South Carolina § 8-13-705 - Offering, giving, soliciting, or receiving anything of value to influence action of public employee, member or official, or to influence testimony of witness; exceptions; penalty for violation.

§ 8-13-705. Offering, giving, soliciting, or receiving anything of value to influence action of public employee, member or official, or to influence testimony of witness; exceptions; penalty for violation.

(A) A person may not, directly or indirectly, give, offer, or promise anything of value to a public official, public member, or public employee with the intent to:

(1) influence the discharge of a public official's, public member's, or public employee's official responsibilities;

(2) influence a public official, public member, or public employee to commit, aid in committing, collude in, or allow fraud on a governmental entity; or

(3) induce a public official, public member, or public employee to perform or fail to perform an act in violation of the public official's, public member's, or public employee's official responsibilities.

(B) A public official, public member, or public employee may not, directly or indirectly, knowingly ask, demand, exact, solicit, seek, accept, assign, receive, or agree to receive anything of value for himself or for another person in return for being:

(1) influenced in the discharge of his official responsibilities;

(2) influenced to commit, aid in committing, collude in, allow fraud, or make an opportunity for the commission of fraud on a governmental entity; or

(3) induced to perform or fail to perform an act in violation of his official responsibilities.

(C) A person may not, directly or indirectly, give, offer, or promise to give anything of value to another person with intent to influence testimony under oath or affirmation in a trial or other proceeding before:

(1) a court;

(2) a committee of either house or both houses of the General Assembly; or

(3) an agency, commission, or officer authorized to hear evidence or take testimony or with intent to influence a witness to fail to appear.

(D) A person may not, directly or indirectly, ask, demand, exact, solicit, seek, accept, assign, receive, or agree to receive anything of value in return for influencing testimony under oath or affirmation in a trial or other proceeding before:

(1) a court;

(2) a committee of either house or both houses of the General Assembly; or

(3) an agency, commission, or officer authorized to hear evidence or take testimony, or with intent to influence a witness to fail to appear.

(E) Subsections (C) and (D) of this section do not prohibit the payment or receipt of witness fees provided by law or the payment by the party on whose behalf a witness is called and receipt by a witness of the reasonable costs of travel and subsistence at trial, hearing, or proceeding, or, in the case of an expert witness, of the reasonable fee for time spent in the preparation of the opinion and in appearing or testifying.

(F) A person who violates the provisions of this section is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be punished by imprisonment for not more than ten years and a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars and is permanently disqualified from being a public official or a public member. A public official, public member, or public employee who violates the provisions of this section forfeits his public office, membership, or employment.

(G) This section does not apply to political contributions unless the contributions are conditioned upon the performance of specific actions of the person accepting the contributions nor does it prohibit a parent, grandparent, or other close relative from making a gift to a child, grandchild, or other close relative for love and affection except as otherwise provided.

HISTORY: 1991 Act No. 248, SECTION 3, eff January 1, 1992 and governs only transactions which take place after December 31, 1991.