As the Horry County Police Department has come under increased pressure and scrutiny, the debate on the layout of the county鈥檚 policing structure has returned again.
State Rep. William Bailey (R-North Myrtle Beach) is proposing a bill that would dissolve the Horry County Police Department. The county is the only in the state that has both a county police department and sheriff's office.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of things going on. It鈥檚 the obvious things that we鈥檙e reading about in the paper, but at the same time, Horry County is the last county in the state that has the double function of law enforcement,鈥 Bailey said. 鈥淒o we need to be in line with what every other county is doing, or do we want to continue to be different for no other reason other than we want to make sure we don鈥檛 change? As we grow and we develop, things change.鈥
The formation of HCPD came in 1959 when the legislature passed a law allowing counties to create a police department and assign specific duties to the Horry County Sheriff鈥檚 Office.
There have been attempts to dissolve HCPD before. Efforts to get the question on the ballot for voters stalled during the last attempt to do so in 2016, and in 1998 voters chose to keep the department intact. The 2016 effort was supported by longtime Sheriff Phillip Thompson, who is an elected official.聽
鈥淩ep. Bailey called to let me know he is filing this bill. He did not ask for my approval. He just wanted to make me aware,鈥 Thompson said. 鈥淭his office serves the citizens of Horry County and I鈥檝e always believed that the final decision should be left up to them.鈥
Bailey has proposed introducing a bill which would repeal the 1959 law which led to the formation of county police department. Doing so would take the county鈥檚 power to have a separate police department away and in turn dissolve the department without putting the issue on the ballot.
鈥淚t would remove the autonomy that the county council has to set up its own police department,鈥 Bailey said.
Having an elected sheriff as the chief law enforcement officer in the county means increased accountability for policing, Bailey said. A sheriff is elected every four years by voters while a county police chief is appointed.
鈥淎ny agency can have its issues,鈥 Bailey said. 鈥淭he difference is you can hold a sheriff accountable at least every four years if you don鈥檛 like the direction of your law enforcement.鈥
HCPD issues
Bailey's proposal comes as HCPD is in the midst of an internal affairs investigation after the 2023 deadly road rage shooting on Camp Swamp Road.聽
Police said the incident happened in self defense. However, in March, a chief deputy resigned after learning of the internal affairs investigation. The former chief deputy is under investigation by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. In April, a sergeant was fired for 鈥渃onduct unbecoming of an officer.鈥
A months-long conversation
It鈥檒l be months before a bill is introduced. The legislative session doesn鈥檛 begin until January. Bailey said getting the conversation going so early will give lawmakers time to hear from constituents about whether they support the idea to dissolve HCPD, even if they won鈥檛 be voting on it directly.
鈥I promise you the people of Horry County have never been short on words when they are asked their opinion,鈥 Bailey said. 鈥淏ut the other thing is, every single elected official is getting feedback from their constituents hopefully every day. Typically their representatives are going to, whether people believe it or not, they鈥檙e going to listen to what they鈥檙e being told by the public.鈥
An HCPD spokesperson declined to comment on the potential bill.
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