Beaufort County councilman at center of jail ‘contraband’ incident named
The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a potential contraband incident involving Tom Reitz, one of the eleven elected officials who sits on the county’s council.
Reitz, who represents thousands of constituents on the southern half of Hilton Head Island, visited one of them in the local jail. It was during the visit with his constituent, local government critic Calvin “Skip” Hoagland, that Reitz somehow snapped a photo on a cell phone he brought into the detention facility.
The possible policy breach that allowed for Reitz to have access to his phone in the jail and any possible criminal implications are currently under review by local law enforcement and the South Carolina Department of Corrections, according to Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner.
What does the law say?
In South Carolina, bringing contraband into a county jail is a felony punishable by a fine or up to ten years in prison. The South Carolina Department of Corrections specifies that cell phones, other than those with specific exceptions, are considered contraband.
Elected officials, including Tanner and the council’s Chair Alice Howard and Vice Chair Tab Tabernik who brought the incident to law enforcement’s attention, did not confirm the names of the individuals involved to “protect the integrity of the investigation.”
However, Hoagland has since responded to the original story from The Island Packet with several messages, including a call and emails, identifying himself as the inmate and Reitz as the elected official in question. He is also adamant that neither Reitz, nor himself, were informed that cell phones were not allowed inside of the jail.
“They now seize councilman Tom Reitz[’s] cell phones and accuse him of crimes visiting and helping me get out of our local jail,” Hoagland wrote in a mass email to reporters, lawyers and elected officials. “He had no clue nor would I that his cell phone was not allowed. No one reminded him and he was allowed to enter with his phone.”
“He made an honest mistake,” Hoagland later said on the phone.
The detention center’s online visitation procedures state that nothing, except for authorized and cleared infant and/or healthcare items, can be brought into the visitation area.
- All other items must be stored in a locker or the visitor’s car.
- It also requires that all onsite visitors pass through a security checkpoint where a more thorough search may be required.
What led to Hoagland’s jail time?
Hoagland, a 77-year old part-time Hilton Head resident, was serving a 15-day sentence after he was found guilty of trespassing a local Republican Party meeting held in January.
It was at this meeting, where the local group hosted Attorney General Alan Wilson, that Hoagland was removed from the meeting and subsequently arrested by Bluffton Police Department officers. At the time, the group’s chair, Kevin Hennelly, told The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette that Hoagland was not a member in good standing, and that he was explicitly warned he would not be allowed into the meeting. Hoagland showed up anyway.
Hoagland has since referred to the arrest as a “set up,” conducted with the intention of “silencing” him.
For years, Hoagland has frequented public meetings at the county and municipal level, using the public comment period to deliver tirades against local chambers of commerce and perceived government corruption.
Many of Hoagland’s previous criminal charges stem from his refusing to step down from the podium at the end of his allotted speaking time. Police have forcibly removed him from meetings on several occasions.
While in jail in the final days of August, Hoagland said he was in severe knee pain. He claims he was without access to his prescription medication, and that he pleaded with Reitz to come help him get it. Reitz did visit, and during that time, used his cell phone to take photos of Hoagland’s cell and the two of them together, Hoagland said.
He blames the facility for the incident, claiming that they did not inform the councilman he could not have a phone. He is adamant that if Reitz knew, he would have complied with the rules.
Messages left with Reitz Friday were not returned before the time of publication.
