Restoring Civil Rights After a Felony in South Carolina

Voting returns after the full sentence, including probation and parole, is completed. A person convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year cannot serve on a jury unless civil rights are restored by pardon or amnesty. A pardon fully restores civil rights lost by the conviction, including voting, jury service, holding public office (with one statutory exception) and occupational licensing. Possessing a firearm or ammunition after a conviction punishable by more than one year is a felony (up to 5 years for a first offense), but the ban does not apply to a conviction that was expunged, set aside or pardoned, or for which civil rights were restored, unless the pardon or restoration says otherwise.