Compton v. South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole & Pardon Services, 385 S.C. 476

Summary

The Supreme Court of South Carolina held that an order of the Administrative Law Court remanding a parole matter to the Parole Board was not directly appealable because review of the final agency decision would provide an adequate remedy. Exercising certiorari jurisdiction, the court concluded that the Parole Board's amended notice sufficiently stated that it had considered the statutory and regulatory parole criteria, as required by Cooper. The court reversed the Administrative Law Court's remand order and remanded with instructions to issue an order consistent with its opinion.

Holdings

1. The ALC's preliminary, procedural, or intermediate remand order was not directly appealable because review of the final agency decision would provide an adequate remedy.
2. The Parole Board complied with Cooper by clearly stating that it had considered the statutory criteria in section 24-21-640 and the fifteen factors published in Form 1212, while also identifying the reasons for denying parole.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the ALC's remand order was directly appealable.
2. Whether the Parole Board's amended notice of rejection complied with Cooper by stating that it considered the statutory and Form 1212 parole criteria.
3. Whether the ALC erred by remanding the matter to the Parole Board for additional findings of fact and conclusions of law.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded