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PRESORTED PERMIT NO. 97 BEAUFORT, SC 29902
COVERING BEAUFORT COUNTY
LIZ FARRELL
SC’s scales of justice recalibrated
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WALTERBORO or six weeks, a Colleton County jury regarded Alex Murdaugh as though he were an innocent man. Alex had the right to that presumption, of course, and as such his status as an inmate was kept from them. Every morning and evening, when escorting Alex into and out of the courthouse, guards were careful to cover Alex’s handcuffs with his sports coat to keep the reality of his jailhouse residency hidden from any jurors who might pass by. This was important. Had a juror caught sight of those cuffs, it could have been grounds for a mistrial. On Feb. 8, when a prisoner of Ridgeland Correctional Institution — just 37 miles away from the Colleton County Courthouse — allegedly called in a bomb threat during Alex’s trial, Judge Clifton Newman was careful to evacuate the jurors and Alex separately. Afterward, a friend commented to me, “It’s a credit to the judge that he had the presence of mind to sequester and protect the jury in that moment.” Shortly after the unfounded threat, a story began circulating online about a similar incident that had occurred in 2017 during
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A futuristic rendering of SkyDrive’s SD-05 model flying car hovering over Vietnam. Image courtesy of SkyDrive.
Flying cars in our lifetime?
South Carolinians could be first to take to the sky By Michael Cuglietta mcuglietta@postandcourier.com
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BEAUFORT or some, bumper-to-bumper delays inspire rage. But for Tomohiro Fukuzawa, founder of the Tokyo-based flying car startup SkyDrive, rush hour fueled a vision, one in which commuters could escape gridlock by taking to the sky. In February, the Federal Aviation Administration indicated that Fukazawa’s vision could become a reality in the not-too-distant future. At the South Carolina Aviation
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Association’s annual conference in Spartanburg, representatives from the agency assured a room full of pilots and industry professionals, including Georgetown County Airport Manager James Taylor, that safety
regulations for the first generation of flying cars were forthcoming. “They said they believe it’s the wave of the future,” Taylor said. The Beaufort County Economic Development Corp. has been courting SkyDrive since 2022. In January, Fukuzawa announced his company would be establishing a footprint in the U.S. market, choosing Beaufort as home to SkyDrive’s overseas operations. This means South Carolinians
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LOWCOUNTRY LOWDOWN
Ocean may get it but Bay Point safe from developers … for now
The next battle site will be Pine Island
You can call it “good news” for the Gullah-Geechee Fishing Association, who were the official clients opposing the development, along with hundreds of citizens including Gov. Henry McMaster. If you supported the Bangkok, Thailand-based developer’s plans to build a “world class, eco-tourism” community, which they promised would mean more jobs for the local folks, well, maybe it’s
not “good news.” But supporters, as well as opponents of the Bay Point developer, can stay tuned for the ongoing effort to protect Pine Island, on the other end of St. Helena Island, from a gated community. On hold are the county planning staff’s efforts to amend the current Cultural Protection Overlay District zoning, which opponents say will open the door
for Pine Island developers’ plans, including a restricted-entrance security gate and golf course. Members of a citizens task force have hired their own attorney and are reviewing he proposed changes. The County Council, which must ultimately take action on the staff’s proposed changes, has given them until April 10 to report back.
BEAUFORT inally, some good news on the development front. The S.C. Environmental Law Project and Coastal Conservation League announced last week developers of Bay Point Island had dropped their appeal, hopefully bringing an end to
the more-than-two-year battle to build a resort community on the barrier island.
HEALTH
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INSIDE
WiseWords : Tips for eating healthy at fish fry events.
Cynthia Jenkins: Construction starting on two massive structures that will forever change Beaufort.
LowcoSports.com announces the 2022 All-Lowco Football Teams.
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Lowcountry Life A2 News A2–6 Legals A7 Health A8–9 Voices A10 Faith A11
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LOLITA HUCKABY
SEE LOWDOWN PAGE A6
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