Journal of the House of Representatives
of the Second Session of the 110th General Assembly
of the State of South Carolina
being the Regular Session Beginning Tuesday, January 11, 1994

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| Printed Page 1620, Feb. 10 | Printed Page 1640, Feb. 10 |
Printed Page 1630 . . . . . Thursday, February 10, 1994
because as you know the young people today are so influenced by the -- by their older peers with regard to this -- the drug problem that we are faced with in this country and when they see the drug dealers with the big cars and the fancy jewelry, it tends to make those teenagers think that's the way to go rather than going to school and hopefully, you know, I can address that problem on a day to day basis with each of these individuals and hopefully help somebody. But I realize that is a problem.
Q. You have introduced I believe a resolution from the Fairfield County Bar endorsing your candidacy?
A. Yes, ma'am.
Q. And I'd like to ask you the same question Mr. Elliott asked the other candidates, have you sought directly or indirectly the pledge of any legislature -- legislator to vote for you for Family Court --
A. No, ma'am. I spoke to a couple of legislators before I decided to run just to -- because I respected their opinions with regard to my ability and with regard to the position as it was going to become available or open, but I've sought no pledges and I think probably the biggest disappointment about running for this is that nobody ran against me, so Walter Brown doesn't get to go out and work for me, so I don't think he solicited any votes for me either.
Q. And are you aware of any solicitation without your authorization or request of any legislator?
A. I'm not aware of any and I certainly don't think there's been any since I have no opposition.
Q. I have no other question.
THE CHAIRMAN: You have an A rating by Martindale-Hubbell; is that correct?
A. AV, yes, sir.
THE CHAIRMAN: Thank you very much. Any questions?
REPRESENTATIVE ALEXANDER: Yes, sir.
THE CHAIRMAN: Mr. Alexander.
EXAMINATION BY REPRESENTATIVE ALEXANDER:
Q. Some judges are classified as the hanging judge. We had one classified as the sexist judge. How would you like to be classified if you were elected?
A. Well, I hope they just call me the fairest judge. I don't know whether -- about that, but that would be the way I would like to be categorized -- characterized.
Q. You know, the General -- some of the public says we're not sentencing them, our criminals, severely enough?
A. Yes, sir. I don't care to get into any ladies' magazines --
Printed Page 1631 . . . . . Thursday, February 10, 1994
Q. How do you respond to that?
A. -- I can tell you that. You know as far as teenagers are concerned, you know, after practicing law for 20 years, you see the same defendants. It seems like when you have a term of court, you go in and you see these same people are there every time you have court and it's the same way with the teenagers.

The judges will send them down for R and E in hopes that they'll get their attention and then the next term of court they're right back in trouble again. I don't know what it's going to take, but I think we're going to have, you know, crack down on these teenagers who are habitually in the Family Court.
Q. And you would do that?
A. Yes, sir. I feel like we would have to do that.
THE CHAIRMAN: Senator Moore.
EXAMINATION BY SENATOR MOORE:
Q. Mr. Brown, that leads me to my question or comment, you say that because of the problems of sending them out to R and E, the problem we've faced in the past at DYS right now, we've got the overcrowding lawsuit.

It seems as though in times past it might have been from the standpoint of convenience or just frustration or whatever, a lot of kids who were sent -- because of truancy problems sent to DYS and they become very educated and that's why they come back and that's why they end up there for a long time.

I certainly hope, and I'm not asking you to set -- state to this committee what your plans are as far as truancy because you'll have to look at it on each individual basis and what's going on, but I certainly hope that it will be a different mentality of just, well, let's just send them up to DYS because of school truancies or some other I guess you'd say nonviolent cases or nonviolent offenses or some determining factors rather than just conveniently shipping them to DYS where they become very educated very quickly and then you see them again and you send them up for a lot longer. That's what's been going on in fact.
A. Yes, I recognize that the simplest way in so many cases is just send them to R and E and I agree with you, you know, once they've been in the system, they get educated in a hurry and I certainly would hope that the -- I know our local school system where I've done most of my practice, I think they're doing a little bit better job on the truancy and staying in behind the parents in hopes of cutting down on the situations where you have to send them somewhere because they don't go to school,

