RC Soles, longtime NC lawmaker who died Friday, leaves a complicated legacy Gareth McGrath and Paul Woolverton USA TODAY NETWORK Robert Charles “R.C.” Soles Jr., a top Democratic lawmaker who represented Columbus County in the N.C. legislature for more than four decades before retiring in 2011, died on Friday at a South Carolina hospital. He was 86. His funeral was on Monday. A controversial figure for much of his political career, Soles faced many accusations of abusing his authority and threatening his opponents. Later in his career, the Tabor City lawyer was dogged by allegations of sexual misconduct — charges he vehemently denied.