Thomas criticizes State Grand Jury

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Thomas, the former chairman of the Senate Corrections and Penology Committee, made his remarks in response to a budget request by State Attorney General Henry McMaster, who asked Thomas' budget panel to increase investment license fees, in part so McMaster can add more personnel to the State Grand Jury.

That sparked a lecture from Thomas, who two years ago led the corrections panel into a probe of sexual misconduct, drugs and corruption in the state's prison system. Thomas said during Wednesday morning's hearing that he no longer thinks highly of the State Grand Jury because of the way in which the corruption allegations were handled.

He said his suspicions were confirmed earlier this year when he talked with the prosecutor who initially led the grand jury probe, Jon Ozmint, who now is director of the prison system. He said Ozmint told him he discovered some wrongdoing after he took the prison job.

"I was upset about it at the time," Thomas said of his experience two years ago. "I didn't understand why the Grand Jury wasn't doing anything six months, eight months, a year after we handed them the ball. That conversation with Jon Ozmint confirmed that there were plenty of things there. They just didn't look at it."

Ozmint said he could not recall any such specific conversations with Thomas but said he did talk with Thomas about the need for a legislative body to look at issues the grand jury does not act on.

The corrections committee began probing corruption in the fall of 2000 following the disclosure that inmate Susan Smith, serving two life terms for killing her children, had sex with two of her guards. The panel heard testimony from a former internal affairs investigator who alleged he was ordered by a superior to back off investigations.

Thomas said Wednesday the committee was prepared to issue subpoenas for prison officials when he said it was asked to back off by officials with former State Attorney General Charlie Condon so the State Grand Jury could probe the allegations.

Condon said at the time that allegations of wrongdoing were "widespread and systemic" in the prisons and the grand jury was needed to investigate.

But the Grand Jury failed to return any indictments, though the State Law Enforcement Division initiated more than 20 charges against prison employees involving sexual misconduct, drugs or corruption during the same time period.

Thomas said that Ozmint told him that since he had become prison director, he had discovered some of the same types of wrongdoing once the subject of Thomas' committee, including sexual misconduct.

"It was very straightforward," Thomas said. "He mentioned that there were a great deal of things he had come across that were real serious problems by way of wrongful activity. The galling part of it was that we were kicked off the investigation and told to back off. And then they came up with nothing."

"Frankly, I don't think very highly of the State Grand Jury."

Ozmint said he did not recall any specific conversation with Thomas but said the pair have talked about the limits of a grand jury. He said he learned from the state's probe into the prisons that the prison system's internal affairs unit was not independent and could be influenced by wardens or others. He said that has since been changed.

"There is a need sometimes for more than one body to investigate a given problem," Ozmint said. "What a grand jury ultimately can do is deal with crime. And when what's going on falls short of that, there is a halfway ground where legislative investigative bodies can direct policy decisions."

Thomas said that as a result of his experiences two years ago, prosecutors will never again convince him to back off any legislative investigation.