Rep. Nancy Mace: FOIA Reveals Attorney General Wilson Dismissed Alarming Amount Of Child Sex Crime Cases, Let Hundreds Pile Up, And Multiple Years Without A Single Trial

CHARLESTON, S.C. (Jan. 13, 2026) - Congresswoman Nancy Mace released explosive findings from a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request exposing serious failures inside the South Carolina Attorney General's Office, including widespread case dismissals, an overwhelming reliance on plea deals, and a ballooning backlog of unresolved child sex crime cases. Furthermore, the data suggests there have been multiple years where the Attorney General's office hasn't had a single jury trial for child sexual predators.

The records, produced by Wilson's own office, show a significantly high number of child pornography and sexual exploitation cases were dismissed, while hundreds of additional cases remain pending year after year, with almost no cases ever going to trial.

"This data tells a disturbing story," Rep. Mace said. "If you're a pedophile in South Carolina while Alan Wilson is Attorney General, the odds are you'll never see a jury, and if you're a victim, you may never see justice."

The documents produced by the South Carolina Attorney General's Office reveal a systemic failure to aggressively prosecute child pornography and child sexual exploitation cases, including:

• Widespread Case Dismissals:Alan Wilson's office dismissed at least 32 child sex crime cases in fiscal year 2024-25 alone, according to records produced by his office. Across multiple years, dozens of additional cases were dismissed, despite arrests, warrants, and forensic examinations already having occurred.

• Virtually No Jury Trials:From fiscal years 2016-17 through 2024-25, jury trials ranged from zero to three per year statewide. In FY 2017-18, FY 2020-2021 and FY 2021-22, not a single child sex crime case went to trial before a jury anywhere in South Carolina. Meanwhile, 79-84% of cases were resolved through plea deals. This means the overwhelming majority of accused offenders never faced a jury, and the public never saw evidence tested in open court.

• Exploding Backlog of Unresolved Cases: The FOIA results show a steadily growing backlog, with pending cases increasing by 65%, rising from the high-400s to nearly 800 unresolved child sex crime cases statewide in recent years. Hundreds of cases remain open year after year, leaving victims without closure and children vulnerable.

• Trials Matched, or Fell Below, Defendant Deaths:FOIA records show from fiscal years 2016-17 through 2024-25, jury trials in South Carolina child sex crime cases ranged from zero to three statewide per year. During the same period, cases closed because the defendant died ranged from three to eight annually, meaning in multiple years, as many or more cases ended due to defendant deaths than ever reached a jury. This stark comparison underscores how rarely these cases are tested in open court, even as hundreds remain pending and victims wait years for justice.

• Reliance on Pleas Over Prison Time:FOIA records show plea deals overwhelmingly dominate child sex crime prosecutions in South Carolina. From fiscal years 2016-17 through 2024-25, 79% to 84% of all case dispositions each year were resolved through plea agreements, while jury trials ranged from zero to three statewide annually. In fiscal year 2024-25 alone, 226 cases were resolved by plea, compared to just three jury trials. The records further show hundreds of defendants pled down to watered down outcomes rather than facing a jury, limiting public scrutiny and keeping the most serious allegations from ever being tried in open court.

What This Means for South Carolina

1. Child predators face a system which rarely holds them fully accountable.

When jury trials average zero to three per year statewide and 79-84% of cases end in plea deals, and little to no jail time, the most serious allegations are almost never tried in court. This means fewer convictions, fewer sentences, and less public scrutiny and accountability for some of the worst crimes imaginable.

2. Victims are denied justice

With pending cases increasing by 65% over the past 9 years, many victims are left waiting years with no resolution. Delays, dismissals, and negotiated pleas mean victims are repeatedly retraumatized by a system which fails to deliver justice.

3. The backlog creates public-safety risk.

Hundreds of unresolved child sex crime cases sitting open year after year strain law enforcement, clog the courts, and weaken deterrence. When cases stall, justice doesn't just slow down, it effectively stops allowing criminals to reoffend.

4. South Carolina's justice system loses credibility.

In multiple years, as many or more cases ended because the defendant died than because a jury reached a verdict. This comparison alone signals a prosecution system which is not functioning as intended and erodes public trust in the rule of law.

5. This is a failure of leadership, not resources.

The FOIA data shows arrests, warrants, and forensic exams are happening. What's breaking down is the prosecution phase. This puts responsibility squarely on the Attorney General's Office and Alan Wilson's leadership choices and other solicitors who follow his lead.

See FOIA documents below: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1W7aQaBxBU7yRkKtx3bj8Hdg9FPZATXn2?usp=sharing

"Alan Wilson wants the public to believe he's tough on crime," Rep. Mace added."But his own records show a system where child sexual predators cut plea deals, cases quietly get dismissed, years where there are 0 trials, and justice is denied indefinitely under his watch. It's horrific for South Carolina children."

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