Printed Page 1632 . . . . . Thursday, February 10, 1994
but I certainly don't want to be using the system as a means to force children going to school if at all possible.
Q. Thank you.
A. Yes, sir.
THE CHAIRMAN: Thank you, Mr. Brown. Any further questions? If not, we appreciate it. That concludes the applicants for the Family Court Seat for the Sixth Judicial Circuit. We do have a screening for a retired Judge Thomas B. Barrineau, Jr. Judge Barrineau, if you'd come forward, please. Please raise your right hand.
THOMAS B. BARRINEAU, JR., having been duly sworn, testified as follows:
THE CHAIRMAN: Judge Barrineau, your last screening was February 27, 1990 when you were reelected to the Family Court Seat for the Sixth Judicial Circuit. Have you had a chance to review the Personal Data Questionnaire summary?
JUDGE BARRINEAU: Yes, I have.
THE CHAIRMAN: Is that correct?
JUDGE BARRINEAU: Yes, sir. It is correct.
THE CHAIRMAN: Are there any clarifications that need to be made or changes?
JUDGE BARRINEAU: No, sir. I think it's fine.
THE CHAIRMAN: Do you have any objection to our making the summary a part of the record of your sworn testimony?
JUDGE BARRINEAU: No. No, sir, I'd be glad for you to.
THE CHAIRMAN: And that's so ordered.

PERSONAL DATA QUESTIONNAIRE SUMMARY

1. Thomas B. Barrineau, Jr.
Home Address: Business Address:
Route 2, Box 25T P. O. Box 366
Winnsboro, SC 29180 Winnsboro, SC 29180

2. He was born in Florence County, South Carolina on August 7, 1939. He is presently 54 years old.

4. He was married to Valeria Elizabeth Blair on July 29, 1963. He has three children: Elizabeth Blair Barrineau Hemlepp, age 27 (homemaker); Thomas Basil, III, age 25 (deputy with Richland County Sheriff's Department); and Ray Blair, age 21 (full-time student, Charleston University).

Printed Page 1633 . . . . . Thursday, February 10, 1994
5. Military Service: South Carolina National Guard, 1960-1966 Enlisted Man, Honorable Discharge

6. He attended the University of South Carolina, 1959-1963, A.B., Journalism; and the University of South Carolina Law School, 1963-1966, J.D.

8. Legal/Judicial education during the past five years:
He has complied with all requirements pertaining to continued legal education for judges.

10. Published Books and Articles: Law Review Article

12. Legal experience since graduation from law school:

1966-1967 With Horger & Horger Firm in Orangeburg, South Carolina
1967-1969 General Practice with Senator John Martin in Winnsboro, South Carolina
1969-1980 General Practice in Winnsboro, South Carolina
1969-1980 Part-Time Probate Judge of Fairfield County in Winnsboro, South Carolina
1980-1982 Judge of the Family Court, Sixth Judicial Circuit
1982-1986 Judge of the Family Court, Sixth Judicial Circuit
1986-1990 Judge of the Family Court, Sixth Judicial Circuit
1990-present Judge of the Family Court, Sixth Judicial Circuit

13. Rating in Martindale-Hubbell:He is listed but not rated because of his present position as Family Court Judge. Martindale-Hubbell does not rate judges.

20. Judicial Office:
Fairfield County Probate Judge, 1969-1980, elected
Family Court Judge; Sixth Judicial Circuit; July, 1980-1982; elected
Family Court Judge, Sixth Judicial Circuit, 1982-1986, elected
Family Court Judge, Sixth Judicial Circuit, 1986-1990, elected
Family Court Judge, Sixth Judicial Circuit, 1990-present, elected

21. Five (5) Significant Orders or Opinions:
(a) Martha Anderson Hunt v. Jefferson Davis Hunt, III, a/k/a Jeff D. Hunt, Jr. and Jeff Hunt Machinery Company.

