+ Lance Crick

Lance Crick currently serves as the First Assistant United States Attorney for the District of South Carolina as well as the Supervisory Assistant United States Attorney for the Greenville USAO. Since joining the United States Attorney’s Office in August 2001, Lance has advanced the prosecution of Project CeaseFire cases, the South Carolina component of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). As the statewide coordinator for PSN/Ceasefire, Lance’s responsibilities include working with local, state, and federal authorities in order to target violent felons who continue to possess and use firearms as well as coordinating efforts with communities and schools on gun safety.

Over the years, Lance has also handled OCDETF (Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force) drug prosecutions, cases which focus on the activities of drug trafficking operations which span multiple jurisdictions. Prior to joining the United States Attorney’s Office, Lance worked for three years as a state prosecutor in the 13th Judicial Circuit, handling a variety of violent crime and narcotics cases in Pickens County, South Carolina. Lance received his undergraduate degree from Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina, in 1995 and his law degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1998.

Lance and his wife, Cindy, a former state prosecutor in the Seventh Judicial Circuit, who currently serves as Chief of Staff for Congressman Trey Gowdy, live in Greenville with their eight-year-old son, Smith.

+ Jennifer Howe

Jennifer grew up in Greenville and attended Clemson University where she majored in French and International Trade with a minor in Economics. She was in the first graduating class from the Charleston School of Law in 2007. While in law school, she clerked for law firms and then Chief Judge of the Fourth Circuit, William Wilkins. She spent a year clerking with now retired Circuit Court Judge Eddie Welmaker. Following her clerkship, she defended doctors and hospitals in medical malpractice cases at Devlin & Parkinson. She left to start her own firm, DeMint Howe, with her good friend, Jamie DeMint, where her practice focused on personal injury, business litigation and family law.

In 2016, Jennifer left the practice to focus on her family. She is the proud mom to Vivienne, Ellie George and Hank. During this time, she has remained active with her leadership through the Greenville Bar; spending much of her time to lead the establishment of the Greenville Bar's Pro Bono Foundation. She is currently the President of the Greenville Bar. Jennifer is an active member of the community serving on many boards throughout her career.

+ Venus Poe

Sheally Venus Poe has her own firm in Greenville and Fountain Inn, South Carolina where her main practice areas include personal injury, products liability, social security disability and workers’ compensation. She is a graduate of the University of South Carolina School of Law and the College of Charleston.

Ms. Poe is licensed to practice before the South Carolina Courts, the United States District Court for South Carolina, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and the United States Supreme Court.

Ms. Poe is a member of the South Carolina Bar House of Delegates and former member of the Board of Governors . She is also a former President of the South Carolina Young Lawyers Division and founded the South Carolina Bar’s Leadership Academy. She has served as a scoring judge for the South Carolina High School Mock Trial Competition and Middle School Mock Trial Competition. She is also on the Bar’s Practice and Procedure and Publications Commitees and serves on the South Carolina Fee Dispute Board.

Ms. Poe currently serves on the South Carolina Bar Foundation’s Board of Directors, as the Rotary Club of Fountain Inn’s President and on the Board of Directors for the Fountain Inn Chamber of Commerce. She is also a certified Circuit Court mediator.

PRESENTATION

+ The Honorable John Kittredge

John W. Kittredge is married to Lila Graham Hewell, and they have three adult children, Lila Marian, Will and Zay and one grandchild, Jeff. John graduated from the University of South Carolina, summa cum laude. He graduated from the University of South Carolina School of Law. Academic honors include Phi Beta Kappa, Order of the Coif, and Wig and Robe.

Justice Kittredge began his legal career as a law clerk to The Honorable William W. Wilkins, Jr. He practiced law in the firm of Wilkins, Nelson and Kittredge. Justice Kittredge was actively involved in community and state service: Governor’s Committee on Crime and Delinquency; Governor’s Juvenile Justice Task Force; Greenville Technical College Foundation (Vice-President); City of Greenville Civil Service Commission (Chairman); Greenville County Crime Stoppers (President); Board of Directors of Child Evangelism Fellowship. In addition to his admission to the South Carolina Bar, Justice Kittredge is also admitted to practice before the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, United States Court of Military Appeals, United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, United States Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. Justice Kittredge serves in various roles in support of the legal profession, including Chairman of the Chief Justice’s Commission on the Profession.

