2023 South Carolina Code of Laws › Title 17 - Criminal Procedures › Chapter 25 - Judgment And Execution › Section 17-25-135. Entry of sex offenders on Central Registry of Child Abuse and Neglect upon conviction of certain crimes.

(A) When a person is convicted of or pleads guilty or nolo contendere to an "Offense Against the Person" as provided for in Title 16, Chapter 3, an "Offense Against Morality or Decency" as provided for in Title 16, Chapter 15, criminal domestic violence, as defined in Section 16-25-20, criminal domestic violence of a high and aggravated nature as defined in Section 16-25-65, or the common law offense of assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, and the act on which the conviction or the plea of guilty or nolo contendere is based involved sexual or physical abuse of a child, the court shall order that the person's name, any other identifying information, including, but not limited to, the person's date of birth, address, and any other identifying characteristics, and the nature of the act which led to the conviction or plea be placed in the Central Registry of Child Abuse and Neglect established by Subarticle 13, Article 3, Chapter 7, Title 63. The clerk shall forward the information to the Department of Social Services for this purpose in accordance with guidelines adopted by the department.
(B) For purposes of this section:
(1) "Physical abuse" means inflicting physical injury upon a child or encouraging or facilitating the infliction of physical injury upon a child by any person including, but not limited to, a person responsible for the child's welfare, as defined in Section 63-7-20.
(2) "Sexual abuse" means:
(a) actual or attempted sexual contact with a child; or
(b) permitting, enticing, encouraging, forcing, or otherwise facilitating a child's participation in prostitution or in a live performance or photographic representation of sexual activity or sexually explicit nudity; by any person including, but not limited to, a person responsible for the child's welfare, as defined in Section 63-7-20.
HISTORY: 1997 Act No. 132, Section 1.
Editor's Note
1997 Act No. 132, Section 10, provides as follows:
"SECTION 10. (A) The data system which constituted the Central Registry of Child Abuse and Neglect prior to the effective date of this statute shall be incorporated into the statewide data systems of the department provided for in Section 20-7-680(A).
"(B) Except as provided in subsection (C), information concerning perpetrators listed in the Central Registry of Child Abuse and Neglect prior to the effective date of this act must be placed in the modified Central Registry of Child Abuse and Neglect created by Subarticle 7, Article 7, Chapter 7, Title 20 of the 1976 Code if there has been an affirmative determination that the perpetrator physically or sexually abused the child or wilfully or recklessly neglected the child.
"(C) Information concerning all cases indicated before January 1, 1993, shall be placed in the modified Central Registry of Child Abuse and Neglect created by Subarticle 7, Article 7, Chapter 7, Title 20 of the 1976 Code. At such time as the department receives a request for information concerning a perpetrator of child abuse or neglect in a case indicated prior to January 1, 1993, the department must review the records of the case. Information concerning the case may be released to the party requesting the information only if (1) the case was indicated for physical or sexual abuse or wilful or reckless neglect and (2) the department's determination that the perpetrator abused or neglected the child was confirmed by a finding in family court or an administrative fair hearing, or the subject of the report waived the opportunity for a family court determination or for an administrative review. Upon request of a person identified in the record as a perpetrator, the department may review records of cases indicated before January 1, 1993, and may decide whether confirmation or waiver occurred, whether the department should redesignate the person's status, or whether the department should provide a hearing pursuant to Section 20-7-655.
"(D) For purposes of this section, 'wilful or reckless neglect' refers to cases of neglect in which criminal charges were filed against the perpetrator.
"(E) No other case shall be placed in the modified Central Registry of Child Abuse and Neglect created by Subarticle 7, Article 7, Chapter 7, Title 20 of the 1976 Code unless the requirements of Sections 20-7-650, 20-7-670, or 17-25-510 have been met."
2010 Act No. 273, Section 7.C, provides:
"Wherever in the 1976 Code of Laws reference is made to the common law offense of assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, it means assault and battery with intent to kill, as contained in repealed Section 16-3-620, and, except for references in Section 16-1-60 and Section 17-25-45, wherever in the 1976 Code reference is made to assault and battery with intent to kill, it means attempted murder as defined in Section 16-3-29."