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Timothy James Truett, Jr. #psycho #biphobia #homophobia #transphobia #enbyphobia wistv.com

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WIS/WMBF) - A South Carolina man is facing a hate crime charge after allegedly firing a gun near an LGBTQ nightclub earlier this week.

WMBF reports 37-year-old Timothy James Truett, Jr., of Clover, was detained by the Myrtle Beach Police Department after the incident on Wednesday outside the Pulse Ultra Club.

He was later placed under arrest and charged with hate intimidation, possession of a weapon during a violent crime, discharging a firearm into a dwelling, discharging a firearm within the city and damaging property.

An MBPD spokesperson later confirmed Truett is the first arrest under the city’s hate intimidation law, which passed in 2024.[…]

MBPD said officers responded to the club at around 11 a.m. Wednesday, after reports of shots being fired on the 2700 block of South Kings Highway.

In an affidavit that was released later, the club’s owner said he found a window and the windshield of his SUV had been shattered by bullets when he went to leave the club. An SUV with blue plastic over a window was left at the scene.

[…]Police reviewed footage showing a silver-colored vehicle stopping in the middle of the road.

The footage then appeared to show muzzle flashes coming from the passenger-side window of the vehicle. The affidavit states an officer later pulled over a vehicle being driven by Truett and found spent shell casings in the back seat, as well as a gun.

Various South Carolina Republicans #wingnut wistv.com

South Carolina leaders announced Friday at the State House that the state would be partnering with controversial, far-right nonprofit Turning Point USA in the hopes of opening a chapter of the organization’s Club America to every high school in the state.

Gov. Henry McMaster also signed a proclamation Friday that declared April 10 as “Turning Point USA Day” during the State House event.[…]

“We believe that conservative values need to be talked about more,” Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette said. “I’m proud to say that we have over 80 clubs already here in South Carolina.”[…]

[State Superintendent of Education Ellen] Weaver encouraged other schools across the state to welcome student-run organizations like Club America and said in her remarks Friday that South Carolina was “strengthening civics education” and ensuring that students are “learning full, fair and honest history.”

Various South Carolina Republicans #wingnut #fundie #pratt wistv.com

South Carolina will remain one of the few states without a hate crime law after a proposal to study such legislation failed in the state Senate, despite renewed attention to rising hate crime reports and years of repeated attempts in the General Assembly.[…]

At a recent Republican gubernatorial debate, most candidates publicly opposed passing a hate crime law.

Republican Sen. Josh Kimbrell of Spartanburg said such legislation could infringe on religious liberty.

“I will never pass a bill that’s going to restrict religious liberty,” Kimbrell said.

U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., was more direct.

“Should we pass a hate crimes law? Absolutely not,” Norman said.

Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette said she also opposes such legislation, noting she and Gov. Henry McMaster have discussed the issue for years.

“I would not support a hate crime bill,” Evette said.

U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., questioned the concept itself.

“There is no such thing as a hate crime, because every crime is a hate crime,” Mace said.

Attorney General Alan Wilson echoed similar concerns, saying he would oppose any bill he believes limits constitutional rights.

“As governor, I will never support a bill that criminalizes your free speech,” Wilson said.

Lowcountry businessman Rom Reddy criticized political leaders broadly, arguing the issue is fueled by division.

“All this division and hate is created by the political class because that’s what gives them all the power they have,” Reddy said.

Various South Carolina Republicans #fundie #homophobia #biphobia #wingnut wistv.com

South Carolina State House lawmakers introduced a concurrent resolution Thursday that seeks to reject the Obergefell v. Hodges, the 2015 Supreme Court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage.

[…]The 12 representatives who introduced the resolution are:

Rep. Philip Bowers: R-Pickens
Rep. Stephen Frank: R-Greenville
Rep. Rob Harris: R-Spartanburg
Rep. Jeff Johnson: R-Horry
Rep. Jay Jordan: R-Florence
Rep. Steven Long: R-Spartanburg
Rep. Josiah Magnuson: R-Spartanburg
Rep. John McCravy: R-Greenwood
Rep. Melissa Oremus: R-Aiken
Rep. Mark Willis: R-Greenville
Rep. Richie Yow: R-Chesterfield

[…]“Obergefell relies on the dangerous fiction of treating the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution as a font of substantive rights, a doctrine that strays from the full meaning of the Constitution and exalts judges at the expense of the people from whom they derive their authority,” the resolution read in part.

The resolution also requests that the Supreme Court restore the “natural law definition of marriage, a union of one man and one woman.”

[…]The resolution has been referred to the House Committee on Invitations and Memorial Resolutions. The State Senate has also concurred with the proposed resolution.

If the resolution passes, it is not legally binding and will have no effect on same-sex marriage in South Carolina.