RCSD Stories

April 3rd, 2026 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Three real incidents show how South Carolina deputies made split-second decisions to save lives — moments the public rarely sees Master Deputy Geoffrey Kendall, Corporal Avery Arrington and Master Deputy Monica Parker of the Richland County Sheriff’s Department, whose quick actions in separate incidents helped save lives. In my near-10 years with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) in Columbia, South Carolina, I’ve learned a

March 23rd, 2026 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Media Personality Curtis Wilson honored with Order of the Palmetto Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) Deputy Curtis Wilson, an anchor and law-enforcement analyst for On Patrol: LIVE and news anchor for ABC Columbia (WOLO-TV), recently received the Order of the Palmetto, South Carolina’s highest award, during a special ceremony hosted by S.C. Representative Kambrell Garvin. Presented February 19, the award recognized Wilson’s l

March 16th, 2026 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Award is the namesake of 2021 National Sheriff of the Year Leon Lott Pictured (L-R) Sheriff Bill Waybourn and Sheriff Leon Lott The S.C. Black Belt Hall of Fame (SCBBHOF) presented Tarrant County (Texas) Sheriff Bill E. Waybourn with the prestigious LEON LOTT – FIRST THROUGH THE DOOR AWARD during an awards dinner held in Arlington, Texas, Friday evening March 6, 2026. The award, named after Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott, is part of

February 27th, 2026 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Richland County Sheriff’s Department points to mobile-phone forensics as “vital asset” in recent homicide-solving successes Pictured are Sheriff Leon Lott and Maj. Ricky Johnson Recent national reports of the Richland County Sheriff’s Department’s (RCSD) successes in solving 100-percent of all homicide cases (80 murder cases in fact since 2023) beg the question: How? Broad investigative team effort, including an intelligence and ana

February 16th, 2026 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Intelligence collection, countering human-trafficking, mine-clearing efforts in Eastern Europe, expansion into Africa, and a South Carolina connection The board of directors of U.S.-based CRIME STOPPERS GLOBAL SOLUTIONS (CSGS) gathered for a quarterly Zoom meeting, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, to discuss ongoing projects on several continents. Chairman John Lamb briefly discussed his forthcoming trip within the month to Washington, D.C

February 12th, 2026 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Richland County Sheriff’s Department Chaplains play key role within the department and throughout the community Pictured L-R Sheriff Leon Lott, Chief Maria Yturria, and Chaplains Marty Wells and Bryan Walker The Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) has for decades maintained a viable corps of chaplains, officially the RCSD Chaplaincy Program (spiritual caregivers who serve the needs of those within the department): Primarily

February 6th, 2026 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Three of the 12 were among MidlandsBiz’s sixty most influential military leaders Pictured (L-R) are Lt. Col. James E. Smith Jr., Sheriff (Maj. Gen.) Leon Lott, and Brig. Gen. Marie Goff The Riley Institute at Furman University recognized 12 Fellows in the Institute’s February 2026 “Fellows in the News.” Among those recognized were Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott, former State Representative James E. Smith Jr., and Brig. Gen. Darlen

January 12th, 2026 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. South Carolina Black Belt Hall of Fame presents several awards during ceremonial dinner in the Upstate Guests and inductees of the S.C. Black Belt Hall of Fame (SCBBHOF), the Palmetto State’s premier martial arts organization, gathered for the Hall of Fame’s annual awards dinner at Carson’s Steak Warehouse and Saloon in Anderson, S.C., Saturday evening, Jan. 10. RECOGNIZING MILITARY SERVICE Among the SCBBHOF inductees receiving award

January 9th, 2026 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Press conference addresses the good and not-so-good in terms of criminal activity over the previous year Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott held a first-of-the-year press conference, January 6, addressing countywide crime trends – the good and the not so good – going into 2026. Lott opened with a question he’s often asked: “Is it really that bad? Is crime totally out of control?” His answer: “No it’s not [out of control]. We just hear

December 19th, 2025 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Inspired by a century-old Texas Rangers’ prayer, W. Thomas Smith Jr. crafted a modern invocation for the Richland County Sheriff’s Department, reflecting faith, courage and service in 2025 Recently when Columbia, South Carolina writer W. Thomas Smith Jr. was reading a few books about the history of the famed Texas Rangers, he came across the Texas Rangers’ Prayer, composed in the early 20th century (no specific date recorded) by the

November 24, 2025 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Larry Payne’s life’s work is reflected in his three decades of service to Richland County In January 2018, then-Lieutenant Larry Payne was one of three Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) deputies featured in a national POLICE1 article which examined the department’s unique and first-of-its-kind pre-PTSD conditioning programs: A period of pre-post-traumatic stress disorder counseling and training which all of RCSD’s newly hire

November 20, 2025 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Pictured are students with RCSD deputies and law enforcement officers from other agencies at Ballentine Elementary School. High Five Fridays have become an exciting beginning to the last day of each week For years (during the schoolyear) one of the most enthusiastically anticipated end-of-week interactions between schoolkids and deputies has been HIGH FIVE FRIDAYS (H5F), a Friday morning period when deputies meet and greet elementary

October 29, 2025 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Sheriff Leon Lott and RCSD employees are pictured wearing pink in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Oct. 29, 2025. Photograph of Richland County Sheriff’s Department in South Carolina becomes PHOTO OF THE WEEK in top national law enforcement publication Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott (on the far right wearing a pink shirt with sheriff’s stars on his collar) was photographed with a group of his Richland County Sheriff’s Depar

October 22, 2025 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Pictured (L-R) are Sgt. 1st Class James A. Lawson, Lt. Ricky Griddine, Deputy Chief Maria Yturria, Sheriff Leon Lott, and retired Deputy James Taylor. Sheriff Lott honors retired Deputy and Vietnam veteran James L. Taylor Sr. Mr. James L. Taylor, Sr., a 92-year-old retired deputy sheriff with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) was presented his retirement credentials, during a special ceremony at the RCSD headquarters, Tue

October 16, 2025 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Before most of Columbia was awake, Richland County’s tactical operators had already hit three targets, seized weapons and drugs, and regrouped before breakfast. RCSD Special Response Team Operators are seen here during a final briefing at a staging area prior to launching the first raid of the morning, Sept. 5. Hours before sunrise on September 5, 2025, 10 black Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) SUVs — some marked, most unmar

October 13, 2025 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott and deputies with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) defeated both the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division(SLED) and the Columbia Police Department (CPD) in a double-elimination softball tournament which raised funds for local nonprofit SERVE & CONNECT, Sunday, Oct. 5,at Segra Park in Columbia. Participating teams included RCSD, SLED, CPD, the Columbia-Richland Fire Department, and

October 12, 2025 By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. Lott says his Richland County Sheriff’s Department has changed the public narrative through new and emerging technologies as well as RCSD’s “peace officer” branding Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott addressed members of the Spring Valley Rotary Club at Columbia’s Northeast Presbyterian Church, Thursday, Oct. 9: The primary focuses of his remarks being how the Richland County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) has changed the narrative from hi

Richland County Deputy among five first-responders to be honored on the eve of the 24th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks