South Carolina Has a Drunk Driving Problem. Stronger Laws Can Save Lives.

On April 28, 2023, Samantha Miller died tragically after being struck by a drunk driver in Folly Beach, South Carolina. It was her wedding day. What was supposed to be the happiest day of her life turned into a nightmare for Samantha, her fiancé, and her family.  

In South Carolina, drunk driving is not just a statistic—it is a way of life for some drivers. In 2022, South Carolina had the 5th highest drunk driving fatalities in the nation. 474 people died, marking a 72% increase since 2019. In another report released by Forbes in 2025, roughly 8 out of every 100,000 licensed drivers in our state were involved in fatal crashes due to alcohol, ranking fifth highest nationwide. These deaths are entirely avoidable, but impaired drivers continue to risk their lives and the lives of others. Clearly, something must change to discourage this reckless behavior. South Carolina lawmakers are attempting to address this crisis and decrease the rate of fatalities with  S.52, sponsored by Senator Tom Davis (R-Beaufort). 

What Are the Issues with the Current Laws? 

South Carolina’s DUI laws are relatively lenient, providing minimal penalties for those convicted of driving under the influence. One of the largest problems with these DUI laws relates to video evidence rules, which require an officer to begin recording as soon as they activate their blue lights. Their video must include sobriety tests, the arrest, and the reading of a victim’s Miranda rights. If these guidelines are not followed, then the DUI charges are to be dismissed. However, minor errors in video footage—like darkness making it difficult to see the events clearly or an audio malfunction—can render the video unacceptable and force a case dismissal. These errors could make no difference to the strength of the evidence or the fairness of the arrest, yet they can still result in the entire case being thrown out, allowing potentially dangerous drivers to avoid accountability and be back on the street due to technicalities unrelated to guilt or innocence. 

In addition to these issues, South Carolina suffers from prosecution problems. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) completed a 2022 report that surveyed South Carolina’s largest counties (Berkeley, Charleston, Greenville, Horry, Lexington, Richland, and Spartanburg) to determine conviction rates for drunk driving. Among these counties, only 33% of the 608 cases resulted in a guilty conviction. Even worse, in Richland County, of 1,111 cases, only 18% ended in convictions. In comparison to other states that MADD monitors, these South Carolina rates were low; across 15 other states, the conviction rate was 58%in 2021.  These lower numbers in South Carolina’s largest counties demonstrate issues with convicting individuals or allowing drunk drivers to plead to a lesser charge.  

Lastly, South Carolina law allows drivers to refuse to submit to breath tests or blood tests that measure blood alcohol concentration (BAC). Though this refusal does lead to a driver’s license being suspended for six months, officers are unable to acquire the evidence they need to charge drivers with DUI. Judges can still convict drivers of DUI because a driver refusing to complete these tests would appear guilty of hiding their blood alcohol level. 

How Do South Carolina’s Laws Compare to Other States? 

As of 2022, drunk driving fatalities have increased by 72% since 2019 in South Carolina. This reflects more lenient punishments that do not deter drivers from making life-altering mistakes. In2022, Justia Law released data on the penalties for drivers who are convicted of DUI for the first time. The table below highlights states in the Southeast.  

While South Carolina law does have one of the longer license suspensions, the state has some of the shortest jail time and lowest fines for first-time DUI offenders. The National Conference of State Legislatures posted a report in 2024 on punishments that follow a driver’s first DUI offense. When it comes to penalties following a driver’s first offense in South Carolina, the state is in the middle among Southeastern states for the offenses that follow the first conviction.  

How Will S.52 Make An Impact? 

S.52’s sponsor, Senator Tom Davis (R-Beaufort) wrote in an op-ed that, “More than just a touch-up, this bill is an overhaul, filling in the gaps where our statutes are lacking or leveling the playing field for the statutes that do more to help drunk drivers evade consequences than actually protect innocent motorists.” S.52 is split into twelve sections, and each strengthens the authority of law enforcement and increases penalties for DUI offenders. Some highlights of the bill include:  

• Video Requirements: Officer recordings of the arrest and sobriety tests of DUIs no longer must be perfect. Instead, the videos only need to “substantially comply” with video requirements, meaning it is still acceptable if there are minor errors, such as audio and camera errors.  However, a judge could block certain evidence from being shown to the jury. 

• Additional Penalty: If a driver is found guilty of other illegal actions while driving under the influence, such as speeding, then the driver could be fined up to $1,000, sentenced to an additional 180 days in jail, or both. This would be added to any other fines and sentences for driving under the influence.  

• Victim Impact Panel: A judge could order drivers to attend a Victim Impact Panel. These panels allow individuals who drove under the influence to hear from victims of DUI accidents, so drivers can understand how their decisions affected others.  

