COLLETON COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC/AP) – The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division says the investigation into a massive weekend house fire in Colleton County has found no evidence of arson.
The fire at the home of a state circuit judge in the Jeremy Cay Community on Saturday sent three people to the hospital, Colleton County Fire Rescue said. One of those patients was airlifted to MUSC, officials said.
State authorities were investigating after a South Carolina judge’s house caught fire in Edisto Beach.(St. Paul’s Fire District)
“At this time, there is no evidence to indicate the fire was intentionally set,” SLED Chief Mark Keel said. “SLED agents have preliminarily found there is no evidence to support a pre-fire explosion.”
The Saturday fire nearly burned to the ground the house listed in property records as owned by Circuit Judge Diane Goodstein on a remote part of Edisto Island, authorities said.
Local law enforcement is providing extra patrols and security as state agents investigate, Chief Justice John Kittredge said in a statement.
A massive Saturday afternoon fire destroyed the house listed in property records as owned by Circuit Judge Diane Goodstein on a remote part of Edisto Island, authorities said.(Live 5)
The house’s first floor is elevated from the ground and the injured had to jump to the ground. Several then had to be rescued by kayaks from the swampy backyard, the St. Paul’s Fire District said in a statement on social media.
Video from the fire department showed the home fully engulfed in flames. Drone photos taken over the scene later showed only a few charred wooden supports standing amid the blackened rubble.
Goodstein has been a state judge for 27 years, handling thousands of cases.
Last month, she blocked the Election Commission in South Carolina from releasing voter data requested by the U.S. Department of Justice. Her restraining order was lifted about a week later by the state Supreme Court who said Goodstein failed to detail if the voter who sued would suffer irreparable harm or proved she was likely to win the suit on the merits.
Nearly two decades ago, Goodstein presided over a civil lawsuit that led to a $12 million settlement between victims of sexual abuse and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston.
She also presided in 2014 over a property dispute trial between the national Episcopal Church and the breakaway Diocese of South Carolina which spilt over theological differences, including the authority of Scripture and the ordination of gays.
State election officials said they are still working on an agreement with federal officials to make sure the privacy of the voter data is protected.
Keel said the house fire is still active and ongoing but urged people to “exercise good judgment and not share information that has not been verified.”
backyard
Copyright 2025 WCSC. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved.