The case, brought to court by Edward Sloan Jr., a retired Green-ville construction company owner, contends that Sanford is going against the state constitution by being both governor and a member of the U.S. Air Force Reserves.

In a brief filed with the court, Sloan, a self-styled government watchdog, contends that the state constitution prohibits a person from serving as governor and holding a commission under another authority at the same time.

Sanford received a first lieutenant's commission in the Reserves in January 2002, about a year before becoming governor.

While there is no way of telling which way the court will rule, it is clear the decision will come down to the justices' opinions on what exactly the architects of the constitution meant by the term "militia."

According to the state constitution, "No person while Governor shall hold any office or other commission (except in the militia) under the authority of this State, or of any other power."

"This is one of those cases where the argument is not about the facts, it's a matter of law and a matter of words," said Eldon Wedlock, law professor at the University of South Carolina. "I mean, he is the governor, and he is a member of the Reserves. In my opinion, this case comes down to whether you consider the U.S. another power and whether you consider the Reserves the same thing as a militia."

Briefs filed by the governor contend that the Reserves are a form of "militia."

"When the ordinary and popular meaning of the term 'militia' is considered, it is clear that it encompasses the Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, including the Air Force Reserve in which Governor Sanford serves," the brief reads.

"Whether the court buys that argument, we'll have to wait and see," Wedlock said. "I just don't think you can morph the Reserves into militia, but it will be interesting to see what they decide."

Sanford is not the first governor to hold a position in the Reserves during his tenure. According to James Cross, an archivist with the Strom Thurmond Institute, Thurmond was a member of the U.S. Army Reserves during his stint as governor.

But Sanford may be the first sitting governor involved with a lawsuit of such a personal nature.

Walter Edgar, author of "South Carolina: A History," said he can't recall a governor ever facing such a trial before.

"We have had governors involved in cases where they are named in a group, as a matter of course, but this is personal," Edgar said. "The only thing I can relate it to is when Pug Ravenel was sued."

Charles D. "Pug" Ravenel shocked the state's Democratic Party with a win of the gubernatorial nomination in 1974, but a subsequent lawsuit challenging his residency wound up in the S.C. Supreme Court. Ravenel, who had a huge lead in the polls, was deposed as the party nominee because he had not resided in the state long enough to hold office. Republican nominee James B. Edwards went on to defeat Ravenel's replacement, making history as the first GOP governor since Reconstruction.

It is not likely Sanford faces anything so drastic. Wedlock said, at most, the governor may be forced to give up his Reserve status.

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