Dorchester County Courts Close to Public out of an Abundance of Caution
In accordance with the directive from Chief Justice Beatty and in conjunction with the Chief Administrative Judges, the below plan is being implemented for Dorchester County Circuit Court, Family Court, Magistrate Court, and Probate Court.
All Circuit Court terms of court including jury services for the weeks of March 23, March 30, April 6, and April 13 have been canceled . All individuals summoned for jury duty those weeks will not be required to report to the Courthouse. The Dorchester County Grand Jury scheduled for Thursday; April 2 has been canceled. For questions or concerns regarding Circuit Court Jury Services, please contact the jury coordinator at (843) 563-5784.
Family Court will only hear emergency matters pursuant to Chief Justice Beatty’s Order dated March 16.
Beginning March 19, the Dorchester County Courthouse located at 5200 East Jim Bilton Blvd. in St. George and Family Court located at 212 Deming Way in Summerville will be closed to the public. All offices will be available by phone and email, during normal business hours.
Many Circuit Court documents are available on the County’s website. For documents that are not available on the website, please contact the Clerk of Court’s office via email for assistance.
All courts will be locked, and court security will screen individuals to determine their necessity to enter the buildings. The Courthouse will only be available for the below critical functions:
- Acceptance of filings
- Receipt of payments, including traffic tickets
- Emergency hearings
- Bench warrant hearings
- Bond hearings (twice daily)
Dorchester County Clerk of Court, Cheryl Graham said “It is our commitment to provide the public the best service that we can and a safe environment from which our staff can deliver superior service. We will continue to monitor the situation and will provide additional information as available.
Department of Social Services
The South Carolina Department of Social Services is closed to the public, until further notice. Staff is available by phone and email, during normal business hours. SNAP applications are available outside the main door at both the Summerville and St. George office locations.
DHEC Health Department
The DHEC Health Department located in Summerville is closed to the public, until further notice.
SC Works Trident
Regional employment program SC Works Trident offices are closed until at least March 31.
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Unemployment Benefits: For assistance applying for unemployment benefits, claims representatives are available through Telclaim at 1(866) 831-1724 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays. Customers can file for unemployment at scuihub.dew.sc.gov/.
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Job Searches: Customers can complete their job search at jobs.scworks.org/. For more information on the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Program, please visit scworkstrident.org and complete the SC Works online orientation.
Elections
The Dorchester County Board of Elections and Voter Registration Office remains open. Candidates may file at the Dorchester County Board of Voter Registration and Elections office located at 201 Johnston Street, St. George, SC 29477, Monday – Friday, between the hours of 8:30 AM and 5:00 PM, through Monday, March 30. Upon arrival, candidates should call the Elections office at (843) 563-0132 to gain entry to the building. Please visit the Dorchester County website for more information.
Dorchester County Facilities
All Dorchester County Administrative Offices are closed to the public. All offices are available by phone and email, during normal business hours. Residents and businesses are encouraged to use online services. Convenience Sites rand Rosebrock Park remain open.
Closures and Events Postponements
A full list of community facility closures and canceled and postponed events is available on the County website.
DorchesterCountySC.gov/covid19 will serve as the central information hub for Dorchester County. Dorchester County recommends saving this link and following Dorchester County Government on Facebookand Twitter for updates.
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