Five recipients from five agencies honored by Columbia-area church for fourth consecutive year By W. Thomas Smith Jr. Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) Lieutenant Frieda Brown and four fellow first responders received Eastminster Presbyterian Church’s annual SERVANT LEADERSHIP AWARD on Wednesday evening, the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.Continue Reading
The Richland County Sheriff’s Department’s RESERVE DEPUTY PROGRAM recruiting for 2023 class By W. Thomas Smith Jr. More than two decades ago (2001), Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott established the Richland County Sheriff’s Department’s (RCSD) Reserve Deputy Program as a means of augmenting patrol units with added personnel. Though trainedContinue Reading
A Columbia man is accused of flying home from California with more than 40 pounds of marijuana and $4,000 in his suitcases. Kevin Antwan Simmons, 43, is charged with trafficking marijuana, according to a warrant for his arrest. “Law enforcement officers from the Sacramento area notified South Carolina-based Drug EnforcementContinue Reading
Investigators continue to pursue charges against men targeted in a month-long operation featuring messages exchanged with law enforcement officers posing as minors on social media apps. Seventeen arrests were announced last month after an online operation that included more than a dozen law enforcement agencies. Officers pretended to be underageContinue Reading
By W. Thomas Smith Jr. United States Senator Tim Scott, ranking member of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, praised Project H.O.P.E., a program of the Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD), as a model for elderly outreach and assistance which might be implemented by other agencies, nationwide. Scott’s remarksContinue Reading
By W. Thomas Smith Jr. Nearly 20 patrol deputies, investigators, and supervisory officers were promoted at the Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD), including one – Lt. Col. Kelvin Ashe – who made history this week. Among those achieving the next higher rank in RCSD’s various divisions and regions were DeputyContinue Reading
Koon’s Watch In 2019 alone, 126 people were killed in vehicles at railroad crossings, according to data from the Federal Railroad Administration. Of the fatal collisions that year, 94 occurred after the driver went around lowered crossing gate arms, which is a 10-year high. In fact, from 2015-2019, there wereContinue Reading
Lexington County deputies man arrested a man accused of shooting someone outside a Swansea grocery store Tuesday. Akeem Kantrell Mack, 34, is charged with attempted murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, according to arrest warrants. “Mack got into an argument with another man in the store’sContinue Reading
By W. Thomas Smith, Jr. Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott presented graduation certificates to the first class of interns with the new Richland County Sheriff’s Department’s (RCSD) Internship Program, August 4, at RCSD headquarters. The RCSD Internship program began June 9 with an initial class of 13 interns: College andContinue Reading
Koon’s Watch Our patrol deputies respond to a multitude of calls for service all day, every day. With many requests, these calls can consume an entire shift. However, there’s also a need for deputies to be available on our roadways to make sure residents and visitors are obeying traffic laws,Continue Reading