COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - Gov. Mark Sanford may continue to serve in the U.S. Air Force Reserve, the state Supreme Court ruled Monday.

A South Carolina resident sued the governor last year saying the state constitution allows the state's top officer to serve in and command only a state militia, but the court ruled the term militia included the reserves.

"The militia exception ... includes within its ambit Gov. Sanford's service in the Air Force Reserve, thereby rendering his military commitment consistent with the South Carolina Constitution," Justice E.C. Burnett wrote in the unanimous decision. "We conclude ... the South Carolina Constitution permits the governor to serve in the military reserves."

The court determined that historically South Carolina's "militia" refers to citizen-soldiers as opposed to professional soldiers.

The court ruled the Air Force Reserve consists of citizen-soldiers who serve primarily on a part-time basis and who can be called up to serve full time in emergencies.