An Upstate, South Carolina, county has been ordered to reimburse legal fees after a judge ruled that it violated state laws set forth in the Freedom of the Information Act (FOIA).
On Tuesday, July 30, 2024, Circuit Court Judge Eugene C. Griffith, Jr. found that Laurens County had “continually and habitually” violated FOIA between January 2022 and April 2024, according to a final order provided by the S.C. Eighth Judicial Circut.
Judge Griffith’s decision comes approximately one year after the Laurens Residents for Quality Rural Living, LLC (LRQRL) filed two suits against the Laurens County Planning Commission, Laurens County Council and Laurens County, among other governing bodies.
“What started this was a tremendous number of high-density subdivisions coming up in our area,” said LRQRL President Nancy Garrison. “We were getting subdivisions that nobody knew were being approved. So we formed our group and started going to council meetings.”
Judge Griffith has since identified nine FOIA violations across the Laurens County Planning Commission and Laurens County Council. Two of these violations occurred after LRQRL sued the county for abusing executive sessions and withholding documents, according to his order.
“Finally, we’ve got the law behind the public,” said Garrison. “All we wanted was truth and transparency; all we wanted was some knowledge of what our government’s were working on and doing. We hate that we had to go this route, but we’re glad we did.”
This story may be updated.