Five K-9s from three S.C. LE agencies perished in 2024 By W. Thomas Smith Jr. Deceased K-9s with the Richland County (S.C.) Sheriff’s Department have been honored with a beautiful new memorial statue in RCSD’s memorial garden in front of RCSD headquarters in Columbia. The statue was officially unveiled, Thursday,Continue Reading
Special medical training for Richland County deputies puts them in a class of their own By W. Thomas Smith Jr. Following months of intensive training in emergency medical care and now Advanced Life Support (ALS) licensing, the Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) has achieved a level of departmental emergency medicalContinue Reading
Deputies past and present have been gathering for more than a quarter century By W. Thomas Smith Jr. SHERIFF LEON LOTT AND THE RICHLAND COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT (RCSD) hosted the department’s 27th annual retirees’ luncheon at RCSD’s Denny Terrace training headquarters substation – the cafeteria-auditorium of the former Denny TerraceContinue Reading
How the hit TV series benefits the Richland County Sheriff’s Department By W. Thomas Smith Jr. [A version of this article was published in POLICE1, March 11, 2025] SINCE ITS TELEVISION PREMIER on July 22, 2022, “On Patrol: Live,” a reality TV docuseries produced by Half Moon Pictures and airingContinue Reading
Richland County, SC – The Richland County Sheriff’s Department has arrested five teenagers in connection with a fatal shooting that occurred on January 28, 2025, in the 1000 block of Miles Bowman Rd. Deputies responded to reports of gunfire around 9:30 p.m. and discovered a 23-year-old man deceased in theContinue Reading
Training developed in-house said to be the first on its scale in the Palmetto State By W. Thomas Smith Jr. The Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) held its first-ever graduation of 22 deputy sheriffs enrolled in the department’s new TACTICAL MEDICAL PROGRAM, which prepares deputies for the full-spectrum of challengesContinue Reading
At least $50,000 raised for Richland County Sheriff’s Department’s K-9 unit By W. Thomas Smith Jr. Deputies with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD), RCSD K-9s, and friends and supporters of RCSD and local law enforcement gathered at Columbia Flag & Sign Company in West Columbia for the first-ever “Dog-a-thonContinue Reading
Thirty influential leaders recognized as “movers and shakers” for 2024 By W. Thomas Smith Jr. Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott landed a lofty 3rd PLACE in the Post & Courier’s annual 30-person POWER LIST for Columbia, South Carolina, published Wednesday, Dec. 18. First place honors went to University of SouthContinue Reading
Salvation Army Major Mark Craddock and Sheriff Lott welcome shoppers in northeast Columbia By W. Thomas Smith Jr. FOR THE FOURTH YEAR IN A ROW, Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott and deputies with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) – primarily RCSD’s command staff and members of RCSD’s Community ActionContinue Reading
The Midlands Gang Task Force is thwarting violent gangs and gang-related criminal activity in central S.C. By W. Thomas Smith Jr. Gathered around a table in one of the Richland County Sheriff’s Department’s substations in a somewhat isolated stretch of north Columbia, S.C., Lieutenant Stephen Dauway, Corporal David Castro, andContinue Reading
Richland County, SC — In a move designed to foster closer ties with the community, Sheriff Leon Lott has added 17 new Ford Mustang GTs to the Richland County Sheriff’s Department’s Community Action Team (CAT) fleet. The new vehicles were unveiled on July 1 and are expected to serve asContinue Reading