Supreme Court of South Carolina
Jane Doe, Petitioner v. State of South Carolina, Respondent
November 17, 2017421 S.C. 490
Summary
The South Carolina Supreme Court held that the statutory definition of “household member” in the Domestic Violence Reform Act and the Protection from Domestic Abuse Act is unconstitutional as applied to an unmarried same‑sex couple, because it fails even rational‑basis equal‑protection review. The Court therefore declared sections 16‑25‑10(3) and 20‑4‑20(b) invalid as applied to Jane Doe and ordered that the family court may not rely on those provisions to deny her an Order of Protection.