Beaufort County’s top attorneys depart after controversial time with county — what’s next?
With both Beaufort County attorneys stepping down — one resigning amid scrutiny and the other retiring — the county faces a transition to new legal leadership.
County Attorney Brittany Ward announced her resignation, effective Dec. 2, prior to allegations that have led to an independent investigation. Former County Attorney Thomas Keaveny, who announced his retirement in July, officially stepped down earlier this month after a challenging tenure in office. Both attorneys were present during a period marked by nine ethics complaints against Beaufort County officials.
Three against former Parks and Recreation Director Shannon Loper
Two against former Administrator Eric Greenway
One against former Deputy Administrator Whitney Richland
One against Special Assistant to the County Administrator Hank Amundson
One against Assistant County Administrator for Infrastructure Jared Fralix (According to Nichols, the case was dismissed Sept. 13, though the state Ethics Commission would not confirm or deny this.)
One against former Capital Improvement Projects Director Eric Larson
The county’s deputy attorneys — Dylan Kidd and Brian Hulbert — will temporarily manage the caseloads of Ward and Keaveny while the county advertises to permanently fill their position, county spokesperson Hannah Nichols said.
Ward’s resignation is unrelated to recent allegations or the independent investigation into alleged improper actions she may have taken, Nichols said. Ward also gave her 60-day notice about two weeks before any citizen allegations were made, Nichols added. The county received a citizen complaint regarding Ward, but could not speak on the veracity of the complaints, a county statement read. The county forwarded the complaint to law enforcement to initiate an independent legal review.
“We want to assure the citizens of Beaufort County that we take all allegations of impropriety seriously, and if evidence of impropriety is found it will be forwarded to the appropriate authorities,” the statement read.
Ward recently came under scrutiny for representing her parents in a land sale to the county, which generated a $144,000 profit for them, according to the Post & Courier. The 1.8-acre property, located at 20 Barrel Landing Road, was purchased in late 2021 for $290,000 by Ward’s parents, Michael and Julienne Orr, and was sold to the county in February 2024 through the Rural and Critical Lands Preservation Program for its appraised value of $434,000.
Keaveny’s tenure was also marked by controversy, including his authorization of consulting contracts for former county employees. In January 2020, then County Administrator Ashley Jacobs confirmed that Keaveny had been demoted from county attorney to deputy county attorney, with his salary reduced from $130,000 to $105,000. He was replaced by former Charleston County Administrator Kurt Taylor, whom Keaveny had hired as deputy attorney.
The leadership change came shortly after Keaveny introduced a draft ordinance to allow the council chairman to remove, and potentially arrest, “disruptive” speakers at public meetings, a proposal criticized by Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner as a potential violation of free speech rights. Since then, he had been promoted back to the county attorney role.
County Administrator Michael Moore, who oversees the county attorney roles, was unavailable for comment this week. Efforts to reach Ward were unsuccessful but are ongoing.
This story was originally published October 30, 2024 at 1:08 PM.
