Berkeley County civil service panel delays hearings, affirms FOIA timeline after recusal and eligibility disputes

The Berkeley County Deputy Sheriff’s Civil Service Commission on April 8 debated recusals, a Freedom of Information Act request and promotion-eligibility decisions and ultimately postponed a requested hearing while rescinding a prior eligibility action.

Why it matters: The disputes center on whether a promotion eligibility date for a deputy should be backdated, whether a commissioner must recuse because of family ties and private emails, and how quickly the county clerk must produce records requested under FOIA. The commission’s handling affects who may take an upcoming sergeant promotional test and could expose the county to further litigation if not handled in open session.

President John Buck opened the special meeting saying the panel convened to schedule follow-up on items that arose since the March 31 meeting. Buck proposed suspending the rules to take certain items out of order; the commission later approved suspending the rules after a second and vote.

Commissioner Jim Moffett then acknowledged he had been asked to recuse from two items because, a speaker said, Moffett had exchanged “several disparaging remarks” by email to a commissioner and to a commission member’s son. Commissioner Dobson (a member of the commission) said the emailed material and texts are now the subject of a…