Flickr user Rose Robinson
It's not the legal delay you'd expect.

Using the ongoing case of Preston Oates' Christmas Eve shooting of Carlos Oliveria as a touching point, The Island Packet's Allison Stice has a story that walks through many of the legal delays caused by the use of the Castle Doctrine.

In a nutshell if an accused suspect is rejected the use of the in-self-defense Castle Doctrine law (as Oates was) the suspect can continue appealing all the way to the South Carolina Supreme Court, all the while the original charges against the suspect must wait.

Stice writes, in part quoting Don Colongeli, Oates' attorney.

It has "created somewhat of a monster, so to speak, when it comes to delay tactics, if that's what you want to call them," he said. If asked to guess, Colongeli said it would be 18 to 36 months before a final decision on whether Oates will face a jury.

Take a read of her whole piece over here.