SC Ethics Commission launches investigation into Horry County Chairman over campaign loan
The South Carolina Ethics Commission is investigating Horry County Council Chairman Johnny Gardner for a loan and filings from his election campaign, according to details of a complaint filed with the commission.
The Ethics Commission regulates how candidates can conduct their campaign, outlines standards for public officials and sets caps on donations and loans. If a complaint is filed by any member of the public, the commission decides whether to investigate.
The complaint asked the ethics commission to investigate Gardner for three issues, and the Ethics Commission decided the allegations warranted an investigation.
The complaint alleges Gardner failed to update the ethics public reporting website and repaid too much money from a personal campaign loan. The third, and most serious accusation, claims the money used for the loan couldn’t have belonged to Gardner and may count as an illegal campaign donation.
During Gardner’s successful 2018 election, he loaned more than $90,000 from his Johnny Gardner Law Firm to his campaign, according to his filings.
Gardner’s campaign advisors would have used law office money to get a “certificate of deposit” from a bank to use as collateral for a regular loan instead of loaning directly from the law office, the claim alleges. This would satisfy state law requiring that loans come from a bank or business under terms offered to the public.
A candidate is only allowed to repay direct loans up to $10,000. Gardner has repaid $22,000 of his loan from his business, according to his ethics filings.
The complainant also argues the money for the loan didn’t belong to Gardner, citing outstanding taxes and unpaid court settlements from before he ran for office.
According to records on the Horry County Treasurer’s Office website, Gardner’s law firm in 2018 owes $3,946 in unpaid taxes going back to 2010. In 2016, Gardner had a $55,000 ruling against him in The United States versus Johnny Gardner, according to records on the Horry County Public Index. Public documents do not indicate this judgment has been paid.
When The Sun News called Gardner last week, he was asked if he received the complaint that was filed several weeks ago. He said he would call back to provide an answer. Gardner has not responded to The Sun News’ calls or text messages since that phone call more than a week ago.
Ethics Agency Director Meghan Walker would neither confirm nor deny an investigation was launched.
Horry County Council Member Harold Worley said he had not heard anything more than rumors about Gardner’s filings. He wishes people would leave the chairman alone and let him do his job.
“Rumors are running rampant,” Worley said. “The chairman is doing a good job. They need to leave him alone. It’s not time for petty politics and petty complaints. Let the man do his job.”
Ethics law
An ethics investigation does not inherently mean Gardner did anything unlawful or unethical. It means the ethics commission found sufficient facts in the complaint to warrant an inquiry.
It will ultimately be up to the ethics commission if more formal charges or a hearing is brought against Gardner.
The ethics commission has eight members from both political parties. The appointees are picked in-part by the governor, the state senate and house of representatives to varying terms. If probable cause is found, the ethics commission can vote to hold a hearing to look into the matter further or turn it over to another government agency for investigation.
If an ethics violation is proven, punishments can include fines, misdemeanor charges or even jail time.
In January, The Sun News published a story outlining potential issues with Gardner’s ethics filings and the amount of money in the loan.
State law requires candidates to update the ethics website with yearly statements of economic positions and quarterly updates on campaign expenses. Gardner missed deadlines for these filings.
In addition, his filings show a $92,765 loan given to the campaign from Gardner’s law firm, according to his ethics report. Gardner is still a lawyer with his own firm, but a new firm Gardner-Bouchette Law was restructured after the election.
This story was originally published April 9, 2020 at 11:00 AM with the headline "SC Ethics Commission launches investigation into Horry County Chairman over campaign loan."