Printed Page 1634 . . . . . Thursday, February 10, 1994
This was a Lexington County case which was under appeal to Supreme Court. This case involved large financial division where it was hard to distinguish between marital and non-marital property.
(b) C. Carl Johnson v. Terry Cobb Johnson. This was a Greenwood County case which was under appeal to Supreme Court. This is a landmark case pertaining to awarding of full alimony where marriage was of short duration.
(c) Chester County Department of Social Services v. Joe L. Coleman, et al. This was a Chester County case which was under appeal to Supreme Court. Order giving jurisdiction to Tribal Court in a case involving full-blooded Sioux Indians who were abused by their parents while living in South Carolina.
(d) Cathy Martin Bagnal, f/k/a Cathy Lee Martin v. John DuRant Martin. This was a Horry County case which was under appeal to Supreme Court. Very serious allegations of child sexual molestation.
(e) Oscar and Mildred Harrison v. S. C. Department of Social Services Adoption Birth Parents Services. This was a Chester County case. An adoption of a very young child by an elderly couple who had custody of the child for the past five years.

These are five cases that come to mind immediately; however, he does not feel that these cases are any more important or more significant than any of the other hundreds of cases he has heard in the past years. All cases are important and significant in his opinion.

22. Public Office: Probate Judge of Fairfield County, 1969-1980

45. Bar Association and Professional Organizations:
South Carolina Bar Association; American Bar Association

46. Civic, charitable, educational, social and fraternal organizations:
First Methodist Church; Alumni Association, University of South Carolina; Gamecock Club, University of South Carolina

Printed Page 1635 . . . . . Thursday, February 10, 1994
48. Five (5) letters of recommendation:
(a) M. Stephen Brakefield, Senior Vice President
Bank of Ridgeway
P. O. Box 888, Winnsboro, SC 29180
635-5500
(b) F. Creighton McMaster, President
Winnsboro Petroleum Company
P. O. Drawer 449, Winnsboro, SC 29180
635-4668
(c) Brooks P. Goldsmith, Esquire
P. O. Box 2227, Lancaster, SC 29721-2227
286-6989
(d) John A. Martin, Esquire
P. O. Box 298, Winnsboro, SC 29180
635-4912
(e) Honorable Timothy C. Wilkes
Box 127, Winnsboro, SC 29180
635-6696

PERSONAL DATA QUESTIONNAIRE - ADDENDUM

2. Positions on the Bench:

1980-1982 Judge of the Family Court, Sixth Judicial Circuit, Seat #2
1982-1986 Judge of the Family Court, Sixth Judicial Circuit, Seat #2
1986-1990 Judge of the Family Court, Sixth Judicial Circuit, Seat #2
1990-present Judge of the Family Court, Sixth Judicial Circuit, Seat #2

The Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline reports there are no complaints or charges of any kind have been filed against you. The Judicial Standards Commission has no record of reprimands against you. The records of the appropriate law enforcement agencies, that being the Fairfield County Sheriff's Department, the Winnsboro City Police Department and SLED and FBI records, are negative. The Judgement Rolls of Fairfield County are negative. The Federal Court records are negative. Is all that correct?
JUDGE BARRINEAU: That's correct.

