COLUMBIA, S.C. (WSPA) - South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson issued a legal opinion Monday, clarifying that municipalities in the state do not have the authority to create their own hate crime law that exceeds what state law allows, which in South Carolina's case, is nothing at all.

South Carolina is one of two states that lacks a statewide hate crime law. For more than a decade, state lawmakers have introduced various bills to implement hate crime legislation, but none have successfully advanced through the full legislative process.

In the opinion, Wilson's office addressed a trend of local governments trying to pass hate crime ordinances -- laws aimed at enhancing penalties for crimes motivated by bias -- whether it's based on race, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation,

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