Austin Ex Rel. Estate of Bair v. Beaufort County Sheriff's Office

This is a direct appeal from the trial court’s order which granted summary judgment in favor of respondent, Beaufort County Sheriffs Office (the Sheriffs Office). We affirm.

FACTS

On July 25, 2001, Robert Bair, the adult son of appellant Carolyn Bair Austin, was found dead in his neighbor’s garage at a condominium complex in Hilton Head. The Sheriffs Office began an investigation into his death and collected the following items from the scene: three blood swabs, one syringe, some green leafy vegetable matter, 1 and a white rock substance, which field tested positive for cocaine. In addition to…