By Delayna Earley
The Island News
After residents described bullets entering homes and whizzing past neighborhoods north and south of the Broad River, Beaufort County Council voted Monday, Feb. 23 to move forward with a proposal aimed at putting distance between gunfire and people’s front doors.
In just longer than 20 minutes of debate, council members weighed safety concerns against property rights before advancing a measure that would prohibit the discharge of firearms within 500 feet of homes, schools and public parks in certain unincorporated areas of Beaufort County.
The proposal now moves to second reading and will require a public hearing before it can take effect.
Complaints spanning the river
County officials said complaints began late last summer from residents south of the Broad near New Riverside. More recently, similar concerns surfaced north of the Broad near Port Royal.
Council members referenced multiple incidents in which bullets struck or entered homes.
Councilman Gerald Dawson described a neighbor whose television stopped a round that came through the upper portion of her house and lodged in a wall.
“She has a bullet that came through the top part of her house, hit the back of the television and lodged in the wall,” Dawson said, noting deputies were unable to determine where the shot originated.
Council Chair Alice Howard said a family near Shadow Moss had to take cover after gunfire entered their home.
Supporters emphasized the issue is about safety, not sound.
“This ordinance is not about noise,” Councilman Mark Lawson said. “It’s about keeping people safe.”
Why 500 feet?
The distance was one of the central points of discussion. An earlier draft proposed prohibiting discharge within 1,000 feet of structures.
After discussions with the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, the buffer was reduced to 500 feet, a compromise county staff said would be more practical to enforce.
County officials said the sheriff’s legal counsel reviewed the proposal and indicated that a smaller buffer increases the likelihood of identifying where shots originated.
Still, several council members questioned whether any fixed distance would solve the core problem if deputies cannot determine where a bullet came from.
“There’s no way this is enforceable the way it’s written,” Councilman Logan Cunningham said, arguing that state law already makes it illegal to discharge a firearm negligently into a dwelling or vehicle.
Councilman David Bartholomew said he does not want to adopt a “feel-good” measure and suggested further coordination with the state legislature to strengthen existing statutes.
Others argued the county has an obligation to respond when residents say they feel unsafe in their own homes.
County Attorney Brian Hulbert noted that local ordinances can carry a deterrent effect, even if enforcement varies depending on the facts of each case.
“If it deters just one, it’s worth it,” Hulbert said.
Balancing growth and rural rights
Some council members expressed concern the measure could unintentionally restrict lawful gun owners in rural areas who use their property for recreational shooting or hunting.
But supporters said the complaints illustrate how growth has changed the landscape in parts of the county, bringing neighborhoods and schools closer to areas where target practice once occurred with fewer nearby homes.
Vice Chair Anna Maria Tabernick said she visited one of the affected sites and noted its proximity to the future May River Elementary School, which is set to open this fall.
“This is where children are going to be standing,” Tabernick said.
The measure passed first reading by a 6–4 vote and can be amended before final approval.
For some council members, the debate comes down to that image: children lining up outside a new elementary school this fall in an area where residents say bullets have already crossed property lines.
Whether the 500-foot buffer remains as written or is revised in the coming weeks, the discussion underscored a broader tension facing Beaufort County – how to preserve rural freedoms while responding to rapid growth that has brought homes, neighborhoods and schools closer together.
Delayna Earley, who joined The Island News in 2022, formerly worked as a photojournalist for The Island Packet/The Beaufort Gazette, as well as newspapers in Indiana and Virginia. She can be reached at delayna.theislandnews@gmail.com.