Governor suspends Dorchester Dist. 2 board member

SUMMERVILLE, S.C. (WCSC) - The governor of South Carolina signed an executive order Thursday suspending a school board member in Dorchester District Two.

Dorchester District Two school board member Barbara Crosby was suspended on Thursday following the signing of an executive order by Gov. Henry McMaster. The executive order comes in response to Crosby being indicted Sept 16. by a grand jury on two charges of unlawful neglect of a child or helpless person. Both counts of the indictment against Crosby state that Crosby left the children inside of a motorized vehicle without adequate supervision.

Crosby’s charges stem from an incident on Sept. 1 in the parking lot of the DD2 Adult Learning Center, in Summerville, during a Dorchester District 2 board meeting.

In the executive order, McMaster cites article IV, section 8 of the South Carolina Constitution, “Any officer of the State or its political subdivisions...who has been indicted by a grand jury for a crime involving moral turpitude...may be suspended by the Governor until he shall have been acquitted” and “in case of conviction the office shall be declared vacant and the vacancy filled as may be provided by law.”

The order states Crosby’s suspension will be in effect until she is acquitted or convicted or until a successor is appointed or elected and qualifies as provided by law.

In a statement, DD2 Board Chair Gail Hughes said, “The unfortunate recent events that involve an indictment and suspension of a Dorchester District Two school board member will not deter the focus and work of the school board and district leadership as we serve the families of our community. This situation is out of our hands as we await the outcome of legal proceedings.”

Crosby was censured by the Dorchester District Two school board on Monday for conduct unbecoming of a board member.

The full text of Executive Order No. 2021-35 can be read here.

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