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Board approves minutes with attachments removed after heated debate over police report
Summary
Trustee Kevin Scully moved to remove Attachments 1 and 2 from the Nov. 18 minutes; the board approved the motion after debate over whether the removal would violate South Carolina public-minutes law and a failed amendment to retain a citizen police report by Miss Huddle.
Madam Chair called the meeting to order and the board moved to approve the Nov. 18 minutes with a motion by Kevin Scully to remove Attachments 1 and 2 in their entirety. Trustees debated whether removing the attachments would violate state law requiring public bodies to keep minutes that include information members request be included. Miss Huddle argued the attachments should remain, citing state law and moving to amend to keep a police (citizen complaint) report in the minutes; her amendment failed on a voice vote. Scully said the attachments were not germane and raised legal concerns, noting previous litigation tied to some materials. After further discussion and an abstention by the chair, the main motion to remove the two attachments passed.
The exchange included pointed back-and-forth about legal risk and the purpose of minutes. Miss Huddle said, “By law, I get a right to do that,” asserting that any member may request material be included in minutes. Opponents described the police report as a one-sided citizen complaint and said publishing it could expose the district to legal risk. The board did not adopt Huddle’s amendment to retain the police report.
The board then moved on to public participation and the rest of the agenda; there was no board vote that added the contested attachments back into the minutes. The transcript records the motion to approve the minutes with the attachments removed and the chair announcing that the motion passed.
