Haley Ethics Hearing Deliberation Day One

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO) — Day one of the ethics hearing involving Nikki Haley could be ruled as a draw if it were a boxing match and a score card had to be used, as each side came out swinging with jabs and blows, with the governor’s credibility taking the most hits. The hearing, which began at 9:30 Thursday morning, at the Blatt Building, Room 102, located at Assembly and Pendleton Streets, Columbia, SC, included opening statements from attorneys representing the SC House Ethics Committee and counsel representing Gov. Nikki Haley. Eleven witnesses were subpoenaed and many questioned on whether they had knowledge of the then-state representative acting unethically while employed as a fundraiser for a hospital and an employee at an engineering firm. The ethics panel was involved in the hearing well into Thursday evening. This is the first time the panel has investigated a sitting governor. Committee members re-opened the case after originally dismissing it. The hearing could wrap up Friday. Once all evidence has been presented, the House Ethics Committee will review and then decide whether to dismiss the case or turn it over to the Attorney General’s office for a further, possible criminal, investigation. Haley is not expected to take the stand. John Rainey, the republican activist who sparked the whole investigation, though, is expected to testify.