If Confederate flag goes in York County courtroom, legal action could follow

A York County lawyer and others opposed to a version of the Confederate flag being put on display in the renovated main courtroom of the York County Courthouse are hoping a compromise can stop a need for legal action.

Montrio Belton, a York County lawyer and treasurer of the York County Bar Association, said Monday he is not planning to file legal action because the flag has not yet gone back on display. In a letter to York County Clerk of Court David Hamilton Sunday, Belton said what comes next is up to the clerk, and if the flag does go back up, legal action could follow.

“Other organizations and individuals that are concerned about the issue have also agreed not to pursue legal redress unless/until you decide to display the Confederate memorabilia, including the Confederate Battle Flag, in the Courtroom,” the letter states.

Hamilton decided Jan. 29 that South Carolina’s Heritage Act, which affects monuments and buildings, requires that he put the flag and other Civil War items, removed from the main courtroom during years of renovations, back up on display.

That decision, based on what Hamilton said was a strict interpretation of the Heritage Act, came after Hamilton had decided earlier not to put the flag back up.

The Heritage Act requires legislative approval to move historical items. Belton said he disagrees with Hamilton’s legal interpretation of the Heritage Act and that he remains “adamantly opposed” to a version of the Confederate flag in the courtroom.

The issue brought reaction from both sides. Heritage groups want the flag to go back up, while some political, legal and community leaders want the flag to remain in the courthouse, but not in the courtroom.

The courthouse opened late last month, but the main courtroom has not yet re-opened for court. The flag and other items are in storage.

In the Jan. 29 statement, Hamilton said the items will be returned to the courtroom as soon as is reasonably possible. Hamilton said he plans to form a diverse committee to determine where and how the items will be displayed in the courtroom.

Belton wrote that heritage and history should be respected, but there is no place in a courtroom for the flag.

York County Councilman William “Bump” Roddey has said he agrees the flag should not go in the courtroom, but reiterated that he and others are not opposed to a historical display in the courthouse.

“I have no objection to it being placed in the courthouse as it relates to history, but I will take issue from start to finish on any Confederate flag going in the courtroom,” Roddey said.

Western York County NAACP President Steve Love said Monday that a historical display in the courthouse is acceptable, but a flag in the courtroom is not acceptable.

Hamilton declined comment Monday. Efforts to reach York County attorney Michael Kendree were unsuccessful.

This story was originally published February 6, 2017 at 4:14 PM with the headline "If Confederate flag goes in York County courtroom, legal action could follow."