South Carolina
S.C. Code Ann. §§ 17-30-20, 17-30-30: It is a felony to intercept,
disclose or use a wire, electronic or oral communication, unless it is
done with the consent of at least one party to the communication.
Under the statute, consent is not required for the taping of a
non-electronic communication uttered by a person who does not have a
reasonable expectation of privacy in that communication. See
definition of "oral communication," S.C. Code Ann. § 17-30-15.
Anyone whose communication has been unlawfully intercepted can recover
actual damages in the amount of $500 per day of violation or $25,000,
whichever is greater, and also can recover punitive damages, litigation
costs and attorney fees. S.C. Code Ann. § 17-30-135.
Another South Carolina statute makes it a misdemeanor to eavesdrop or
be a "Peeping Tom" on the premises of another. S.C. Code Ann. § 16-17-470.
The term "Peeping Tom" includes using video or audio equipment to invade
the privacy of others. However, the statute does not apply to bona fide
news gathering activities. S.C. Code Ann. § 16-17-470(E)(5).
An intermediate appellate court held that the "Peeping Tom" statute was
not applicable to newspaper reporters who attempted to overhear city
council proceedings during a closed executive session because the
reporters were on public property — not the premises of another — and did
nothing "to enable them to overhear what was going on in the executive
session other than to wait in the place provided as a waiting room for
reporters and other members of the public." Neither the overhearing, nor
the publication of anything overheard, violated the South Carolina
statute. Herald Publishing Co. v. Barnwell, 351 S.E.2d 878 (S.C.
App. 1986).
