S.C. Code § 42-1-480
Any inmate of the State Department of Corrections, as defined in this section, in the performance of his work in connection with the maintenance of the institution, any department vocational training program, or with any industry maintained therein, or with any highway or public works activity outside the institution, who suffers an injury for which compensation is specifically prescribed in this title, may, upon being released from such institution either upon parole or upon final discharge, be awarded and paid compensation under the provisions of this title. If death results from such injury, death benefits shall be awarded and paid to the dependents of the inmate. The time limit for filing a claim under this section shall be one year from the date of death of the inmate or the date of his release either by parole or final discharge, and no inmate shall be eligible for benefits unless his injury is reported prior to his release from custody of the department. If any person who has been awarded compensation under the provisions of this section shall be recommitted to an institution covered by this section, such compensation shall immediately cease, but may be resumed upon subsequent parole or discharge.
For purposes of this section, the term "inmate" includes any person sentenced to the South Carolina Department of Corrections and who is then in the jurisdiction of the department, or any person sentenced to the county public works who has been transferred to the Department of Corrections for confinement. An inmate who has been sentenced to the Department of Corrections and who is temporarily transferred to the county public works, or to any other South Carolina law-enforcement authority, or to out-of-state authorities, is not considered to be in the "jurisdiction" of the South Carolina Department of Corrections for purposes of this section.
This section shall not apply to patients of the South Carolina Department of Mental Health or those persons who are confined within the jurisdiction of the county prisons, county jails, city jails or overnight lockups or to any inmate injured in a fight, riot, recreational activity or other incidents not directly related to his work assignment.
S.C. Code § 42-1-480