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Hilton Head Island Packet •

Beaufort County jail understaffed, violated state rules, report finds

The Beaufort County jail failed to meet state corrections standards this year, adding to ongoing questions about how the taxpayer-funded facility is run.

State inspectors with the South Carolina Department of Corrections alerted top county officials and the jail directors in July that the facility had multiple violations, according to a report recently obtained by The Island Packet through a public records request.

Chief among them was that pre-trial and sentenced female inmates were being hou...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Developers withdraw one lawsuit against Beaufort County, but federal fight remains

The owners of Pine Island, the coastal, 500-acre property that has been at the center of a contentious golf course development debate, recently dropped one of the two lawsuits they filed against Beaufort County in 2023.

Both publicly and in court filings, representatives for the developer made it clear they would drop the lawsuits if the county voted in favor of the development. But oddly, the withdrawal, which squashes the state-level lawsuit, came just days after Beaufort County officials onc...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

A year after Hilton Head acid attack, victim seeks answers

It was Dec. 20, 2024.

Maria Hernandez was having a typical day on the north end of Hilton Head Island. She drove her youngest of six children to school, cleaned up her front yard, worked her shift at a nearby restaurant and cooked dinner. She went to church and then to Walmart, where she was picking up some last-minute Christmas gifts. The last task on her list was to get some extra cash from the bank to get through the holiday season.

Around 10 p.m., Maria pulled into the Bank of America ATM,...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Ex-Beaufort Co. official violated ethics act by using staff for personal project

A former high-ranking Beaufort County employee violated the state’s ethics act by using his position to obtain free architectural work for a personal home renovation, the South Carolina Ethics Commission has ruled.

The Dec. 11 decision came more than a year after the commission first received a complaint about Eric Larson’s behavior and he resigned from his role with the county.

Larson, who served as the county’s Capital Improvements Project director until his resignation in June 2024, was fou...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Beaufort County acquires Daufuskie Island landing after years-long legal battle

After three years of legal disputes, Beaufort County has taken ownership of part of Daufuskie Island’s Melrose Landing, the dock and area where public ferry riders board.

On Dec. 9, the county acquired a portion of the landing for $1.4 million. This includes the road that leads to the landing, all parking areas, structures, walkways, the main pier and pier head and all docking facilities to the northeast side of the pier. It means the county can “immediately” start necessary repairs on the dock...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

State opens investigation into Jasper Co. treasurer for misuse of public funds

The Jasper County treasurer, under investigation for a text in which he allegedly threatened other county staff with gun violence, will now face a state law enforcement probe over what officials describe as the “misappropriation of public funds.”

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division opened this second investigation on Monday after receiving a request from the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office on Dec. 9, according to a spokesperson with the agency. Both investigations are active and ongoing....
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Beaufort County cold case murder suspect out on $100,000 bond

The man who was charged with murder in a 38-year-old cold case last month has since bonded out of jail.

On Nov. 19, the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office announced that Cortez Sabino Lake, 76, was charged with murder in connection to Margit Schuller’s 1987 death.

The cold case dates back to Nov. 1, 1987, when, around 8:30 p.m., Schuller was shot in the head with a .22 caliber pistol in the laundromat at Palmetto Apartments on Harding Street in Burton. She then crawled out of the laundromat and...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Jasper Co. treasurer under investigation for alleged threats

This is a developing story. Please check in for updates as they become available.

The Jasper County Treasurer is under criminal investigation for allegedly threatening staff. He could also be investigated for the misuse of public funds by making bonus payments to staff within his office.

During a specially called meeting Friday morning, county leaders convened in a closed-door session to discuss the ongoing threat investigation. The discussion centered on accusations that the treasurer, Michae...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Beaufort County rejects land funding, halting St. Helena cultural center plan

Citing the lack of a viable plan, Beaufort County officials on Monday rejected a long-discussed proposal to buy land for a cultural arts center on St. Helena Island, a vote that kills $1 million in state funding and leaves the eight-year project’s future uncertain.

A “yes” vote would have set aside $600,000 to help purchase 10 acres of land on the island for a cultural arts center and entrepreneurial market intended to drive local economy. The county funds would have supplemented $1 million alr...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Power-heavy, 860-acre data center campus proposed north of Beaufort

Developers are looking to build an 859-acre data center campus near Walterboro, about 45 minutes north of downtown Beaufort, according to a public notice from Colleton County.

The proposed site would be the closest data center to Beaufort County to date. The large facilities, filled with rows of computer servers, data storage devices and networking equipment, are known for consuming high amounts of energy, leading to increases in power bills in surrounding areas more than an hour away.

At the...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Beaufort County stands by Pine Island vote, despite push to scrap it

A Beaufort County councilman’s bid to undo the vote that halted a contentious Pine Island golf course development failed Monday, as the council said no to a rarely-used “motion to rescind” and left its original rejection in place.

The council — which initially voted 10-1 against entering into the agreement with the developer— said no to the motion, which was brought forward by one of their own, Councilman Logan Cunningham. If approved, the motion would have brought the 11-member body back to th...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Beaufort County could undo their vote against the Pine Island development. What we know

In a rare move, Beaufort County officials may overturn their own decision to reject the controversial golf course development on Pine Island.

Councilman Logan Cunningham recently informed his colleagues and the public that he will bring forward a “motion to rescind,” or otherwise undo, the Sept. 22 10-1 vote that halted the development agreement and any negotiations between the developer and the county. Because Cunningham announced his intention before the vote, his motion requires only a simpl...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Inside the 40-minute jail visit that triggered a probe into a Beaufort Co. councilman

A 40-minute visit between a Beaufort County councilman and an inmate triggered a weeks-long investigation into possible criminal violations in the county jail.