Printed Page 1636 . . . . . Thursday, February 10, 1994
THE CHAIRMAN: We do have one complaint that we have received and one witness who -- I understand two witnesses who are here and present to testify. At this time I'm going to ask Ms. McNamee if she would ask you a few questions.
JUDGE BARRINEAU: All right. Thank you.
JUDGE BARRINEAU - EXAMINATION BY MS. MCNAMEE:
Q. Judge Barrineau, would you expound a little bit for the Committee on your philosophy of the appropriate demeanor for a judge in the courtroom?
A. Well, I think a judge has to be patient and listen to the testimony from both sides of the case and then make a decision based on what he hears in the courtroom only. That's my position. I try to be fair, but stern. And that's always been my philosophy.
Q. Is it ever appropriate to -- you say stern, would you lose your temper --
A. I don't allow -- there is not much levity in Family Court and I don't allow much levity in the courtroom and I'm always very serious. I treat the people with respect and I call them Mr. and Mrs. and I want formality in the courtroom and decorum and that's what I try to maintain in the courtroom at all times, so --
Q. What is the way you run your court? Could you just explain a little bit about the hours of your work day, the way you've -- when you arrive for court and sort of the routine, sir.
A. Well, I travel the Sixth Circuit. I arrive generally at 9:30 because some of the lawyers have expressed to me that they like to go to their office, open the mail and arrange their desk and do things before they actually have to run to the courtroom at 9:30, so I generally start at 9:30. And in the smaller counties where all the lawyers are located, you know, across the street from the courthouses and all, we generally just set -- in a lot of counties, we have court only once a month for a week at a time, so I generally set my cases for 9:30 and 2:00 o'clock.

That's the way I've been doing it all these years, so -- in a large county -- when you're in Richland County or Greenville County or Charleston or Myrtle Beach or one of the other counties where the close proximity of the law offices are not at the courthouse, then, you know, we schedule them every 15 minutes, every 30 minutes, every hour, whatever.
Q. And coming from again the same small town that we just talked about with Mr. Brown, does that create any problems when you talk about the standards for recusing yourself or disqualifying yourself being in a small legal community? In that way, what are your bright line tests there?

Printed Page 1637 . . . . . Thursday, February 10, 1994
A. Well, you have to take each objection -- if somebody objects to you hearing a case, you have to weigh that as to the reasons why and so forth. In a small town, you naturally know everybody and everybody knows you and just a mere acquaintance shouldn't disqualify you from hearing a case because if you did that, you'd never hear any case and there'd always be another judge assigned to your home town because you actually know everybody and, you know, you have to take it on a case by case basis. And if they have a real personal feeling that they would be prejudiced in the case, I generally recuse myself.

I don't force it on them. But, you know, you have to bear in mind, too, that when you do recuse yourself, and a lot of judges do it on the spur of the moment or just for any reason or knowing someone or having been friends with someone's mother or something like that, then that involves having to send another judge, pull him out of another circuit, send him in there for a day or two to hear that particular case and it breaks down and disrupts the system and so forth, so you need to weigh each case and be sure that there is a legitimate objection to your hearing the case.

I have recused myself on many cases.
Q. Could you give an example of two of those?
A. Well, you have to excuse me. I've got a terrible cold and I'm so dry I can't hardy speak, but I can't think of one specifically at the moment. I recused myself on cases involving local attorneys.

We have an attorney that he was involved in a case at this time and I didn't want to hear his case. I don't know. I can't think of anything specifically at the moment.
Q. Was there a specific reason why you didn't want to hear that case or --
A. Well, because he practiced --
Q. -- he was a defendant or a plaintiff?
A. He was practiced before -- but he was actually a litigant in a case and so I have -- we have another judge there I believe tomorrow to hear his case.
Q. Okay.
A. But he's coming out of Rock Hill just for that one case.
Q. What -- Judge Barrineau, having been on the bench for 14 years, what are the most significant changes that you have observed in Family Court during this tenure?
A. Well, I'm going to tell you, one of them is this, where we are today. I can remember 14 years ago coming in here with Senator Smith from Florence and Bill McLeod who was another judge candidate and the three

Printed Page 1638 . . . . . Thursday, February 10, 1994
of us sitting in this same room and he filled out two forms and that was essentially it and now you see what we've evolved into today.

