South Carolina state attorney caught with stripper in graveyard

By The Associated Press
Thursday, October 29th, 2009 -- 8:09 am
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A deputy assistant attorney general who said he was on his lunch break when an officer found him with a stripper and sex toys in his sport utility vehicle has been fired, his boss said Wednesday.

Roland Corning, 66, a former state legislator, was in a secluded part of a downtown cemetery when an officer spotted him Monday, according to a police report obtained by The Associated Press under the Freedom of Information Act.

As the officer approached, Corning sped off, then pulled over a few blocks away. He and the 18-year-old woman with him, an employee of the Platinum Plus Gentleman's Club, gave conflicting stories about what they were doing in the cemetery, Officer Michael Wines wrote in his report, though he did not elaborate.

Corning gave Wines a badge showing he worked for the state Attorney General's Office. Wines, whose wife also works there, called her to make sure Corning was telling the truth.

He then searched the SUV, where he found a Viagra pill and several sex toys, items Corning said he always kept with him, "just in case," according to the report.

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Corning and the woman were let go without charges. Wines' wife reported the call to her supervisor, who told Attorney General Henry McMaster.

"We received credible information about inappropriate behavior Monday afternoon," McMaster said Wednesday. "And by the close of business, he was no longer working here."

Such a trip to the cemetery "would not be appropriate, at any time, for an assistant attorney general," McMaster said.

There was no answer Wednesday at a number listed for Corning, who was a Republican legislator in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He was hired in 2000 by the attorney general's office, where he worked on securities cases.

South Carolina has had its share of scandal lately, most notably Gov. Mark Sanford's disappearance in June. His office told reporters he was hiking the Appalachian Trail, but he was really in Argentina visiting his mistress.

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Story comments are below...

  • fukum
    Another "moral values Republican" bites the dust, lmao
    I'm surprised the girl was alive and he didn't just dig her up.
  • dennycrane
    That's great!

    Maybe he stuck his hand in her back and did a ventriliquist stunt when the police came to ask her questions.
  • The Repukes are starting to have more fun then the Dems. Wait until this starts happening on the other side of the aisle, and it will, sooner or later. But for now,
    enjoy it, hee hee!!!

    Keep the pressure on the GOP. Prosecuting them for the WMD Lies and the Torture would go a long way to we voters getting some measure of control back.

    PROSECUTE THE WMD LIES & TORTURE
    of the Bush Administration.

    SIGN the PETITION
    calling for Prosecution at

    http://ANGRYVOTERS.Org

    .
  • cliffhammond
    OMG, how will she ever live that down?
  • dennycrane
    I wonder if his "south" rose again. But for sure his job went south.
  • bilejones
    The questions are
    1. What grounds did the pig have for approaching them in the first place?
    2. Why was Corning dumb enough to talk to him?
    3. Did Corning really give consent for a search of the vehicle?
  • damixaustex
    4. Is it procedure for police to call their wives to verify ID? Is it legal?
    5. If there are no charges, how exactly did the FOI request work? Where was it placed? Why was it answered so quickly?
  • Tyke
    ... and then is it legal to leak information like this that did not result in any charges being filed?

    I dislike conservative hypocrites, but this smells bad from more than one angle.
  • damixaustex
    My thoughts exactly.

    So the guy likes sex toys and 18 year olds. 66 years old? Go for it, stud!
    I don't see it as particularly scandalous. No laws broken? Why was he fired?
  • Schmice
    "Pig"? are you still stuck in the 60's? If you think Corning was "dumb enough" to talk to the officer are you suggesting that he was confessing to a crime? Of course he gave consent, Corning was a prosecutor who understood the meaning of probable cause and consent to search.
  • dennycrane
    Unless you have "dug" yourself into a "big" hole, you do not belong in a cemetery at night.
  • lawyerluke22
    Ahhh...read the article. The police don't need no stinking reson to approach you. If your in public, the police have a right to approach and see whatever is in plain site to assess if a crime may be in commission. We have no facts as to how, where, or in what spacial orientation the vehicle was parked, if it was in fact parked or idling, but these details could also support reasonable suspicion. Corning took off when he saw the police. That's evasion of a peace officer, which is suspicious behavior and that constitutes probable cause that a crime was/ is being committed. If Corning doesn't talk to the police after trying to evade them he is very likely to be arrested and interrogated at the police station, thus creating a public record of the events. Whether Corning gave consent or not, the officer has probable casue to search the vehicle since it was used for suspicious evasion. Cornings acquiesence probably helps him establish that he was not committing a crime, just involved in conduct he didn't want discovered. Police are allowed to do on scene investigations and to legally gather whatever evidence they can to verify a suspect's statement. Since Corning's employment is a matter of public record, there is nothing illegal or invasive about checking it with a known source. there is nothing in the story to indicate that a FOI was filed or responed to. There is nothing secret about this encounter. The only thing a little surprising is the rapidity of which the police report was released. That is an internal police department matter, but it is not surprising that it was released most likely on the request of the State AG office to support the notion that they are a open and transparent agency acting in the best interest of their citizens. i don't smell anything fishy here except maybe the panties the stripper was wearing.......
  • Heil Mary
    Let's help Rethugs practice their alleged morals by BANNING Viagra. Or at least publicly name all Viagra users similar to the Oklahoma abortion patient-outing program. Many GOP wives will be shocked by Viagra outings since they aren't the "beneficiaries" of their husbands' prescriptions!
  • charlottestevens
    All of the permissive unbringing, sure does take it's toll in later years. Words cannot describe just how this affects behavioral patterns being displayed down under...
  • georgehilborn
    This is a non-story .I 'm a liberal Democrat who detests the GOP,but in this case we just have an old dude doing what some "horny"old dudes do ;so what!. Leave the poor SOB alone.

    I'm 73 ,so what. The hypocracy is with his employer for canning him. It seems that the State of South Carolina should provide counseling for employees who can't get it up anymore ,
  • lawyerluke22
    No hypocrisy in firing him. If he is on company time, he is ouside the scope of his resposibilities and duties. He has no business being in the graveyard screwing a stripper during his "lunch hour". He is a public servant. I'm not, but if I commit immoral acts during my lunch period I have no doubt my boss will fire me. employment on the public expense is not a right, it is a privledge. I expect all of our public servants to live up to high standards. If the cant they can go work for for someone with lower standards. he knew the consequences if he got caught (its probably why he didnt go to a local hotel) and he took a chance. You play, you pay. Same for dems. Same for anyone in that spot.
  • Hooker
    He may not have dug her up, as folcum suggests, but he surely dug a very deep hole for himself.
  • FreaksComeOutAtNight
    South Carolina in the news every other week with some freaky news story about some freaky Republican.
  • buckqjohnson
    The republicans are falling apart because all the adults have left the party and the only ones left are the zealots and the crazies.
  • jdouglas
    So what? At my age, I wouldn't mind playing around with some sexy 18-yr old myself. At least she wasn't a minor.
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