Justice Kittredge has served as a family court judge, circuit court judge, court of appeals judge, and since 2008, has served as a justice on the South Carolina Supreme Court. He is the only person ever to serve on all the major courts in South Carolina.

+ Stuart Mauney

Stuart Mauney is a shareholder in the Greenville SC office of Gallivan White & Boyd. His practice is focused on the defense of business and commercial clients in the professional negligence, personal injury, and trucking law practice areas. Additionally, he serves the South Carolina legal system as a certified mediator. Stuart defends trucking companies in catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death cases. This defense includes coordinating the emergency response to trucking and industrial accident scenes, the investigation that follows, and the subsequent litigation and trial of those matters. His professional negligence practice is centered on the healthcare industry, especially representing nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

Stuart has spent many years as a mental health advocate, including serving on the board of directors and as President of Mental Health America of Greenville County. He later served on the board and as an officer of Mental Health America of South Carolina. He currently serves on the board of Gateway, a local non profit clubhouse that provides rehab services to the chronically mentally ill in the Greenville community. Stuart also volunteers with the SC Bar Lawyers Helping Lawyers program, which provides resources, education and support to lawyers and judges who have a substance abuse disorder or mental health problem. He just recently served on the national ABA Advisory Committee for the Commission on Lawyer Assistance Programs.

+ The Honorable John C. Few

John Cannon Few graduated from Duke University with an A.B. Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Economics. He graduated from the University of South Carolina School of Law, where he was a member of The Order of Wig and Robe and The Order of the Coif. He also served as Student Works Editor of the South Carolina Law Review.

Justice Few began his legal career as law clerk to The Honorable G. Ross Anderson Jr., United States District Judge. He practiced law in Greenville from 1989 until 2000, and is admitted to practice in South Carolina, the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court. Justice Few served as a trial judge on the Circuit Court of South Carolina from July 2000 until February 2010. He then became the Chief Judge of the South Carolina Court of Appeals, a position he held until February 2016. He was elected as a Justice on the Supreme Court of South Carolina on February 3, 2016, and he was sworn in on February 9, 2016.

Justice Few is a frequent public speaker. He now teaches at the University of South Carolina School of Law. Before becoming a judge, he read to pre-school children on a weekly basis for years in the Greenville Head Start program, tutored middle-school children through Save our Sons, taught middle and high school classes as part of the Junior Achievement program, and served on the board of Friends of the Reedy River. While he was a circuit judge, he served on the 2003-04 Governor’s Water Law Review Committee. Justice Few now chairs the South Carolina Access to Justice Commission.

Justice Few has three children: Reed, Anna, and Cannon

+ Jennifer Breaux Howe

Jennifer grew up in Greenville and attended Clemson University where she majored in French and International Trade with a minor in Economics. She was in the first graduating class from the Charleston School of Law in 2007. While in law school, she clerked for law firms and then Chief Judge of the Fourth Circuit, William Wilkins. She spent a year clerking with now retired Circuit Court Judge Eddie Welmaker. Following her clerkship, she defended doctors and hospitals in medical malpractice cases at Devlin & Parkinson. She left to start her own firm, DeMint Howe, with her good friend, Jamie DeMint, where her practice focused on personal injury, business litigation and family law.

In 2016, Jennifer left the practice to focus on her family. She is the proud mom to Vivienne, Ellie George and Hank. During this time, she has remained active with her leadership through the Greenville Bar; spending much of her time to lead the establishment of the Greenville Bar's Pro Bono Foundation. She is currently the President of the Greenville Bar. Jennifer is an active member of the community serving on many boards throughout her career.

+ Stephanie E. Lewis

Stephanie E. Lewis is the Office Managing Principal of the Greenville, South Carolina, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. She is the Co-Chair of the Pay Equity Resource Group. Ms. Lewis represents employers in employment litigation and advises clients on preventive practices and policies to avoid litigation. Ms. Lewis has handled all aspects of employment law but focuses on sexual harassment, pay discrimination, and disability discrimination issues in the automotive, manufacturing, retail, and pharmaceutical industries. She regularly presents on employment-related topics to Bar and industry groups. Ms. Lewis served as a law clerk for Karen Johnson Williams of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and Patrick Michael Duffy of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina.

