Richland 2 school board member faces diversion, but no trial, in shoving case
The Richland 2 school board member accused of shoving the sister of a state senator has seen her case diverted to an intervention program after her arrest earlier this year.
Monica Elkins-Johnson has requested pre-trial intervention for a disorderly conduct charge, court records show.
Elkins-Johnson, 51, was arrested in January and charged with disorderly conduct after she allegedly shoved the sister of a state senator after a Jan. 23 school board meeting, The State reported at the time.
Pre-trial intervention is a diversionary program for first-time offenders. A defendant avoids pleading guilty to a charge, but must go through a rehabilitation program, where participants may be required to do community service, make restitution or go through counseling.
The charges came after an altercation between Elkins-Johnson and Erica Davis, the sister of state Sen. Mia McLeod, D-Richland.
Davis and McLeod attended a meeting of the Richland 2 school board on Jan. 23, after which Elkins-Johnson “aggressively came towards” McLeod in a hallway, according to an incident report from the Richland County Sheriff’s Department.
Davis placed herself between the two, at which point Elkins-Johnson allegedly pushed Davis, the report states.
“The investigation revealed that Elkins-Johnson was disorderly and boisterous,” the sheriff’s department said at the time of the arrest. “(F)urther Elkins-Johnson did attack several individuals and said ‘B----, I asked you to get the f---- out of my face before I beat your ass.’”
Following the altercation, Elkins-Johnson had to be restrained by Richland 2 security, the report says.
This story was originally published September 16, 2019 at 11:35 AM.
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