During the public comment period at the Jan. 7 Oconee County Council meeting, several residents described personal experiences with Oconee County Department of Social Services, restrictions on family access to a nursing facility, and concerns about accountability for a deputy solicitor’s alleged conduct off-duty.

David Hammond described efforts to see and care for his mother at an Oconee County facility and said the county’s social services office placed his mother on a do-not-resuscitate order and restricted family visitation. "I'm not allowed to see her at all," Hammond said. He told the council he believed the DNR status had been changed after Oconee County DSS intervened and said he had been prevented from visiting on Christmas Eve.

Dathan Chambers urged accountability for a deputy solicitor, identified in the public comments as Jason Alderman, who Chambers said had been taken into custody in a recent incident. Chambers described concerns about prosecutorial discretion, the need for higher ethical standards for officials who exercise prosecutorial authority and complaints filed with the Office of Disciplinary Counsel. "When you're an attorney and you represent the solicitor's office and you prosecute the citizens of this county, there needs to be a higher bar set," Chambers said.

Jason Boyle told the council he believes there is corruption within county institutions and described an alleged incident at the Chattooga River Lodge involving Deputy Solicitor Jason Alderman, reporting that Alderman was intoxicated and later arrested for disorderly conduct. Boyle said constituents had to press the Oconee County Sheriff's Department before an arrest was made and urged a more thorough investigation of local courts and law enforcement. "We need a proper investigation of what's going on in this county, the court systems and the policing system in every single jurisdiction," Boyle said.

The comments recorded in the meeting were expressions from private citizens. Council members did not take formal action during the meeting in response to the remarks; the county attorney said he had no county-attorney comments that evening. No county staff presentation or formal agenda item addressing the allegations or DSS procedures occurred during this meeting; the speakers requested accountability and press coverage but the council did not commission a staff report on the record at this session.

Because these were public comments and not council findings, the statements and allegations made by residents in the meeting transcript remain claims rather than final determinations by the council.