Public Information
About the 14th Circuit Solicitor's Office
The Fourteenth Circuit Solicitor’s Office is the chief prosecuting agency for Allendale, Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper counties. Covering 3,200 square-miles of South Carolina’s renowned Lowcountry, we are the only five-county circuit in the state.
Our primary role is to prosecute all cases in General Sessions Court, certain misdemeanors in Magistrate’s Court and all criminal cases in Family Court. Each year, we prosecute approximately 5,000 cases.
Additionally, our office operates a number of prevention programs including pre-trial intervention, worthless check, alcohol education, traffic education, treatment-based courts and juvenile arbitration.
The office is led by the Solicitor, who is elected every four years. Solicitor Duffie Stone was appointed by the Governor in 2006. He was re-elected in 2008, 2012 and 2016.
More Information
- Office Overview
- About Solicitor Duffie Stone
- History
- Partnerships
- Career Criminal Unit
- Federal prosecution
- Special Victims Unit
- Intelligence Unit
- Locations & Contact Information
- Download Solicitor's Office Logo
- Cameras in the Courtroom
- Request a Speaker or Tour
- List of 14th Circuit law-enforcement agencies
- The legal process explained
- Data Central: Key performance indicators
Latest Press Releases
Beaufort County General Sessions Court list of matters for week of 12/16/2022
A list of potential matters for Dec. 12-16, 2022, term of Beaufort County General Sessions Court, the Honorable Brooks P. Goldsmith presiding. Please note this …
Colleton County General Sessions Court list of matters for week of 12/12/2022
A list of potential matters for Dec. 12-16, 2022, term of Colleton County General Sessions Court, the Honorable Alison Renee Lee presiding. Please note this …
Jasper County General Sessions Court list of matters for week of 11/28/2022
A list of potential matters for Nov. 28-Dec. 2, 2022, term of Jasper County General Sessions Court, the Honorable Carmen T. Mullen presiding. Please note …
The Solicitor's Office in other news media
A collection of news stories involving the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office and Solicitor Duffie Stone.
Community News
Cottageville man convicted of cemetery shooting
WALTERBORO, SC (Oct. 13, 2022) – A Cottageville man with a history of harassing people at a rural cemetery in Colleton County has been found …
First graduate of Colleton treatment court grateful to be out of prison, on road to recovery
WALTERBORO, SC (September 1, 2022) – Talon Barnes was such a tough case, even the program director who approved him for a new Colleton County …
Career Criminal Unit provides lasting protection from 14th Circuit’s most violent offenders
Stone’s novel idea not only shut revolving door; it saved counties money, too As the Beaufort and Jasper detention centers almost literally overflowed with defendants …
Important Documents
Position Papers & Court Documents
- 2020 Teaching Hospital Model and the Criminal Justice System
- 2018 SC Commission on Prosecution Coordination Officer Involved Shooting Task Force survey results
- Intelligence-led prosecution in a medium-sized office
- Project Safe 14
- SCCPC Domestic Violence Crimes Chart (Both sides)
- State v. Young Jr.
- Effective criminal-justice reform in SC
- DUI Pilot Program prosecution summary report
Domestic Violence Advisory Committee
Solicitor Duffie Stone has been chairman of the S.C. Domestic Violence Advisory Committee since its inception in 2015. This multidisciplinary body was formed to decrease the incidences of domestic violence by developing an understanding of its causes, planning and implementing changes within agencies represented on the committee to stem domestic violence; and advising the governor and General Assembly on policies and practices that will prevent domestic violence.
Measures taken after March 2020 to stem the spread of COVID-19 included shutdowns of many court operations, including jury trials. Unfortunately, crime continued unabated. The result is a substantial backlog of criminal cases in jurisdictions around the country, including South Carolina’s 14th Judicial Circuit. Solicitor Duffie Stone has a plan to reduce the backlog much faster and to provide updates here to track our progress.