Westminster Criminal Lawyers

My name is Elizabeth Franklin-Best and I am an attorney who focuses on criminal appellate law and federal criminal law. I started at the Richland County Public Defender’s office where I worked alongside some of the most passionate lawyers in this profession. Later, I worked at the South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense, Appellate Division where I studied and analyzed hundreds of different cases, and gained valuable experience arguing in the South Carolina Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals. I spent 7 years as a partner in the law firm of Blume Franklin-Best & Young, LLC focused on capital...

For over 30 years, I've been helping South Carolinians that have been accused of criminal and traffic offenses get their day in court. I graduated from Valparaiso University School of Law, then clerked for Pike County (Kentucky) Circuit Judges Baird Colleton and Charles Lowe in Kentucky. I was a public defender in Orangeburg, SC. - fighting for clients that otherwise would have been worked through the system and jailed due to plea bargaining. My reputation for getting my clients in front of a jury of their peers rather than letting the prosecutors pressure them into a plea helped me build my...

Johnny Gardner is a dedicated trial attorney with decades of courtroom experience. He began his legal career in 1992 as a Solicitor for the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit. This background provides Johnny with a unique perspective of the legal system that greatly assists in the preparation of criminal cases for trial. Three years later, he entered private practice and founded his own law firm. Johnny concentrates his practice primarily on DUI and Criminal Defense, and has tried many difficult, complex cases. Johnny is an Horry County native. He attended Socastee High School and Coastal Carolina University. He served as an Infantry...

Edward A. Love was born in Charleston, South Carolina on March 3, 1978 and raised in Florence where he graduated from South Florence High School While attending the Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, he was a member of the 2000 Summerall Guards, President of the Rugby Club, and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice in 2000. He received his Juris Doctor from the Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer University in 2003. While at Mercer, Ed participated in and coached for the Moot Court Board. He also served as Chief Justice of the Honor Court Upon...

In 2018, Matthew graduated from the University of South Carolina School of Law, ranking fourth in his law school class. During his time in law school, Matthew served as an Associate Editor-in-Chief for the South Carolina Law Review, where he authored a published article entitled State of Fear: Domestic Violence in South Carolina. Matthew was also inducted into the Order of the Coif and received the 2018 John O. MacDougall Family Law Award. After graduating law school, Matthew spent two years serving as a law clerk to the Honorable John D. Geathers at the South Carolina Court of Appeals. Matthew joined Strom...

Former prosecutor A. Randolph "Randy" Hough has a strong background in criminal law. Before entering private practice, he served as a prosecutor for the Fifth Judicial Circuit of South Carolina, handling numerous crimes ranging from drug trafficking to white-collar crimes to murder.

He also handled complex federal drug charges as a Special Assistant United States Attorney. Few other local defense lawyers can claim this extensive background in prosecuting crimes at both the state and federal level. Mr. Hough has defended cases in South Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina, and is a member of the South Carolina Bar, United States District Court for...

EDUCATION The John Marshall School of Law, Chicago, Illinois
AND LICENSES: Juris Doctorate, 1991

Honors: Elected to 1989 American Leadership Conference, Washington, D.C.
The James Madison Distinguished Service Award, The Federalist Society of America

Activities: President, The Federation of Federalist Societies of Chicago Law Schools
President, The Federalist Society of The John Marshall School of Law
Contributing Writer - Editor, The Decisive Utterance

Wittenberg University, Springfield, Ohio
Bachelor of Arts, Philosophy, 1984

Honors: Member of the National Philosophy Honor Society, Phi Sigma Tau

Attorney:
May, 2002 - Admitted to practice law in South Carolina
Present

November, 1991 - Admitted to practice law...

Attorney Robert Sutton of the Sutton Law Firm in Myrtle Beach, SC, has been obtaining outstanding results for his DUI and criminal clients for over 30 years. His practice now focuses largely on DUI defense and he has earned a reputation for being the best DUI lawyer in Myrtle Beach, as evidenced by his client reviews. Through both negotiations and trial success, he has obtained excellent results in even the most difficult of cases. His superb 5 star client reviews are a testament to the personal attention, care, and thorough preparation he gives each case, as well as the results...

My practice areas primarily include domestic litigation and criminal defense law. Domestic litigation includes divorces, child custody, visitation and support issues, equitable distribution, step-parent adoptions and relocation cases. Criminal law includes defending felonies and misdemeanors ranging from Kidnapping to Driving Under the Influence to Traffic Citations in State, County, City and Municipal Courts.

Alexandra “Ally” Benevento focuses her practice on state and federal criminal defense, civil rights and civil litigation. She has successfully represented thousands of individuals in state and federal courts. Alexandra is admitted to the South Carolina Bar, as well as the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina. She has previously been admitted pro hac vice to, and successfully represented clients in numerous federal district courts across the country. She is a member of the South Carolina Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (SCACDL), the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), the South Carolina Association for Justice (SCAJ),...

Trip was born and raised in Charleston, SC. He graduated from the College of Charleston (B.A., 1992) and from Golden Gate University School of Law in California (J.D., 1999). In 1998, Trip was selected into the Honors Program with the Department of Justice as a third year law student where he worked for the U.S. Attorneyâs Office in San Francisco and had the unique opportunity to prosecute cases in the drugs, guns and explosives unit. After graduation and upon passing the California Bar, Trip worked in the legal department of Siebel Systems, Inc. in Silicon Valley where he negotiated and managed...

A native of North Carolina, Ms.Sauls earned a Bachelor of Science in Political Science from North Carolina State University in 1992. She graduated from Saint Louis University School of Law in 1997 where, in addition to her law degree, she earned a Certificate in International and Comparative Law. She is licensed to practice law in South Carolina, Missouri and Illinois. Ms. Sauls has gained a variety of litigation experience throughout her career by participating in civil and criminal trials at the State and Federal levels. Her criminal experience began as an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney in Saint Louis County, Missouri, a jurisdiction of...

I formed the Seibert Law Firm, LLC to give quality and attentive family law and criminal defense representation to those in need in the lowcountry with the service and dedication that we all deserve. I am a member of the South Carolina and Georgia Bar. After I graduated with honors from the University of Georgia, I attended Ave Maria School of Law where I was chosen to sit on the Moot Court Board. I was honored to serve as acting Law Clerk for Judge Reck in the Probate Court and 44th Circuit Court Family Division in Howell, Michigan. After graduating, I...