Suspended state Rep. RJ May, who outside the Statehouse ran a successful Republican consulting firm, has been assigned a federal public defender as he faces 10 counts of distributing child sex abuse material.
In a signed financial affidavit, May informed the court on Tuesday that he had no assets entitled to his name outside of a truck. He had previously retained Columbia attorney Dayne Phillips.
Public defender Jenny Smith will now represent May, who was dressed Tuesday in an orange-and-white striped jail jumpsuit with the letters "ECDC" on the back and orange jail slides.
The case has been assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Cameron Currie.
May is accused of of using screen name "joebidennnn69" to exchange more than 200 different files of minors involved in sex acts on social message app Kik from March 30-April 4, 2024.
Federal prosecutors said investigators were able to trace the app account to May's home IP address and cellphone.
The charges carry prison terms of five to 20 years if convicted.
May was first elected to the S.C. House to represent District 88 in 2020.
In the Statehouse, he cofounded the hardline House Freedom Caucus, a group of a dozen or so Republican legislators who are not members of the traditional House GOP Caucus. May previously served as the freedom caucus's vice chair.
May also ran Ivory Tusk Consulting, a Republican political consulting firm that ran campaigns for various GOP candidates, including some freedom caucus members.
May last won reelection in 2024.
But his since indictment was unsealed June 12, he has been suspended from the House.
House GOP Leader Davey Hiott, R-Pickens, has filed a resolution calling for May's removal.
House Speaker Murrell Smith, R-Sumter, told reporters last week that the House Ethics Committee will first make a recommendation on the resolution.
Gov. Henry McMaster has called the allegations against May "horrific."
Asked whether May should resign from the House, McMaster said he thinks that question will be answered for him.
