Harry Dest

Harry has 30 years as a Criminal Defense Attorney, including 12 years as the 16th Circuit Public Defender for both York and Union Counties.

He has handled numerous Murder cases in his 30 years with several resulting in Not Guilty verdicts. He has handled thousands of felony cases over his years and has achieved good results on countless cases as a result of hard work and preparation. Harry has garnered media attention on numerous high profile cases and has appeared on CNN’s Larry King Live, Court TV, and the Oprah Winfrey show.

In 2018, Harry was awarded Public Defender of the year by his peers in the South Carolina Public Defender Association for his many achievements in the courtroom and his advocacy for Indigent Defense.

In 2019 he was awarded the Order of the Silver Crescent by Governor Henry McMaster for his leadership in improving the Criminal Justice System by being a strong advocate for the Statewide Public Defender system and other achievements.

He was also Chairman of the South Carolina Indigent Defense Commission for almost 20 years, having been appointed by four SC Governors to that position.

If you have been arrested and charged with a crime, you need representation that will zealously advocate your rights on your behalf immediately.

Harry’s goal is to protect you and to provide high-quality aggressive legal representation. Each case presents a different set of facts and time is of the essence, so contact Harry today!

Ouida Dest

Ouida has 28 years of experience in the Family Court spending all of those years as a prosecutor handling juvenile matters. She has been practicing law in South Carolina since 1991. Her practice will primarily focus on issues around children.

During her time at the Solicitor’s Office, she won many state and local awards including the Ernest F. Hollings Award for Excellence in Prosecution and was given the Hero Award at a Governor’s Conference on Crime. Locally, she was awarded the Champion for Our Children by the Department of Juvenile Justice.

As a prosecutor, in addition to handling cases in court, she was instrumental in developing programs to redirect juveniles from the system through diversion and other intervention programs. She serves on many local and state boards and commissions including being appointed by Governor Nikki Haley to the Governor’s Juvenile Justice Advisory Council where she currently serves as chair of the grants committee. she also serves as a member of ACES and Resilience Committee, the All on Board Committee (Executive Board), and serves as the chair of the St. Mary Catholic Church Social Concerns Outreach Ministry.

Ouida will handle all criminal cases along with Harry, including Juvenile cases and other criminal cases.

In 2020, she became Of Counsel with The Law Offices of Jason E. Taylor where she will handle employment law, specifically those claims dealing with Sexual Harassment.