Posted on 06/19/2007 4:29:36 PM PDT by Livin_large
South Carolina Treasurer Thomas Ravenel has been suspended from office, following his indictment by a federal grand jury for distribution of cocaine.
"Given the grave nature of these charges and what is alleged in this indictment, we're left with no choice but to suspend Treasurer Ravenel immediately," Governor Mark Sanford said in a written release. "These are obviously very serious allegations that we're constitutionally bound to act upon, and they'll ultimately be decided by the courts."
The governor quoted Article VI, Section 8 of the South Carolina Constitution, giving him the power to suspend statewide, county or city officials indicted on criminal charges for crimes of "moral turpitude," generally understood to mean crimes that involve acts of fraud, deception or other morally culpable conduct.
The governor said he plans to make a decision on an interim appointment as soon as possible.
The announcement of the indictment was made Tuesday at a 5 p.m. news conference.
The indictments accuse Ravenel, 44, and Michael Miller, 25, of distributing less than 500 grams of cocaine starting in late 2005. They're officially indicted on charges of conspiracy to possess and intent to distribute.
Officials say Ravenel bought less than 500 grams of cocaine from Miller to share with other people. U.S. Attorney Reggie Lloyd says Ravenel didn't sell any of the drugs. Lloyd says the investigation is just beginning.
Both men face a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.
Authorities say Ravenel will be allowed to turn himself in.
Lloyd says the investigation into Ravenel arose from a drug case last year in Charleston. State Law Enforcement Division Chief Robert Stewart says his agents were aware of the allegations before Ravenel was elected in November. But they didn't have enough information to pursue criminal charges until they turned the case over to the FBI in April.
Ravenel is scheduled for an arraignment in federal court on July 9.
A copy of the indictment was sent to the governor's office Tuesday.
Ravenel, a Republican, was elected state treasurer in 2006. His father, Arthur Ravenel Junior, was a powerful politician from Charleston who served eight years in the U.S. House and is a former state representative and state senator.
Thomas is also the founder of Ravenel Development Corp., a commercial real estate development company. As well, he serves as the state chairman for former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani's presidential campaign. Late Tuesday, Giuliani's campaign announced he stepped down from that role.
State Republican Party Chairman Katon Dawson released the following statement:
“The charges brought against State Treasurer Thomas Ravenel today are very serious. This is a personal matter that will be dealt with through appropriate legal channels. We hope this unfortunate situation is resolved quickly.”
The South Carolina Democratic Party issued the following statement:
"In only a few months, Thomas Ravenel has gone from spoiled rich kid buying his way into office to common street criminal. He is an embarrassment to the state and an embarrassment to the Office of Treasurer. It's a shame that Grady Patterson - an absolutely honorable man and a true patriot - was replaced by Thomas Ravenel as State Treasurer."
SC ping.
I don’t imagine that Coke Dealing is a great resume builder for a S.C, Republican office holder.
Holy sh*t!!!!....a few days ago, they were talking about Ravenal running against Graham in the primary..
Fruity Giuliani’s SC campaign chairman goes up in flames. Again, be in awe of Fruity’s judgment...
- Russel Harding (child porn, graft, cronyism)
- Bernard Kerik (whores, graft, illegals, cronyism, incompetence)
- Michael Chertoff (incompetence)
- Thomas Ravenel (crack)
Put it all together with Fruity’s cross-dressing, and that is one hell of a party! Whores, crack, child porn, and illegals. Rudy 2008!
The Lindsey Graham haters on FR sure know how to pick 'em. Not only was their "true conservative" pushing South Carolina Republicans to nominate an abortion-luving, gun-grabbing, gay-cheerleader Arnold clone for President, but he is also a cokehead (the latter fact about him possibly influencing his judgment on the first)
The irony is that if Lindsey Graham ever did start voting like the guy that the "True conservative" was pushing, they would actually have a point that Lindsey Graham had "gone maverick". Instead, Lindsey Graham's voting record in the Senate resemblences their hero Fred Thompson (solid on right to life, guns, pro-family, pro-ANWR drilling, pro-tax cuts, pro-spending cuts, pro-WOT, but weak on immigration and Friend of McCain)
I'm still trying to figure out how they can say it's "Treasonous" for Graham to vote that way, but when Fred is weak on illegals and pro-McCain, we should promote him to leader of the free world. I certainly wouldn't want to put someone in charge of this the nation if they voted for something I consider "treasonous"
The same people telling us Fred Thompson is a winner and a conservative leader were saying that about Alan Keyes, George Allen, and Tom Ravenel. Not a good track record for picking "winners" here. Fred's a nice guy, but until we see otherwise, candidates like Duncan Hunter, Tom Tancredo, and Tommy Thompson are stronger conservatives and much better records of leadership in office.
1) Rudy was an incredibly hard-sell in South Carolina to begin with, as he is a pro-abortion, pro-gay, gun-grabbing candidate trying to win the Republican nomination in a state dominated with super social conservatives. Having Ravenel as his state campaign manager was the one lifeboat he had to stay afloat, as the Ravenel family is a big name is South Carolina and having the so-called "true conservative" Ravenel vouch for Rudy had given him crediblity. Now that the real Ravenel has been exposed, Rudy must find another SC Republican willing to back someone with his "values". He will most likely end up with a third-rate little known Republuican. Any replacement Rudy can find for state party chair won't have nearly the type of gravitas. What little chance Rudy had of winning the SC primary is gone.
2) With Ravenel gone from the picture, any chance the Graham haters had of finding a first-tier challenger for Graham is also gone. Why do you think they were pressing so hard for a Rudybot with questionable morals to run even AFTER he had ruled it out? He was the one credible "100% pure" statewide official they had. Unless hell freezes over and Mark Sanford runs for the Senate, any Graham challenger next year will be 2nd rate at best.
3) With Ravenel's ugly truth coming out, Sanford will be sure to appoint an intermin treasuer who is squeaky clean, and probably a mainstream Republican who won't rock any boats by running off to cast his lot with Rudy. So ironically, all the anti-Graham freepers who said their goal was to get rid of someone who was "an embarrassment" for South Carolina have gotten their wish -- except it's the exact opposite of the candidate they intended!
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