• Felony Driving: Individuals who are convicted of driving under the influence and cause moderate bodily harm or personal property damage over $25,000 would be guilty of felony driving under the influence in the second degree. Offenders would be fined between $3,000 and $6,000 and would go to prison between 60 days and 10 years. After being released from jail, offenders would be required to have an ignition interlock device installed on their car for one year. This device prevents a vehicle from starting when alcohol is detected in the breath of a driver.  

• • S.52 defines “moderate bodily harm” as “physical injury that involves prolonged loss of consciousness, or that causes temporary or moderate disfigurement or temporary loss of the function of a bodily member or organ, or injury that requires medical treatment when the treatment requires the use of regional or general anesthesia or injury that results in a fracture or dislocation. Moderate bodily injury does not include a one-time treatment and subsequent observation of scratches, cuts, abrasions, bruises, burns, splinters, or any other injuries that do not ordinarily require extensive medical care.” 

• • This differs from how one would be charged currently with a felony DUI. Under Section 56-5-2945, individuals who are convicted of driving under the influence and cause great bodily injury or death are guilty of a felony DUI. “Great Bodily Injury” refers to “bodily injury which creates a substantial risk of death or which causes serious, permanent disfigurement, or protracted loss or impairment of the function of any bodily member or organ.” In addition to the parameters of a felony DUI, the consequences are also different. Under current law, drivers would pay a fine between $5,100 – $10,100 and go to prison for 30 days – 15 years when great bodily harm occurs. If a victim of a felony DUI dies, then drivers must pay $10,100 – $25,100 and go to jail for 1 – 25 years.  

• Restitution for Dependents Affected by a Felony DUI: The court could order offenders to pay for restitution that helps children or dependents of someone who is killed, disabled, or totally and permanently disabled by a person who is convicted of a felony DUI.  

• • “Disabled” means “a legal disability as is measured by functional inabilities; and includes inabilities caused by psychological, psychiatric, or stress-related trauma, and refers to any person seventeen years of age or older who is unable to make informed decisions with respect to his or her personal affairs to the extent that he or she lacks the capacity to provide for his or her physical health and safety or the physical health and safety of a minor child, including but not limited to health care, food, shelter, clothing, or personal hygiene.  

• • “Totally and permanently disabled” means “the inability to do any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or which has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than twelve months; and includes a finding of permanent total disability by the Social Security Administration that a person is disabled and qualifies for benefits or a finding by an administrative law judge.” 

• Blood Tests: If an officer has reason to believe that a driver is under the influence of drugs, besides alcohol, then the officer could require drivers to take a blood test within three hours of the driver’s arrest.  

• • If a person does not consent to a blood test and this is their first offense, then their license would be suspended for at least one year, not just six months, unless the driver agrees to have an ignition interlock device. If a driver agrees to the test and has a blood alcohol concentration (BAC)- of 0.15 or higher, then the driver’s license would be suspended for at least ninety days, rather than just one month.  

• • For a second offense, refusal would bring a two-year suspension, not only nine months, and a high BAC brings a four-month suspension, not only two months. 

• • For a third offense, refusal would lead to a three-year suspension, not only one year, and a high BAC leads to a six-month suspension, not only three months. 

• • For a fourth offense (and any subsequent ones), refusal would result in a four-year suspension, not only fifteen months, and a high BAC results in an eight-month suspension, not four months. 

The Tort Reform Connection 

Critics of lawsuit reform legislation passed in 2025 argued that true reductions to liquor liability insurance for restaurants and bars must come from strengthening South Carolina’s DUI laws to deter drunk driving altogether. We think the approach has to be “both and.” Legislation to mitigate mandatory insurance minimums for bars and restaurants is necessary, and so is a strengthening of our state’s DUI laws. Irresponsible drivers who choose to drive under the influence should be held accountable for their actions. Changes made in H.3430 (the Tort Reform bill signed into law as Act 42) make certain that defendants have the ability to put drunk drivers on the jury verdict form so fault can be apportioned to the driver who is ultimately responsible for his reckless decisions. Read our full analysis of H.3430 here and see how DUI is connected to tort reform as depicted in our infographic here. 

Conclusion 

Driving under the influence has led to too many lives being destroyed. This societal malady will only grow worse if action is not taken. Since 2019, deaths caused by drunk driving in South Carolina have increased by 22%. S.52 ensures that there is an increase in accountability for offenders. By passing this bill, South Carolina has a chance to protect its communities, support victims, reduce the financial burden on businesses, and send a clear message: impaired driving will not be tolerated in the Palmetto State. This legislation is a step toward saving lives and preventing South Carolinians like Samantha Miller from mourning the loss of a loved one whose death was easily preventable.