Son of SC congressional candidate Catherine Templeton facing felony assault charge (2024)

MOUNT PLEASANT — The only son of South Carolina congressional candidate Catherine Templeton was arrested this week by Mount Pleasant police and faces a felony charge of assault and battery, according to jail records.

Brooks Hampton Templeton, 18, was booked into the Charleston County jail after his arrest April 16. He spent about 4½ hours in custody before being released on a $30,000 surety bond.

The felony offense carries up to 10 years in prison.

As part of his bond conditions, Templeton cannot have any contact with the victim nor any family members of the victim verbally, electronically, by phone or on social media, according to court records.

The arrest has also cost him his job working as a field representative on his mother's congressional campaign, The Post and Courier has learned.

Catherine Templeton is challenging U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace for the GOP congressional nomination in the state's coastal 1st District.

So far, little is known about the incident that ultimately led to his arrest. The Post and Courier has requested arrest records and the incident report from the Mount Pleasant Police Department, which the agency did not provide after multiple requests by close-of-business April 17.

Town officials told the newspaper it was required file a Freedom of Information Act request in order to view and obtain a copy of the documents, a hurdle that has been challenged by open records advocates.

Jay Bender, a FOIA expert and South Carolina Press Association attorney, said the police department appears to be breaking the law.

Bender said it did not matter whether the April 16 arrest stemmed from a case dating back two weeks ago or two months ago. "They must make those police reports available from the last 14 days — no questions asked," he said.

Federal fundraising reports filed this week with the Federal Election Commission show the younger Templeton was paid $1,126.88 on March 27 for his campaign work under the heading of payroll expenses.

The Templeton campaign declined to discuss the arrest.

"We're not going to comment on a legal matter regarding a high school fight," campaign manager Chet Martin said in a statement provided to the newspaper.

This is the second time Hampton Brooks Templeton has been arrested and jailed in the past seven months. Court records detail a Sept. 4, 2023, road rage incident that ended with the 18-year-old being charged with the pointing and presenting of a firearm.

According to an arrest affidavit, Templeton was sitting at the light at the intersection of South Shelmore and Johnnie Dodds boulevards when it happened. The female victim, who was not named in the arrest affidavit, reportedly told Mount Pleasant police that Templeton was driving a white Chevy squatted pickup truck and began tailgating them.

Templeton then allegedly threw a bottle at her vehicle and pointed a firearm at her vehicle, according to documents. There were also children in the victim's vehicle who were recording on Snapchat at the time the weapon was reportedly brandished.

Police said both the victim and her children gave detailed statements about the incident. Templeton later admitted to being involved in the road rage incident and pointing the firearm at the victim's vehicle, according to the affidavit.

Charleston County jail records show Templeton was charged Sept. 12 with pointing and presenting firearms at a person. His bond was set at $10,000, and it was posted. After six hours in custody, he was released.

He appeared in court on Jan. 25. Ninth Circuit Assistant Solicitor Joseph Guerriero dismissed the case, stating there was insufficient evidence to convict.

On her campaign website, Catherine Templeton includes "crime and public safety" among a list of issues she is addressing as a congressional candidate.

Along with pledging to address the issue at the federal level, if elected, her campaign states Templeton will also "work with South Carolina law enforcement and prosecutors to make sure you are safe."

The first court appearance for Hampton Brooks Templeton is scheduled for June 7 — four days before the June 11 Republican primary.

Alan Hovorka contributed to this report.