Details emerge of a 7-month probe into leaks in Beaufort County government. What to know
This story was updated at 4:15 p.m. to include a response from councilman Mark Lawson.
At the end of a nearly three-hour workshop involving the Beaufort County council and it’s administrator Michael Moore, District 11 representative Tom Reitz asked what appeared to be a fairly innocuous question, but his query brought into the public light a revelation about an ongoing workplace investigation initiated by the county.
Hannah Nichols, spokesperson for the county, confirmed the existence of the investigation Thursday night. The investigation is being spearheaded by the county’s administration. A labor relations and employment law firm out of Columbia, Bettis Law Group, is conducting the investigation, according to an engagement letter provided by Nichols.
“This is an administration-led investigation into potential violations of the County’s Employee Handbook or policies in regard to the release of confidential, privileged and/or personal information to the public,” Nichols wrote in an email Friday afternoon to The Island Packet.
The investigation opened in June 2024, was suspended, and was reopened in December, Nichols wrote.
“We are being approached by an outside law firm for this investigation,” Reitz said during the public workshop. “Some are participating, some are not. One of the key things that we all focus on is that we are not targeting and that we are not on a witch hunt.”
“Our focus is to make sure the staff knows that we value them. Information is information and [it] shouldn’t be used against anybody,” Reitz said.
Moore responded to Reitz, saying that as administrator, part of his role is to investigate what he would consider to be violations of the county handbook and policies. He went on to say that he does not have the resources to interview each staff member individually. The administrator said that he does have the ability to discipline administrative employees, but he does not hold the same authority for elected members of council.
Elected officials are able to opt in or out of the investigation, according to Nichols.
Reitz, along with Alice Howard, the newly-elected council chair, Tab Tabernik, the newly-elected vice chair, District 2 councilman David Bartholomew, District 3 councilman York Glover and District 7 councilman Logan Cunningham have opted in to being interviewed.
District 5 councilman Joe Passiment is undecided at this point on whether he is going to participate, he said. Paula Brown, who represents District 8, has opted out.
Calls made to the county administrator and council member Gerald Dawson for this story were not returned by 4:15 p.m. Friday. Nichols did respond on behalf of Moore, advising that he was unavailable for comment today due to his previously scheduled appointments.
Bettis Law Group, marketed as “South Carolina’s labor and employment law firm,” provides services for employers in the state, such as conducting and supervising internal investigations, including those related to “discrimination, harassment, retaliation and whistle blower complaints,” according to their website.
The county has seen changes in leadership in the past six months, including the start of Michael Moore’s tenure as county administrator in July and councilwoman Alice Howard’s new role as council chair two weeks ago. Rebuilding trust from the public is a stated priority of the two leaders.
3 p.m. update: Larry McElynn said Friday afternoon that he is planning to inquire about the nature of the investigation with the attorneys or the county administrator to determine if his knowledge would be of any assistance. He would then make a decision to participate or not based on the answers he receives.
4:15 p.m. update: Mark Lawson, District 9, said that if he was asked to complete an interview, he would agree to do so. The initial story was published at 2 p.m.
This story was originally published January 10, 2025 at 1:57 PM.
