It is unlawful to remove or damage an airport facility or equipment with malicious intent. A person violating the provisions of this section is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be:
(1) fined not less than ten thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than five years, or both;
(2) fined not less than ten thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both, if injury results from malicious damage or removal of airport facilities or equipment;
(3) imprisoned not more than thirty years if death results from the malicious damage or removal of airport facilities or equipment.
This section shall not apply to damage that is neither malicious nor intentional to crushable materials, collapsible structures, or aircraft arresting systems that are designed to deform when used.
HISTORY: 1962 Code Section 2-23; 1972 (57) 2344; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 1288, eff July 1, 1993; 1993 Act No. 184, Section 80, eff January 1, 1994; 2012 Act No. 270, Section 1, eff June 18, 2012.
Editor's Note
This section was amended by 1993 Act No. 181 and Act No. 184. As set out above, this section reads as amended by Act No. 184, as the amendment by Act No. 181 made no substantive change in the section, and pursuant to the direction of 1993 Act No. 181, Section 1614, which provides as follows:
"SECTION 1614. Notwithstanding any permanent or temporary provision of law, any enactment, or portion thereof, of the General Assembly in 1993 in conflict with any provision of this act shall be suspended as to its force and effect until March 1, 1994. Where there is no conflict the provisions of any other enactments shall supersede the provisions of this act. For the purposes of this section, 'conflict' shall not include:
"(1) where provisions of the Code of Laws of 1976, as amended, are repeated herein so as to incorporate only changes in the names of agencies, divisions or departments, except so far as such change in name conflicts with another enactment or a portion of another enactment, or.
"(2) where provisions of the Code of Laws of 1976, as amended, are repeated herein so as to incorporate only changes in the governance or structure of an agency, division or department except so far as such governance or structure is in conflict with another enactment or some portion of another enactment."
Effect of Amendment
The first 1993 amendment made grammatical changes.
The second 1993 amendment rewrote this section so as to change portions from misdemeanors to felonies and the maximum term of imprisonment to conform to the new crime classification system.
The 2012 amendment, in subsections (1) and (2), substituted "ten" for "one" preceding "thousand dollars"; and added the undesignated paragraph at the end of the section.
CROSS REFERENCES
Post-conviction DNA procedures, see Sections 17-28-10 et seq.
Preservation of DNA evidence, see Sections 17-28-310 et seq.
Violent crimes defined, see Section 16-1-60.
Structure South Carolina Code of Laws
Chapter 1 - General Provisions
Section 55-1-7. Fees and fines deposited into State Aviation Fund.
Section 55-1-10. Liability of owners and operators generally to guests.
Section 55-1-20. Liability of public carriers.
Section 55-1-30. Unlawful removing or damaging of airport facility or equipment.
Section 55-1-40. Unlawful entry of aircraft; damaging or removing equipment.
Section 55-1-50. Landing or taking off on public highways.
Section 55-1-60. Reserved by 2012 Act No. 270, Section 1, eff June 18, 2012.
Section 55-1-70. Reserved by 2012 Act No. 270, Section 1, eff June 18, 2012.
Section 55-1-80. Appointment of additional members to county aviation commission.