All the discovery and the -- provided to the attorneys and so forth in cases have just bloomed and blossomed and grown and the case law itself has just spread further and further and further like a rising tide. It's just becoming more detailed and more intricate now than it ever has been before and we're looking at what used to be a general rule, we're looking at exceptions to the exceptions to the exception under microscopes and accepting motions on those type things now, so it's really more complicated and more detailed now than it was probably 14 years ago.
Q. What part of being a judge have you enjoyed the most?
A. Well, I enjoy all of it because like Mr. Brown, I enjoy dealing with people and I'd never make an appellate judge because they don't ever deal with people, but I like being in the courtroom and I like to deal with people's problems. I enjoy adoptions. I don't enjoy custody cases or custody fights and so forth, but you realize that in almost all cases, 50 percent of the people who leave the courtroom are not satisfied.

Now occasionally you have a case where both parties are very happy when they leave such as in a divorce or something like that where they hate each other, you know, and sometimes they all leave mad. And I consider if they both leave mad, maybe I've done a little bit better job than I did if both leave happy or one leaves mad and one leaves happy and so forth.
Q. What do you foresee is your role as a retired judge?
A. Well, I -- you know, I don't know. I've always loved the State of South Carolina. I love the judiciary. I love the Bar. Lawyers are my best friends. I've got a plaque in my office that says that. And I just like the legal system and I've been involved in it for all these years.

I was a probate judge for ten years prior to this in Fairfield County, so I've always served in the Judiciary and it's just kind of hard to let go sometimes and I don't know that I'll ever, you know, substitute or do it. I'm going to take about six months off and just clear my head and get away and make some real hard decisions, but I didn't want to cut off my opportunity to do it if I decided, you know, to do it later.

I've been assured by Court Administration that if I elect to do it that they will keep me busy in different parts of the state, so -- but it's a nonpaying job. I mean I'm offering my services to the State essentially free. You have to pay me per diem if I go and serve, but you don't have to pay me any additional money other than my retirement, so it's a free service to the State and not many people do it and I just felt like it was an opportunity for me to continue to do something that I've loved all these

Printed Page 1639 . . . . . Thursday, February 10, 1994
years and I'd hate to cut the umbilical cord totally, so I don't know. That's it.
THE CHAIRMAN: Thank you, Judge Barrineau. Questions?
REPRESENTATIVE ALEXANDER: Yes, I'd like to ask --
THE CHAIRMAN: Mr. Alexander.
EXAMINATION BY REPRESENTATIVE ALEXANDER:
Q. We hear a lot of complaints about fathers not providing child support. What could we do to cause a change in this? I've read of places where they really have clamped down on this, withholding pay and that kind of thing and what could we do to say to require them --
A. Well, we've tried to -- we run the gamut so to speak on it in my opinion. We've done everything. I think we're doing a pretty fair job in South Carolina of enforcing child support. I'm adamant about that.

I require the child support and I'm not very sympathetic to people who have a history or long record of not paying. If they pay regularly or have tried in the past to pay and it's obvious that they stopped at some point because they lost their job, then I'm sympathetic with them. But we have them that go back and they pay maybe four times in the last five years and they got a bill for 12 or 15,000 dollars and so forth. I've tried everything. I've tried -- we lock them up and give them an opportunity to pay out -- pay part of the money and get out. Do different things like that.

I put them to public service working on the weekends for the County and that kind of thing, picking up litter, and all that sort of backfired on me because I had them pick it up on 321 which is where I live and I'm sure whoever was supervising would point out my house and for several weeks after that I had a lot of garbage in my driveway, but as a revenge factor, I think. But I've done -- I've tried about everything that I know to try to influence -- but I think we do a pretty good job of it.

The Attorney General's office keeps up with it and they come in once a week in our counties -- in our three counties, and we have what we call Father's Day and it's not totally Father's Day. It's Mother's Day, too, in some respects, but we collect a good bit of money when they're brought in. I don't know of anything else we can do. We've held them up to public demeanor and all of that. I mean they put the names and pictures on posters and do all that. I don't know whether that does any good or not.
Q. Is it not true that some are withholding pay where they work?
A. Oh, they would do that. Yes, sir. We always have them sign up for wage withholding when they come in pay up. If they aren't already signed up, we sign them up automatically.

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