South Carolina H 3440: Stand Your Ground and Churches

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 3440 Text of Previous Version (Dec. 06, 2024) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 3440

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 16-11-440, RELATING TO THE 
PRESUMPTION OF REASONABLE FEAR OF IMMINENT PERIL WHEN USING DEADLY FORCE 
AGAINST ANOTHER UNLAWFULLY ENTERING A RESIDENCE, OCCUPIED VEHICLE, OR PLACE OF 
BUSINESS, SO AS TO ADD CHURCH OR PLACE OF WORSHIP TO THE LOCATIONS WHERE A 
PERSON, IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES, HAS NO DUTY TO RETREAT; AND BY ADDING SECTION 
16-11-445 SO AS TO ESTABLISH A PRESUMPTION THAT A PERSON IS JUSTIFIED IN USING 
DEADLY FORCE IN SELF DEFENSE IF THE PERSON IS IN A CHURCH OR PLACE OF WORSHIP 
IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES.

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

SECTION 1. Section 16-11-440(C) of the S.C. Code is amended to 
read:

 (C) A person who is not engaged in an 
unlawful activity and who is attacked in another place where he has a right to 
be, including, but not limited to, his place of business, church, 
or place of worship, has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand 
his ground and meet force with force, including deadly force, if he reasonably 
believes it is necessary to prevent death or great bodily injury to himself or 
another person or to prevent the commission of a violent crime as defined in 
Section 16-1-60.

SECTION 2. Chapter 11, Title 16 of the S.C. Code is amended by 
adding:

 Section 
16-11-445. A person is presumed to be justified in using deadly force in self defense 
or the defense of another person, if the person is in a church or place of 
worship and reasonably believes that another person is using or is about to use 
physical force against an employee, volunteer, member of the church or place of 
worship, or any other person authorized to be on the premises of the church or 
place of worship while committing or attempting to commit a crime involving 
death, serious physical injury, robbery, or kidnapping. This presumption does 
not apply if the person who uses deadly force is engaged in an unlawful 
activity.

SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval 
by the Governor.

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This web page was last updated on December 06, 2024 at 11:59 AM