While attending law school, she served as Articles Editor of the North Carolina Law Review and received the James E. and Carolyn B. Davis Award for Character and Service.

GCBA PResentation

+ The Honorable Aphrodite K. Konduros

Judge Aphrodite Konduros is a member of the S.C. Court of Appeals. She currently serves as vice-chairman of the Chief Justice's Commission of the Profession, a member of the S.C. Senate Judiciary Sentencing Reform Commission, subcommittee chairman of the Supreme Court Family Court Docketing Committee, a member of the Supreme Court E-Filing Committee, a member of the S.C. Bar's Vulnerable Adult Task Force, and a member of the S.C. Bar Pro Bono Board. She is also the 2013 recipient of the American Board of Trial Advocates' Jurist of the Year Award. She was elected to the Family Court in February 2002 to fill the unexpired term of the Hon. Amy C. Sutherland, retired. On February 6, 2008, Judge Konduros was elected to the S.C. Court of Appeals to finish the unexpired term of Chief Justice Donald W. Beatty. She was reelected to the S.C. Court of Appeals in 2015. She and her husband, Sam Konduros, live in Greenville and Seabrook Island, South Carolina.

+ Margaret U. Newman

+ Congressman Trey Gowdy

Representing South Carolina’s 4th District, Trey Gowdy entered Congress with a resolute commitment to the conservative principles that have guided him throughout his years in public service. At the core of those principles lies a firm belief in a limited government that inspires trust and demands accountability.

In June of 2017, Representative Gowdy became Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. He also serves on the House Committees on Intelligence, Ethics, and Judiciary. In these capacities, Representative Gowdy has fought to highlight facts, uphold the Constitution, rein in the ever-expanding scope of the federal government, and restore America’s trust with a renewed spirit of honesty, fairness and reason.

Trey graduated from Spartanburg High School in 1982, Baylor University in 1986 with a degree in history, and the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1989 where he was a member of the scholastic honor society “Order of the Wig and Robe.”

For 6 years as a federal prosecutor, Trey prosecuted the full range of federal crimes including narcotics trafficking rings, bank robberies, child pornography cases, and the murder of a federal witness. He was awarded the Postal Inspector’s Award for the successful prosecution of J. Mark Allen, one of “America’s Most Wanted” suspects. He also received the highest performance rating a federal prosecutor can receive – two years in a row.

As 7th Circuit Solicitor, Trey led an office of 25 attorneys and 65 total employees. During his tenure, he started a Violence Against Women Task Force and a Worthless Check Program, enhanced and expanded Drug Court, and implemented a Drug Mother Protocol designed to assist expectant mothers break the cycle of addiction.

He has been recognized statewide for his commitment to victim’s rights and drunken driving enforcement and nationally for excellence in death penalty prosecutions.

Trey is married to Terri Dillard Gowdy, and they have two children: Watson and Abigail. The Gowdy family also includes two dogs: “Jury” and “Bailiff.”

+ Cindy Crick

Cindy Crick graduated from Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia with a BA degree in Biology in 1994. She attended the University of South Carolina School of Law and graduated with a J.D. in 2002.

Cindy is currently the Chief of Staff for Congressman Trey Gowdy, who represents the 4th Congressional District of South Carolina. She began working for the House of Representatives in 2010 when Mr. Gowdy was elected to the US Congress. She helps develop and implement policy objectives, strategies and operating plans for the Member's offices, manages and directs all activities and staff in the Member's Washington D.C. and district offices, and helps coordinate and staff the activities of the Congressman Gowdy while he is in the district.

Prior to becoming Congressman Gowdy’s Chief of Staff, Cindy served eight years as an Assistant Solicitor in the 7th Circuit Solicitor’s Office. While there, she coordinated and supervised the Violence Against Women Unit. She prosecuted cases involving violence against women including criminal domestic violence, arson, burglary, sexual assaults, domestic homicides, and a death penalty case.

Cindy also facilitated prosecution of magistrate level cases in both Spartanburg and Cherokee County centralized CDV courts. She provided training to law enforcement, judges, medical providers, and community agencies including Family Violence Conference training, Solicitor’s Conference victim advocate training, and Safe Homes Rape Crisis Coalition annual volunteer training.

Cindy is married to Lance Crick who is an Assistant U.S. Attorney. They have a 8-year-old son named Smith, and are also parents to a sweet pug named Pearl.