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by WILL FOLKS
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Six-and-a-half months after his arrest on trespassing charge, a self-styled South Carolina “watchdog” was found guilty of that offense – and sentenced to two weeks behind bars.
Calvin Coral “Skip” Hoagland, 76, of Naples, Florida, was found guilty during a municipal proceeding in Bluffton, S.C. on Tuesday (August 19, 2025). He is currently serving his sentence at the Beaufort County detention center.
As FITSNews reported back in January, Hoagland was arrested and charged with trespassing after he refused to leave a meeting of the Beaufort County Republican Party (BCGOP) held at Bluffton’s Downtown Deli on January 27, 2025.
Hoagland’s membership in the private organization had been revoked two years prior, per county party chairman Kevin Hennelly. Hoagland was also informed prior to the event that he would “not be admitted.”
Hoagland’s allies claimed he was “set-up” – and that his arrest was somehow “directed” by Beaufort County sheriff PJ Tanner. S.C. attorney general Alan Wilson was also dragged into the drama because he happened to be arriving at the venue at the precise moment Hoagland was being led from the building in handcuffs.
“Wilson pretended to not hear the octogenarian being manhandled as Hoagland called out directly in front of him,” an account from citizen reporter Lee Granade alleged.
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Granade has offered nothing to substantiate her allegations against Tanner or Wilson.
In a statement provided to FITSNews following Hoagland’s guilty verdict, Hennelly ripped the so-call-ed “watchdog” and his allies – whom he described as a “radical group (that) has been supporting and encouraging this criminal, slanderous, libelous and outrageous behavior.”
“They are as guilty as Hoagland,” Hennelly said.
“Mr. Hoagland has lived his life believing he is above the law,” Hennelly added. “He often brags that he’s the only guy in Beaufort County, in all South Carolina that people fear, because he has money and he is judgement proof.”
According to Hennelly, his party “is a big tent and supports all viewpoints, but not criminal disruptive behavior or character assassination targeting (our) members.”
This author has taken note of Hoagland’s “irrational bellicosity” and “baseless bullying” on many occasions in the past, referring to him as “insufferably antagonistic and menacingly vulgar” as he routinely clogs email inboxes across the state with groundless “hate-filled missives.”
While Hoagland adopted a more conciliatory tone the last time he addressed this author, his days of being perceived as a credible reformer remain a distant memory to all but a handful of his most ardent apostles.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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4 comments
K Kennelly and Xiaodan Li do NOT support all “viewpoints”— for the past 3 years, they have REFUSED to pay attention to, acknowledge, refuse to let their members see the IRREFUTABLE EVIDENCE from the computerized voting machines, that was found, right here, in 8 South Carolina counties, by the SC Safe Elections team… “irregularities” and severe problems that continued in ‘22 and ‘24… you are NOT PERMITTED TO SPEAK about what is going on, around the country, in regards to those machines and system, that ABSOLUTELY is NOT TRANSPARENT, NOT SECURE, NOT HONEST…. Voting is the foundation of our freedom and you MUST accept their way, OR LEAVE.
“76 years old” and “octogenarian” …. is this some SC DOE shit?
Must be, by my count he is a septuagenarian and won’t hit octogenarian until 80.
? FITSNews’ “hit back”
FITSNews’ coverage of Skip Hoagland’s trespassing case misses the larger point.
Yes, Hoagland was convicted of trespassing at a BCRP meeting — that much is a matter of public record. But the critical issue raised by citizen reporter Lee Granade and others was not about Hoagland’s personality or style. It was about the abuse of law enforcement authority in Beaufort County.
FOIA records have already shown that Sheriff P.J. Tanner directed deputies to arrest Hoagland before he even arrived at the event — contradicting his public statements that he wouldn’t have dissenters arrested. That is not “paranoia.” That is documented misuse of power under color of law.
This isn’t just about one man’s behavior at a private meeting. It’s about a pattern of political policing and intimidation in Beaufort County:
• County employees pressured or fired for not supporting Tanner.
• Whistleblowers reporting harassment after publishing.
• Victims and families intimidated at public meetings.
• Deputies pressured to underreport crime data.
South Carolina already has the highest sheriff indictment rate in the nation — nearly 1 in 3 since 2010. To dismiss legitimate concerns about intimidation, FOIA-verified misconduct, and a sheriff’s unchecked power as “radical” or “libelous” is to ignore the receipts and shield a broken system.
The focus shouldn’t be on whether Hoagland is likable. It should be on whether taxpayer-funded law enforcement is being weaponized to silence dissent. That’s the question Beaufort residents deserve answered.