NEWS: Some Beaufort County buildings already re-opened. PAGE A3
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Voter’s Guide: Primaries set for June 9
PEACEFUL PROTEST
By Mindy Lucas Despite discussions to postpone June’s statewide primaries and possible runoff elections due to the coronavirus outbreak, elections will proceed as scheduled. That means primaries will take place on Tuesday, June 9 and any runoff elections will be held on Tuesday, June ID required 23. You will need Those con- a photo ID cerned about in order to vote. See list COVID-19 or of accepted need to vote photo IDs on absentee, take page, A7. note: Governor Henry McMaster recently signed into law legislation that allows all qualified South Carolina voters to vote absentee in any election held in June. (The provision expires on July 1 and does not apply to any elections after that date.) Voters need only to choose Reason 18 – State of Emergency on the absentee application and have up until 5 p.m. the day before the election to vote by absentee ballot at the county’s election offices. For those interested in voting in Tuesday’s primary, here’s what you need to know:
At least 20 and as many as 75 people gathered throughout the day on Sunday at Ribaut Road and Boundary Street across from Beaufort City Hall and Beaufort Police Department to protest police brutality and injustice. The event was slated to begin about noon and go on all day, but some people began gathering as early as 9 a.m. Photos by Bob Sofaly.
Takin’ it to the streets Beaufort residents gather to call for justice after George Floyd dies at hands of police
“Black lives matter.” “Stop the violence.” “Please, I can’t breathe.” “With Liberty and Justice for all.” “Solidarity.” “What if it was your brother?” “What if it was your son?” “Justice for Trey Pringle.” “We need justice.” “What if it was your own family?”
I
f you’ve driven past the intersection of Ribaut Road and Boundary Street the past few days, you’ve likely seen one or more of these signs. Like much of the rest of the country over the past few days, some folks in Beaufort stood up to say enough is enough. On Monday, May 25, George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American man, was killed while in police custody in Minneapolis. While he was handcuffed and
MIKE MCCOMBS
face down on the ground, white police officer Derek Chauvin, kneeled on him, pressing his knee into his neck for almost nine minutes while Floyd pleaded that he hurt and could not breathe, even asking for his mother. Three other police officers essentially stood and watched. Eventually, Floyd stopped pleading, dying on the street. By Tuesday, video of the incident, difficult to watch, was viral, and the four officers were fired. And the protests began. In
Who’s on the Ballot Since there is no opposition for the Democratic nominations in Beaufort County, there will be no Democratic Party primary in this election, so only those running in Republican primaries on June 9 are listed below. (Candidates will then go on to face their Democratic challenger, if any, in November.) Those candidates include:
Minneapolis. And Louisville. And New York. And Los Angeles. And Nashville. And Atlanta. And everywhere, it seemed. By Friday night, America was on fire. At this point, Chauvin was arrested and charged with 3rd-degree murder. In the long run, experience tells me, that may be meaningless.
Here in Beaufort While chaos was ruling elsewhere, as close as Savannah and Charleston, JaCorey Wright and Timothy Garvin, with help from others, of course, set the wheels in motion in their backyard. What started Saturday with a handful of folks on the side of the street, by Sunday afternoon had progressed into 75 people on the
U.S. Senate Duke Buckner Lindsey Graham (incumbent) Michael LaPierre Joe Reynolds U.S. House of Representatives District 01 Chris Cox Kathy Landing Nancy Mace Brad Mole
Protest organizer Tim Garvin. Photo by Jeff Evans.
SEE MCCOMBS PAGE A7
Coronavirus deaths reach 500 in SC; cases on rise Senior, By Mike McCombs The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) reported its 500th death as a result of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 on Monday. DHEC reported 297 new cases, including four in Beaufort County,
50% Militaryand the state had just 90,OFF the lowest number since April 20. & First But in the sevenFirst days since, there Responder have been 1,976 new confirmed casExam es in the state, or roughly one sixth Discountof all the confirmed cases since test-
and six deaths. There have now been 12,148 confirmed cases in the state. But the numbers are beginning to tick upward. On May 25, roughly the two-week mark since Gov. Henry McMaster began to re-open the state by allowing dine-in services at restaurants,
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Beaufort County had zero new cases
ing began in S.C., including 420 on
S.C. House of Representatives District 118 (Beaufort and Jasper Counties) Bill Herbkersman (incumbent) Mike Covert
Saturday after a Sunday adjustment by DHEC. There have now been 385 confirmed cases, according to DHEC, in Beaufort County, along with 14 deaths. The last two came May 27, according to the Beaufort County Coroner’s Office.
SEE VOTERS PAGE A7 We are. Accreditation
MAKING BEST OF BAD SITUATION
HIGH HOPES BHS and BCHS hold “drive-by” graduations.
Owens continues to exceed expectations, aims for NBA.
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