State v. Donaldson

THIS OPINION HAS NO
PRECEDENTIAL VALUE.  IT SHOULD NOT BE CITED OR RELIED ON AS PRECEDENT IN ANY
PROCEEDING EXCEPT AS PROVIDED BY RULE 268(d)(2), SCACR.

THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA

In The Court of Appeals

The State, Respondent,

v.

Aaron Grant
Donaldson, Appellant.

Appeal from Richland County

 L. Casey Manning, Circuit Court Judge

Unpublished Opinion No. 2010-UP-279

Submitted May 3, 2010 – Filed May 20, 2010   

AFFIRMED

Appellate Defender Kathrine H. Hudgins, of Columbia, for Appellant.

Attorney General Henry Dargan McMaster, Chief Deputy Attorney
General John W. McIntosh, Assistant Deputy Attorney General Salley W. Elliott, Assistant
Attorney General William M. Blitch, Jr., and Solicitor Warren B. Giese, all of
Columbia, for Respondent.

PER CURIAM:  Aaron Grant Donaldson was convicted of two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct
with a minor under the age of eleven, one count of second-degree criminal
sexual conduct with a minor between the ages of eleven and fourteen, and two
counts of incest.  Donaldson appeals, arguing that the trial court erred in
refusing to suppress a confession he made to his former pastor because it was
protected by the clergyman-penitent privilege.  We affirm pursuant to Rule 220(b), SCACR,[1] and the following authorities:  S.C. Code Ann. § 19-11-90 (1985) (prohibiting the
disclosure of any confidential communication with a clergyman only when it is properly entrusted to him in his professional capacity and
necessary and proper to enable him to discharge the functions of his office
according to the usual course of practice or discipline of his church or
religious body); State v. Pagan, 369 S.C. 201, 208, 631 S.E.2d
262, 265 (2006) (holding that an abuse of discretion occurs when the decision
of the trial court is based upon an error of law or upon factual findings that
are without evidentiary support); State v.
Schumpert, 312 S.C. 502, 507, 435 S.E.2d 859, 862 (1993) (providing
that any error in the admission of evidence is harmless when the improper
evidence is cumulative to other evidence); Rivers
v. Rivers, 292 S.C. 21, 26, 354 S.E.2d 784,
787 (Ct. App. 1987) (holding that the burden of showing the facts required to establish the
clergyman-penitent privilege rests on the party objecting to the disclosure of
the communication and the trial court's determination of whether a
communication is privileged is conclusive absent an abuse of discretion), superseded by statute on other grounds as recognized
in Russo v. Sutton, 310 S.C. 200, 422 S.E.2d 750 (1992).

AFFIRMED.

KONDUROS and LOCKEMY,
JJ., and CURETON, A.J., concur.

[1] We decide this case without oral argument
pursuant to Rule 215, SCACR.