Official: Unclear court orders confuse S.C. prison workers, cause errors

COLUMBIA (AP) - South Carolina prison officials say unclear court orders and ambiguous directions have left prison workers confused about how much time offenders should serve.

The division director of classification and inmate records at the state Department of Corrections, Joette Scarborough, told a legislative subcommittee Thursday that the confusion has caused errors. The State reports that Scarborough says such confusion led to the early release of 10 violent inmates between 2016 and 2018.

Corrections Director Bryan Stirling says the unclear orders may have also caused an inmate to mistakenly serve extra prison time, an issue that is now the subject of a lawsuit.

Following the testimony, Rep. Gary Clary, R-Pickens, called for the corrections and court system to work together to make the sentencing records clearer. His recommendation unanimously passed the subcommittee.