Senate restores transferred‑intent standard in attempted‑murder statute; amendment adopted

An amendment sponsored by Senators Alexander, Hembry and Hutto was adopted on the Senate floor to clarify that the transferred‑intent doctrine applies to attempted murder under state law.

Senator Hembry, who explained the amendment on the floor, said the change responds to a recent South Carolina Supreme Court decision (State v. Jeter) finding that the existing attempted‑murder statute required a specific‑intent showing and therefore did not cover transferred intent. The amendment rewrites the attempted‑murder language so that, if a shooter intends to kill one person but unintentionally kills or injures another, the shooter can be charged with attempted murder under transferred‑intent principles.

Sponsors told colleagues the amendment preserves traditional defenses — including self‑defense — and includes sentencing tiers: a higher range for deliberately targeting a person and an intermediate tier for firing into a crowd when there is no identified single victim. Senators asked whether the amendment would create unintended consequences for lawful self‑defense; proponents said defendants retain their statutory and constitutional defenses and that prosecutors would still have to prove the elements of the offense.

The amendment was adopted on a voice vote and the bill received a second reading on the calendar. Sponsors characterized the change as a corrective drafting fix to align the statute with the Legislature’s intent and to close a gap the court identified.

The measure will proceed according to the Senate calendar for further consideration and potential final action.