  “The information is not a public document and is exempt from disclosure, except by court order.” Provision is made for disclosure to other parties charged in an on-going investigation.  § 17-1-40(C). There is no fee for expungement of non-conviction records. § 17-22-940(H).

Automatic expungement for non-convictions in summary courts: Upon acquittal, dismissal, or nolle prosequi of charges in summary court (which includes magistrate and municipal courts) after June 2, 2009, the court is required to automatically and immediately expunge the record without any cost to the person, unless a prosecution or law enforcement agency objects on the basis that the person has other charges pending or the charges are ineligible for expungement.  §§ 17-22-950(A), (F).

G.  Juvenile records

Expungement is available upon petition to the court for persons who are adjudicated delinquent for a status or nonviolent offense, if they have reached the age of 18.  S.C. Code Ann. § 63-19-2050(A).  Juveniles are ineligible for expungement if they have a prior adjudication for an offense that would carry a five-year prison sentence for an adult, have not completed their sentence, have subsequently been convicted or adjudicated of another offense, or if their offense was a violent crime.  § 63-19-2050(C)(3).  “If the expungement order is granted by the court, the records must be destroyed or retained by any law enforcement agency or municipal, county, state agency, or department pursuant to the provisions of Section 17-1-40.” § 63-19-2050(D). Expungement restores the recipient to the same position they were in before the offense, and the person may deny existence of any record.  § 63-19-2050(E).

H.  Procedures for expungement

Procedures for expungement under all existing authorities is now subject to the Uniform Expungement of Criminal Records Act of 2009, S.C. Code Ann. § 17-22-910 et seq.   All applications for expungement of records not covered by § 17-22-950 (acquittals and dismissals) must be made through the Solicitor’s Office in the judicial circuit where the charge originated. § 17-22-910(A).  The Solicitor’s Office in each circuit is responsible for determining eligibility, coordinating with other agencies and with courts, and processing applications as necessary.  An applicant may retain counsel to go directly to court to contest the solicitor’s determination of eligibility.  § 17-22-940(I).  Each Solicitor’s Office maintains applications and instructions on their website which individuals must use to apply to that office. See Applications for Expungement made available in the Fifth Judicial Circuit, the Seventh Judicial Circuit, and the Ninth Judicial Circuit.   When expungement is sought for pretrial intervention programs, first offense programs, alcohol or traffic education programs, conditional discharge, or Youth Challenge Academy, the directors of those programs must also attest by signature as to the eligibility for expungement.  § 17-22-940(D).

The Solicitor’s Office receives a statutory $250 administrative fee to “defray the costs associated with the expungement process” of most records, SLED receives a $25 verification fee for more records, the circuit clerk receives a filing fee per individual order, and there may be modest additional fees to obtain copies of records.  §§ 17-22-940(A), (E)(1), (F).  There is no filing fee for expunging dismissed charges pursuant to § 17-22-950 (unless dismissed as part of a plea agreement).  H. 3209 modified the fee provisions to authorize private contributions to the Solicitor’s fund to defray costs for those who cannot afford the fee.

I.  Effect of expungement

Once records have been expunged, they are “placed under seal so they are no longer public record . . .  [and] can only be used for limited law enforcement purposes and otherwise can only be disclosed by court order.”  See Appleseed guide, supra.  “The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division is required to keep a nonpublic record of the offense and the date of its expungement to ensure that, [in the case of first offender authorities,] no person takes advantage of the rights” permitted by the various authorities more than once.  See S.C. Code Ann. §§ 22-5-910(D), 22-5-920(C), 22-5-950(E).  “This nonpublic record is not subject to release under . . . the Freedom of Information Act, or [another] provision of law except to those authorized law [enforcement] or court officials who need this information in order to prevent the rights afforded by this section from being taken advantage of more than once.”  Id.

Employers have immunity from “any administrative or legal claim or cause of action related to the worker’s expunged offense.” § 17-22-960. This section prohibits information related to the expunged record to be used in “any administrative or legal proceeding involving negligent hiring, negligent retention, or similar claims.” Id. Expunged records cannot be used adversely by employers, except for criminal justice agencies. Id.   

IV.  Criminal record in employment & licensing

A. Employment  

South Carolina has no general law limiting consideration of criminal history in public or private employment.

B. Occupational Licensing  

Most licensed occupations and professions are administered pursuant to a unified scheme under the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, whose director is appointed by the governor and serves as a member of the governor’s cabinet.  S.C. Code Ann. § 40-1-40(B).  Each profession or occupation is administered by a separate board.⁴  The law provides that conviction of a felony, or of a crime or moral turpitude or involving drugs, may be grounds for restriction, suspension or revocation of a license.  § 40-1-110(1)(h).

A professional or occupational board may not deny a license to an applicant solely because of a prior criminal conviction, unless the criminal conviction directly relates to the duties, responsibilities, or fitness of the occupation or profession for which the applicant is seeking a license. 

§ 40-1-140(A)(1).  Until 2023, this statement of a “direct relationship” standard was immediately followed (and undercut) by a further provision authorizing a board to deny a license “if, based upon all information available, including the applicant’s record of prior convictions, it finds that the applicant is unfit or unsuited to engage in the profession or occupation.” Id (2022).

Section 40-1-140 had not been amended for decades when the “Earn and Learn Act of 2023” made a number of important substantive and procedural changes to it. See § 40-1-140(A) through (C), H3605 (2023). This 2023 law began by deleting the language giving licensing boards open-ended authority to deny licensure based on a finding that an applicant is “unfit” or “unsuited,” leaving only the “direct relationship” language.  It went on to prohibit the use of “vague or generic terms including, but not limited to, ‘moral turpitude’ or ‘good character’; and also prohibited consideration of charges that have been dismissed, nol prossed, or adjudicated with a finding of not guilty as a justification for denying an applicant a license.” § 40-1-140(A)(2).

The 2023 law provided procedural protections: a board may not deny a license because of a criminal record unless the applicant has been given “an opportunity to appear at an application hearing to determine the applicant’s fitness for the occupation or profession.” § 40-1-140(B).  If a board “denies an applicant’s license solely or in part because of the applicant’s prior criminal history, then the board must issue a written final order within thirty days following the date of the application hearing,” which order shall include (1) the grounds for the denial; and (2) that the final order is appealable to the Administrative Law Court pursuant to Chapter 23, Title 1.

Unchanged by the 2023 law, a person aggrieved by the action of any board may appeal under the state Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”).  § 40-1-160; see Osman v. South Carolina Dep’t of Labor, 676 S.E. 2d 672, 675 (S.C. 2009).

A juvenile disposition “does not disqualify the child in a future civil service application or appointment.”  § 63-19-1410(C).