Skylar Laird

Skylar Laird

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Skylar Laird covers the legislature and criminal justice issues at the South Carolina Daily Gazette. A University of Missouri graduate, she reported for the Kansas City Star and Columbia Missourian in her home state. She moved to South Carolina in 2022 to cover local government for The Post and Courier's Columbia bureau and earned a first-place award for beat reporting.

To save SC’s historic Black schools, nonprofit launches statewide coalition
South Carolina

To save SC’s historic Black schools, nonprofit launches statewide coalition

Aug 28, 2026
Skylar Laird
COLUMBIA — Helping save Lakeview School in West Columbia is Earnestine Holden’s retirement job. Like many of the people trying to save historic Black schools, Holden, who graduated from the school in 1967, isn’t a professional historian or grant-writer. She’s...
Removal of sugary snacks and drinks from SC grocery benefits delayed after court order
South Carolina

Removal of sugary snacks and drinks from SC grocery benefits delayed after court order

Aug 27, 2026
Skylar Laird
COLUMBIA — South Carolinians who use grocery assistance can continue to buy candy, sodas and other sugary drinks until at least November following a federal court decision voiding the program in other states. At Gov. Henry McMaster’s direction, the state...
As $2.7B interchange project advances, federal officials praise SC for clearing up congestion
South Carolina

As $2.7B interchange project advances, federal officials praise SC for clearing up congestion

Aug 26, 2026
Skylar Laird
LEXINGTON — A major Columbia-area interchange project to unsnarl a notorious bottleneck is a prime example of the work states should be doing to improve roadways, a federal highway official said Wednesday. The overhaul of “Malfunction Junction,” what’s officially called...
SC legislators approve $350M in earmarks, agree to changes next year
South Carolina

SC legislators approve $350M in earmarks, agree to changes next year

Aug 26, 2026
Skylar Laird
COLUMBIA — The General Assembly passed a deal Tuesday spending $350 million on a long list of legislator-sponsored spending that includes parks, building renovations, water and sewer upgrades, and equipment for first responders. The votes came two weeks after negotiations...
31 charged with drug smuggling after SC nightclub investigations
South Carolina

31 charged with drug smuggling after SC nightclub investigations

Aug 24, 2026
Skylar Laird
COLUMBIA — A series of Lowcountry nightclub raids led to drug trafficking charges for 31 people believed to be associated with Mexican drug cartels, state law enforcement officials said Monday. A state grand jury indictment announced Monday was part of...
SC estate with ties to slavery, circus and governors could next become a state preserve
South Carolina

SC estate with ties to slavery, circus and governors could next become a state preserve

Aug 24, 2026
Skylar Laird
EASTOVER — In its past lifetimes, the Goodwill Plantation was a vast farm worked by slaves, a winter home for circus animals and a family hunting retreat. In its next life, the estate located just south of Columbia could become...
Visitors can talk to Revolutionary War fighters at revamped SC historic site
South Carolina

Visitors can talk to Revolutionary War fighters at revamped SC historic site

Aug 19, 2026
Skylar Laird
CLINTON — On Aug. 19, 1780, Patriots surprised British forces in an ambush known as the Battle of Musgrove Mill, a turning point in the Revolutionary War. Exactly 246 years later, the same battle played out on a screen inside...
Every SC student to get free breakfast with state funding
South Carolina

Every SC student to get free breakfast with state funding

Aug 18, 2026
Skylar Laird
COLUMBIA — Every K-12 student in South Carolina’s public schools will be able to eat breakfast for free this year with funding included in the state budget. The $2.8 million included in the spending package that went into effect Monday...
SC governor vetoes delay on paying agency overruns at Scout Motors site
South Carolina

SC governor vetoes delay on paying agency overruns at Scout Motors site

Aug 17, 2026
Skylar Laird
COLUMBIA — State agencies can go ahead and pay contractors for their work at the Scout Motors site in Blythewood after Gov. Henry McMaster nixed legislators’ requirement that they wait for a full review of taxpayer dollars spent. The budget...
SC bills to restrict THC products, strengthen DUI laws won’t be revived this year
South Carolina

SC bills to restrict THC products, strengthen DUI laws won’t be revived this year

Aug 17, 2026
Skylar Laird
COLUMBIA — The official death knell of two bills means South Carolina’s laws on driving under the influence won’t get stricter this year, and sales of THC-infused products continue without limitations. Legislators left the Statehouse last week with no plans...
‘Inexcusable’: Georgia man to spend nearly 45 years in prison after shooting SC trooper in the face
South Carolina

‘Inexcusable’: Georgia man to spend nearly 45 years in prison after shooting SC trooper in the face

Aug 13, 2026
Skylar Laird
COLUMBIA — A man convicted of shooting a South Carolina trooper in the face during a traffic stop will spend a total of 45 years in prison, a federal judge decided Thursday. Derrick Gathers, 40, is already serving a 38-year...
Historic plantation among 1,700 acres in conservation projects SC considers buying
South Carolina

Historic plantation among 1,700 acres in conservation projects SC considers buying

Aug 12, 2026
Skylar Laird
COLUMBIA — A historic plantation in Richland County could become part of a state-owned nature preserve, according to a funding request to a legislative oversight committee. All told, nearly 1,700 acres of land are under consideration for purchase by the...