DEC 2020 Blues Vol 36 No. 12 - 36TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION

Small town in S.C. loses

Small town in S.C. loses entire police force The fourth police chief to step down in the last three years said his departure was due to a “hostile work environment” at the hands of the mayor By Bristow Marchant The State (Columbia, S.C.) PINE RIDGE, S.C. — Situated in the southeast of Lexington County near where Interstate 77 ends at Interstate 26, the town of Pine Ridge has a small police department protecting its population of 2,000 people. At most, the town would normally have three fulltime officers on staff, supplemented by part-time officers. But Pine Ridge has been without a functioning police department since Oct. 13, when Lt. Vincent Silano, the town’s interim police chief and only serving full-time officer, resigned after only five months on the job. Silano is the fourth chief to step down in the last three years, and five other officers have left in the same time span. In a resignation letter to Mayor Robert Wells and the town council, Silano laid the blame for his resignation at the feet of the mayor. His departure, Silano said, was “solely due to the constant impediment of police matters and micro-managing at the hands of Mayor Robert Wells.” “It has created a hostile work environment for not only myself but my two part time officers as well and it will not be tolerated,” Silano wrote. “Since it does not seem that anything can be done regardless of the knowledge of wrongdoing, I have no choice but to resign from my position.” At a contentious town council meeting Nov. 10, Wells said the town faces challenges in retaining personnel similar to what other small towns face. “We have Lexington and different towns offering a ,000 cash bonus just to walk in the door,” Wells said. “We have no tax base. Nobody in this room or in this town has paid a dime (in taxes) for police in this town. All the money comes from franchise fees and business licenses.” Wells told The State he had two main disagreements in the department. One was the decision to suspend the town’s K9 officer program. Wells said a K9 unit wasn’t really needed in Pine Ridge. “In town, the number of calls for a canine were zero,” he said. “Everything was mutual aid calls to other municipalities.” The other came over Wells’ insistence that an officer police the school zones around Pine Ridge Middle School and Herbert A. Wood Elementary School at set times. “If that’s mismanagement or micromanagement or whatever you call it, then that’s micromanagement,” he said. The mayor reiterated that turnover in a town like Pine Ridge tends to be high, and officers leaving is not a sign that anything is wrong. “If we make a change, and we continue to have resignations, then we know it was not Mayor Wells,” Councilman Dinkins said at the town council meeting. He argued some action would be needed “to regain the trust and respect of the people of this town.” But town residents are worried about living in a town without a police department and whether the sheriff’s department will be able to respond in time to calls. Resident Cheryl Patrick recalled meeting Silano at a neighborhood watch meeting after neighbors had spotted a prowler in the area at night. Speaking to the town council Patrick said she hoped the town got its police department sorted out soon.“Barney Fife would be better than nobody,” she said. Charleston Officer Cassie Johnson dies from gunshot to head By Joe Severino CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Charleston Police Chief Tyke Hunt said the city police officer shot by a resident Tuesday afternoon, December 1, did not survive. Officer Cassie Johnson, 28, was gravely wounded when she was shot just before 3 p.m. on Garrison Avenue. “With a heavy heart, I hate to say she is not going to be able to pull through this,” Hunt said outside of Charleston Area Medical Center General Hospital. “She is still fighting but her body is unable to sustain life by itself.” Johnson was responding to a traffic complaint on Garrison Avenue when Joshua Phillips, 38, of Charleston, allegedly shot her in the face, said Kanawha County Sheriff Mike Rutherford. The Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office believes Johnson also shot Phillips, which sent him to CAMC General. Hunt said there was no update on Phillips’ condition as of Wednesday evening, except he was recovering in the hospital. Rutherford said the sheriff’s office is currently handling the investigation. He said a confrontation on Garrison Avenue led to the shooting, but declined to comment further until witness statements and evidence collection can be completed. “Once that’s finished, we will turn our information over to the Charleston Police Department and the Kanawha County Prosecutor’s Office and they will determine what charges [will be filed against Phillips],” Rutherford said. “I really can’t get into more detail, I’m sorry,” Rutherford said, “but we don’t want to cause a problem with the investigation and have a problem down the road. We want the full extent of the law to apply in this case. We’re going to do this right and we’re going to do a thorough and conclusive investigation.” Hunt asked for continued prayers for Johnson and her family, and commended Johnson “for even in her passing still being a true hero.” “As one final parting gift to continue to help others, she is an organ donor,” Hunt said. “The doctors are working with the family to determine eligibility and work out some donor-ship there.” Johnson was the first city police officer sworn in by Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin when she began her term in January 2019. Goodwin said Wednesday Johnson is going to be remembered by the community for her commitment to service. “Her family still needs your prayers, and to this community we still need your strength,” Goodwin said. “[She] is a wonderful, bright young woman who is going to leave an amazing legacy for every woman in this city.” The city held a candlelight vigil for Johnson at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, December 2 at Laidley Field. 32 The BLUES POLICE MAGAZINE The BLUES POLICE MAGAZINE 33