Now, the 43-page police report detailing the findings of the investigation has been released to the public.

Between Aug. 25 and Oct. 3, investigators examined whether Councilman Tom Reitz or inmate Calvin “Skip” Hoagland committed crimes during an “unauthorized” visit. Ultimately, they found “insufficient evidence” for charges, but the...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Missing Beaufort County man died by drowning, coroner confirms

A 79-year-old man recently found dead in northern Beaufort County died by drowning, the Beaufort County Coroner’s Office said Tuesday.

Isaac Bussey Sr., a Lobeco resident, left his home on November 21 to go shrimping. Bussey’s relatives last heard from him at 3 p.m., and he was reported “missing and endangered” that evening. His last known location was Old Rail Bed Road in Lobeco, police said.

A day later, authorities suspended their search after finding remains believed to be Bussey, accordin...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Police: Hundreds of service calls led to Willie’s shutdown. Here’s what they were for

After the mass shooting that killed four people and injured 15 others outside Willie’s Bar and Grill, the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office took steps to shut down the restaurant, citing a problematic history of crime at the St. Helena Island location.

“When we pulled calls for service at that location, you had 400 in the past 10 years,” Sheriff P.J. Tanner told Willie’s owner Willie Turral at a press conference earlier this month where officials announced the arrest of one of three suspected sh...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Government critic released from jail early after Bluffton arrest. Why?

A civic challenger sentenced to 15 days in jail for trespassing was released after just three, a move that involved an unusual shuffle between local judges and public support from high-ranking elected officials.

Calvin “Skip” Hoagland was arrested earlier this year for trespassing a Beaufort County GOP executive committee meeting in Bluffton. His time in jail became the subject of a local investigation, because Beaufort County Councilman Tom Reitz brought two phones into the detention center on...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

After 25 years, Hilton Head’s community Thanksgiving dinner has a new organizer

It was the Wednesday before Thanksgiving in 1998.

The Island Packet was selling for 25 cents a copy. The news of the day ranged from the merger between International Paper and Union Camp to a proposal for earlier school start times. But one headline on the front page would forever change the trajectory of the holiday on the island.

“Lonely locals may find few options on Turkey Day,” a story written by then-staff writer Brad Kovach, said that while those who were seeking a hot meal on Thanksgiv...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Murder charges filed against former Beaufort Co. employee in cold case

Six years after Jimmy Smoak vanished from the small town of Varnville, Hampton County investigators say the evidence they needed finally surfaced, leading to murder charges against a former Beaufort County employee and another suspect this fall.

Courtney Lane, 30, and Ronald Lee Lyons, 41, were accused of murdering Jimmy Smoak, a man who was in his mid-40s and frequented the area. Investigators found that around April 1, 2019, Lane and Lyons acted “unlawfully with malice aforethought” in causin...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Almost 40 years after a Burton woman was shot and killed, a man has been charged

Nearly 40 years after a Burton woman was murdered while washing clothes in her apartment complex, the cold case has been solved, authorities say.

On Wednesday, Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner confirmed during a press conference that Cortez Sabino Lake, 76, had been charged with murder in the death of Margit Schuller, a 34-year-old mother.

Lake was charged with murder and booked into the county jail at 4:15 p.m. Tuesday . He is being held at the Beaufort County Detention Center. His bond w...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

SC bar where mass shooting took place had “history of violence,” authorities say

In the early morning hours on Oct. 12, shots rang out in front of a crowded bar and grill on St. Helena Island, a sea island just a few miles east of Beaufort. Three shooters exchanged gunfire that killed four people and injured another 15.

Now, local law enforcement and state agencies are looking to have a court suspend the alcohol licenses for Willie’s Bar and Grill, the site of the deadly shooting.

At a hearing before South Carolina’s Administrative Law Court in Columbia on Monday, lawyers...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

After St. Helena mass shooting, sheriff seeks to shut down ‘nuisance’ bar

The namesake of the St. Helena Island bar where a mass shooting broke out outside said that the Beaufort County Sheriff unfairly retaliated against him by taking steps to get his business license revoked.

Willie Turral, who leases out the location for Willie’s Bar and Grill, described the business as law enforcement’s “scapegoat” for the Oct. 12 shooting. The department has sent letters to the state — which issues liquor licenses to businesses through the department of revenue — and the county,...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Sheriff: Man charged with murder in St. Helena shooting case. One victim fired weapon

This story will be updated. Please check back in for more information as it becomes available.

After more than five weeks, one person has been charged in connection with the mass shooting that killed four people on St. Helena Island, Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner announced in a press conference Friday morning.

Anferny Devon Freeman, 27, of St. Helena, was charged with four counts of murder, aggravated breach of peace and a felony gun possession charge. He was served these warrants while...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Beaufort Sheriff will update on St. Helena shooting investigation Friday

Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner will provide updates Friday morning about the weekslong investigation into the mass shooting that killed four people on St. Helena Island.

The press conference will be held 11 a.m. at the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office headquarters on Bay Street, the department said.

It was not immediately clear what would be shared in the press conference, which would be the second held by authorities since the shooting on Oct. 12.

Since the week of the shooting, Beaufor...
Hilton Head Island Packet •

Giving Grace: Hilton Head coffee shop owners offer humanity amid SNAP uncertainty

They say that coffee is God’s gift to mankind. But sometimes, the real gift isn’t just the hot latte in a mug — it’s the generosity of the people behind the counter.

Local coffee shop owners, Elise and Matt Higgins, have joined a growing list of establishments that opened their doors to support families affected by disruptions in their federal food assistance. The Higgins’ own Origin Coffee Bar, which has locations in Savannah and on Hilton Head Island.

The couple posted on social media, encou...
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