William Robert Kinard

W. Robert "Bobby" Kinard, husband of Susan Trout Kinard of Isle of Palms, SC passed away on Friday, June 18, 2010.  Funeral services will be Wednesday, June 23, 2010 in the North Charleston Performing Arts Center, 5001 Coliseum Drive, Charleston, SC 29418, at two o'clock.  Burial will follow in Carolina Memorial Gardens with military honors.  The family will receive friends at J. HENRY STUHR, INC., MOUNT PLEASANT CHAPEL Tuesday from 6:00 until 8:00 o'clock. 

Bobby was born May 29, 1946, in Charleston, SC, son of the late Willard Grady Kinard and Mary Lucille Sapp Kinard.  After graduation from North Charleston High School, he attended the Citadel. After his freshman year at the Citadel, he enlisted in the United States Air Force and served in Vietnam in 1969 and 1970. During his tenure with the Air Force he was awarded the Air Force Commendation Medal Award.  After his discharge with the rank of Sergeant in 1970, he returned to the Citadel as a Veteran student and graduated in 1972 with a BA in History. He graduated from the University of South Carolina Law School in 1975. 

In 1976, Bobby was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives where he served until 1980.  Upon his re-election in 1978, Bobby's colleagues elected him Chairman of the Charleston Delegation.  He served under two Governors: James B. Edwards and Richard (Dick) Riley.  He served on the House Judiciary Committee for four years and was a member of the Constitutional Laws and Election Laws subcommittees. In 1981, Bobby became the Chief Municipal Judge for the City of North Charleston. He served in that capacity until 1988. In 1991, Bobby was elected Mayor of North Charleston after a heated, two-year campaign against the twenty-two-year incumbent mayor.  During this time many changes occurred in North Charleston and Mayor Kinard's Administration was generally considered to be the turning point in the development of North Charleston,  Mayor Kinard oversaw the implementation of single member election districts, the construction and opening of the North Charleston Coliseum, and the formation of the development plan for the former Charleston Naval Base closing.  In fact, the plan proposed by Bobby Kinard in 1994 is in use today.  Many people believe that the fight against the closing of the Naval Base led by Charleston Mayor Riley and Mayor Kinard in 1994 is the reason the Lowcountry did so well in the 2005 base restructuring. 

In 1995, Bobby and his wife and law partner, Susan, moved to the Isle of Palms and returned to the full-time practice of law.  At his death, they continued to practice together in Mt. Pleasant in a comfortable office at the Oak Grove Center. Few lawyers practicing today have the experience that Bobby Kinard had.  He was a trial lawyer for thirty years, was elected to and served in all three branches of our government: the legislative, the judicial, and the executive.  In 2001, Bobby returned to the bench, temporarily, when he was asked by the City of Hanahan to serve as Chief Municipal Judge for the City of Hanahan, where he had been prosecuting attorney for eleven years in the 1980's.  He served in this capacity until 2003, when he decided he wanted nothing to compete with his desire to practice law full-time. Having participated in the criminal justice system from all three sides; judge, prosecutor and defense attorney, Bobby was uniquely qualified and experienced to represent his clients and did so with the same fervor he served his State and Country.   Bobby was one of the few Charleston attorneys' who has tried a murder case as a private attorney. Bobby was a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from 1976 until 1980; Judge for City of North Charleston from 1981 until 1988; Mayor of North Charleston from 1991 until 1994.  He was appointed by President Reagan as Chairman of the Vietnam Veterans Leadership Program in South Carolina from 1981 until 1986.   One of his proudest accomplishments was the creation and dedication of the Three Faces of War Monument now permanently situated at Patriots' Point in Mt. Pleasant, SC.

Surviving are his wife, Susan Trout Kinard, of Isle of Palms, one son, Sgt., Robert J. Kinard, US Army; two daughters, E. Erin Kinard of Charleston, SC and Hannah E. Kinard of Isle of Palms, SC; one brother, Michael T. Kinard of North Charleston, one sister, Donna K. Gonzales and her husband, Stephen of North Charleston, SC; and several nieces and nephews.  He was preceded in death by his brother, Willard Grady Kinard, Jr. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center, Psychiatric Care Unit, 109 Bee Street, Charleston, SC or a Veteran charity of one's choice.