SC Attorney General says religious, political gatherings are legal

A day after S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster publicly discouraged public gatherings of 3 or more people, State Attorney General Alan Wilson’s office on Tuesday weighed in to offer its own opinion, refining the governor’s recommendation.

In Wilson’s view, religious and political gatherings are still permitted under the U.S. Constitution, “even if prudence dictates they be discouraged,” an opinion written by one of the attorney general’s top lawyers, Bob Cook.

Attorney general opinions are often respected, but they don’t have the force of a law or a court ruling and are considered advisory in nature.

On Monday, McMaster at a press conference — noting the highly contagious nature of the deadly coronavirus disease that has sickened hundreds of thousands around the world — gave law enforcement discretion to break up public gatherings of three or more people. Estimates are that the virus will infect millions around the world by the time it runs its course.

McMaster said law enforcement should apply common sense to his recommendation and not, for example, stop families of four from walking together in public.

In recent days, local law enforcement, sometimes with the help of the State Law Enforcement Division, has cleared beaches in Myrtle Beach, Myrtle Beach State Park, Huntington Beach State Park, and Edisto Island. But those weren’t religious or political gatherings. Rather, they were get-togethers of hundreds of young people for party purposes.

Over the weekend, a SLED-coordinated group of some 30 SLED agents, state troopers, Department of Natural Resource officers and Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services officer broke up a gathering of more than 3,000 people in Florence County. They had come together at an ATV park for an impromptu concert.

Reacting to the attorney general’s opinion later Tuesday afternoon, a governor’s spokesman said nothing is in the opinion “that contradicts what the governor said at his press conference yesterday.”

As a practical matter, many churches have stopped having regular in-person Sunday services and are live-streaming them, prompting some to joke wryly that they never thought they would be “giving up church for Lent.”

As for political events, gatherings like U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn’s annual Columbia fish fry, which attracts thousands annually, are almost unthinkable now. Even presidential candidate Joe Biden is holed up in his house, where he has constructed a television set for remote conferences.

SLED Chief Mark Keel said that he had no concerns with the constitutional matters raised by the Wilson’s opinion.

“I’ve had a couple of sheriffs call me about whether or church gatherings are allowed and I’ve told them in my opinion, it doesn’t cover church,” Keel said.

“I said, you talk to the pastor and tell him you don’t think it’s a good idea right now because coronavirus is so highly contagious, but that’s a personal decision. But I’m not certainly not going to tell a a preacher he can’t hold church, if that’s what they want to do.”