Latest news with #SheriffLewis
Associated Press
06-08-2025
- Associated Press
2 South Carolina deputies hurt in training accident by live rounds kept in baggie in desk drawer
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Two deputies shot and injured in a training exercise in South Carolina were wounded by ammunition taken from a plastic bag in a desk drawer and not property tested to see if they were blanks, a sheriff said Wednesday. The officers were injured by what turned out to be breaching rounds used by police to break down doors and windows that were fired by an officer acting as a gunman in the July 29 training scenario, Greenville County Sheriff Hobart Lewis said. Both deputies are recovering. Instead of getting rounds for the training out of the heavily controlled sheriff's armory, deputies took rounds they believed were blanks from a plastic bag in a desk drawer, Lewis said. The officers followed regulations and test-fired the rounds to see if they were blanks, but fired into a berm from too far away and didn't realize they were breaching rounds, which contain gunpowder and have enough power to knock down doors at close range, the sheriff said. No criminal charges were filed but internal investigators are still reviewing what happened and the deputies involved in obtaining the ammunition could be disciplined, Lewis said. 'I don't know how long those rounds were in that desk drawer. But I can assure you I don't think anybody would keep any kind of round in a baggie in a desk drawer at the Greenville County Sheriff's Office ever again,' Lewis said at a news conference Wednesday. The two injured deputies were part of a SWAT team undergoing regular training at a vacant school building. They were practicing checking rooms for people when another officer who was supposed to be a suspect fired at them with a shotgun that was supposed to be loaded with blanks. The injured deputies immediately realized they were bleeding and medics on the scene applied tourniquets that likely saved the life of one officer who had an artery severed after being shot in the groin, Lewis said. The other officer was struck just below his armpit and just above his bulletproof vest, the sheriff said. Both had to have emergency surgery and are still out of work a week after the shooting, Lewis said. The Greenville County Sheriff's Office has stopped training with shotguns as they investigate the shooting.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Yahoo
Greenville Co. sees officer-involved shootings every month in 2025
GREENVILLE COUNTY, S.C. (WSPA) – In 2024, there were a total of 45 officer involved shootings in South Carolina, according to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. Seven of those happened in Greenville County. So far in 2025, officer involved shootings have happened every month in Greenville County, SLED said. 'We have an officer involved shooting that took place earlier today around 2:40 p.m.,' Greenville County Sheriff, Hobart Lewis said in January. 'The suspect was armed at which time an officer involved shooting took place,' Sheriff Lewis said in May. 'The suspect is deceased.' Greenville County has been involved in five out of 19 of the state's officer involved shootings that were reported this year. Four of those incidents involved deputies at the Greenville County Sheriff's Office. One of those shootings happened January 23 when 45-year-old Sean Scates was shot and killed. There's body camera footage of that day. After blocking the suspect in with their vehicle at a motel, officials said that six deputies fired their weapons. It was confirmed by deputies that Scates was involved in an armed robbery at a gas station in Pickens County, earlier that day. In February, SLED said a South Carolina Highway Patrol trooper fired his weapon at a homeowner off Farrs Bridge Road. The woman was reportedly armed and was responsible for an abandoned vehicle involved in a crash. No one was injured in the shooting. In March, the Greenville County deputies said they responded to a disturbance in Travelers Rest, where 75-year-old Jesse Wright Sr. was shot and killed. 'At some point, the suspect was armed and an officer involved shooting took place that involved two deputies,' Sheriff Lewis said. 'All law enforcement are ok. The suspect is deceased.' 'We are in the 800 block of South Piedmont Highway, where an officer involved shooting took place today,' Sheriff Lewis said in April. A heavy law enforcement presence filled Piedmont Highway as deputies said that they encountered a wanted and armed Anderson County man. Recently on May 4, Greenville County deputies responded to a home in Simpsonville. 'Around 9:50 p.m., deputies responded to a domestic dispute at a home,' Sheriff Lewis said. Sheriff Lewis said the victim was removed from the home but the suspect was armed, and a deputy fired his weapon. The Greenville County Coroner's Office identified the individual shot as 34-year-old James Webster Jr. Per protocol, every officer involved shooting is investigated by SLED. Several weeks after the investigation is complete, critical incident reports are shared with the community and an answer is given on if the shooting is ruled as justified. The investigation into January's shooting has been completed and shared with us. 'Following their investigation, it was determined their (deputies') use of deadly force was justified, according to the sheriff's office use of force policy,' Sheriff Lewis said. The next critical incident report, in relation to the March shooting, will be released on Friday. Others are expected mid-June. To find out more information, you can visit the sheriff's office website. Five Upstate counties have not been involved in an officer involved shooing this year. Those counties include Spartanburg, Abbeville, Oconee, Union, and Laurens. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WSPA 7NEWS.
