Terms Used In South Carolina Code > Title 50 > Chapter 15 > Article 1 - Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Species

• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• Captivity: means the condition in which an animal is contained in an enclosed cage, carrier, aquarium, or similar device, yard, or enclosure that prohibits the natural movement of the animal. See South Carolina Code 50-15-10
• Chambers: A judge's office.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Crustacean: means all forms of crabs, shrimp, crayfish, stone crabs, lobsters, and other motile fish having a chitonized shell excluding snails and horseshoe crabs. See South Carolina Code 50-5-15
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: means the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources unless otherwise stated. See South Carolina Code 50-5-15
• Ecosystem: means a system of living organisms and their environment, each influencing the existence of the other and both necessary for the maintenance of life. See South Carolina Code 50-15-10
• Endangered species: means any species or subspecies of wildlife whose prospects of survival or recruitment within the State are in jeopardy or are likely within the foreseeable future to become so due to any of the following factors:
  
  (a) the destruction, drastic modification, or severe curtailment of its habitat, or
  
  (b) its over-utilization for scientific, commercial, or sporting purposes, or
  
  (c) the effect on it of disease, pollution, or predation, or
  
  (d) other natural or manmade factors affecting its prospects of survival or recruitment within the State, or
  
  (e) any combination of the foregoing factors. See South Carolina Code 50-15-10
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Fish: means finfish, shellfish including mollusks, crustaceans, horseshoe crabs, whelks (conchs), turtles, and terrapin or products thereof. See South Carolina Code 50-5-15
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Management: means the collection and application of biological information for the purposes of increasing the number of individuals within species and populations of wildlife up to the optimum carrying capacity of their habitat and maintaining such levels. See South Carolina Code 50-15-10
• Native: means any species or subspecies considered to be indigenous and naturally occurring in this State. See South Carolina Code 50-15-10
• Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
• nongame wildlife: means any wild mammal, bird, amphibian, reptile, fish, mollusk, crustacean, or other wild animal not otherwise legally classified by statute or regulation of this State as a game species. See South Carolina Code 50-15-10
• Optimum carrying capacity: means that point at which a given habitat can support healthy populations of wildlife species, having regard to the total ecosystem, without diminishing the ability of the habitat to continue that function. See South Carolina Code 50-15-10
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Person: means any individual, firm, corporation, association, or partnership. See South Carolina Code 50-15-10
• Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Take: means to harass, hunt, capture, or kill or attempt to harass, hunt, capture, or kill wildlife. See South Carolina Code 50-15-10
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Wildlife: means any wild mammal, bird, reptile, amphibian, fish, mollusk, crustacean, or other wild animal or any part, product, egg or offspring, or the dead body or parts thereof. See South Carolina Code 50-15-10