South Carolina H 4633: Kidnapping, luring

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 4633 Text of Previous Version (Dec. 17, 2025) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 4633

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

A bill

TO AMEND THE SOUTH 
CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 63-7-710, RELATING TO PROBABLE CAUSE 
HEARINGS, SO AS TO REQUIRE THE DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES TO BEGIN 
FACILITATING VISITATION BETWEEN THE PARENT AND THE CHILD FOLLOWING THE PROBABLE 
CAUSE HEARING IF THE CHILD IS PLACED OUTSIDE OF THE HOME AT THE PROBABLE CAUSE 
HEARING, WITH EXCEPTIONS; AND BY AMENDING SECTION 63-7-1680, RELATING TO 
PLACEMENT PLANS, SO AS TO ADDRESS THE APPROPRIATENESS OF SUPERVISED OR 
MONITORED VISITATION AFTER A CERTAIN TIME.

Be it enacted by the 
General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1. Section 63-7-710 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 Section 
63-7-710. (A) The family court 
shall schedule a probable cause hearing to be held within seventy-two hours of 
the time the child was taken into emergency protective custody. If the third 
day falls upon a Saturday, Sunday, or holiday, the probable cause hearing must 
be held no later than the next working day. If there is no term of court in the 
county when the probable cause hearing must be held, the hearing must be held 
in another county in the circuit. If there is no term of family court in 
another county in the circuit, the probable cause hearing may be heard in 
another court in an adjoining circuit.

 (B) 
The probable cause hearing may be conducted by video conference at the 
discretion of the judge.

 (C) 
At the probable cause hearing, the family court shall undertake to fulfill the 
requirements of Section 63-7-1620 and shall determine whether there was 
probable cause for taking emergency protective custody and for the department 
to assume legal custody of the child and shall determine whether probable cause 
to retain legal custody of the child remains at the time of the hearing.

 (D) 
At the probable cause hearing, the respondents may submit affidavits as to 
facts which are alleged to form the basis of the removal and to cross-examine 
the department's witnesses as to whether there existed probable cause to effect 
emergency removal.

 (E)(1) At the probable cause hearing, if 
the child is placed out of the home of a parent, guardian, or legal custodian, 
the court shall order the department to facilitate regular visitation with the 
parent, guardian or legal custodian, and siblings, as early, consistent, and 
frequent visitation is crucial for maintaining parent-child relationships and enabling 
family reunification. The court shall order a visitation plan individualized to 
the needs of the family with a goal of providing the maximum parent, child, and 
sibling contact possible. 

 (2) Visitation required pursuant to 
this subsection may not be limited as a sanction for a parent's failure to 
comply with recommended services.

 (3) Visitation required pursuant to 
this subsection may be limited only when necessary to ensure the health, 
safety, or welfare of the child.

 (4) The first visit of a visitation 
plan ordered by the court pursuant to this subsection must take place within 
seventy-two hours of the probable cause hearing, unless the court makes a 
finding, in writing, that extraordinary circumstances require delay, 
identifying the extraordinary circumstances. 

 (5) If the first visit of a visitation 
plan ordered by the court pursuant to this subsection is to occur in person, 
the visitation must be supervised unless the department determines that 
supervision is not necessary.

 (6) When a parent, guardian, legal 
custodian, or sibling has been identified as a suspect in an active criminal 
investigation for a violent crime that, if the allegations are true, would 
impact the safety of the child, the department may petition the court to forego 
ordering a visitation plan at the probable cause hearing until the department 
is satisfied that a visitation plan can be created to protect the health, 
safety, and welfare of the child.

 (E)(F) The hearing on the merits to determine whether removal 
of custody is needed, pursuant to Section 63-7-1660, must be held within 
thirty-five days of the date of receipt of the removal petition. At the 
probable cause hearing, the court shall set the time and date for the hearing 
on the merits. A party may request a continuance that would result in the 
hearing being held more than thirty-five days after the petition was filed, and 
the court may grant the request for continuance only if exceptional circumstances 
exist. If a continuance is granted, the hearing on the merits must be completed 
within sixty-five days following receipt of the removal petition. The court may 
continue the hearing on the merits beyond sixty-five days without returning the 
child to t