Families, solicitors calling for justice reform in SC
YORK COUNTY, S.C – South Carolina families are calling for change after they say the justice system failed their deceased loved ones. Victims families are teaming up with prosecutors to point out problems in the courts.
The intersection of criminal justice and mental health has been an even hotter topic since Iryna Zarutska was killed on the light rail in August. Now prosecutors and victims families in South Carolina are speaking out saying it’s time for change in the Palmetto state, too.
Families joined solicitors in York County Thursday calling for change in the judicial system.
“This is not a political issue. This is not a Republican, Democrat, or racial issue. This is a people issue and some changes needed to be made.” Renea Barber said.
Barber’s husband Tim Barber and brother Robbin Thompson were killed in 2019. A judge found the man accused of their murders not guilty for reason of insanity.
“It doesn’t make me feel any better because he took my family,” Barber said. “But I do believe he has mental health issues. But I believe if if the Department of Mental Health System had handled things differently, there’s a possibility my family would still be alive.”
South Carolina is one of two states where legislature elects judges. It’s a system many say is flawed.
“There are a lot of victims out there that also have that lack of confidence in our system because of the way we pick our judges,” David Pascoe, Solicitor of the First Judicial Circuit said.
Stephen Federico, father of Logan Federico also spoke at the press conference. Logan Federico was from Waxhaw and was murdered while visiting Columbia earlier this year. The man charged with her murder is a repeat offender.
“He continuously saw some of the same judges,” Federico said. “He’s not at trial yet we’re hoping that goes another direction for Logan’s sake.”
Now solicitors are pushing for reform to address the way judges are picked and how the system treats people with mental illness who are accused of violent crimes.
“Is this working? we’ve been saying it’s not. There are good things about it, but there are many, many problems and finally, people are starting to pay attention to that,” Kevin Brackett, Solicitor of Sixteenth Judicial Circuit which includes York County said.
Solicitors say lawmakers who are also attorneys should be removed from the panel that screens judges before elections. Critics say those lawyer legislators have too much influence over judges who could possibly oversee their cases in the future.
