Take Note

It's called South Carolina's "bully hot line," but callers usually describe a lot worse than a playground thug stealing a classmate's candy bar.

More than 300 assaults, 200 drug offenses, 156 weapons possessions, and 12 cases of criminal sexual conduct have been reported to (888) NO-BULLY since state Attorney General Charles M. Condon set up the toll-free number last April. The hot line has recorded 1,350 complaints in all.

"The program's goal is to improve the collection of crime data and to raise awareness of school violence," said John Loftus,...