Proposed Expansion of Island Sheriff Patrol

I plan to ask Town Council to expand the Island Sheriff Patrol by 50%, from approximately $200,000 per year to $300,000 per year.    That should increase the Town's contribution to James Island law enforcement to the equivalent of four full-time officers. 

Law enforcement in the Town, like the unincorporated area of James Island, is the responsibility of the Charleston County Sheriff's Office.   The Island Sheriff Patrol is aimed at providing additional law enforcement in areas under the jurisdiction of the Town.

Late Sunday night, a man was murdered on Greenhill Road.  An Island Sheriff Patrol officer, responding to the report of gunfire, found the body.    Monday night, shots were fired at a house on Greenhill and a resident inside was wounded.

At the request of our coordinator, Sergeant Shawn James, the Town had stepped up late night patrols a few weeks ago.   This involved a shift from daytime traffic enforcement as well as adding additional officers.   (Our coordinator and all Island Sheriff Patrol Officers are Sheriff Deputies.) 

A few days before the murder, there was a report of two men exchanging gunfire with another man on Greenhill Road.   Shortly before that, a man received a gun wound in his shoulder.   While he said he was shot while driving on Fort Johnson Road, informants in the community say that he was shot on Greenhill Road while running away.

The stepped up patrols have included other area neighborhoods.   This is because of an increase in burglaries in the early morning hours.   We have had problems before, though usually when no one is home, frequently during the day.   A repeat offender from James Island who had usually followed that pattern was recently sentenced to 20 years in prison.   This new pattern involves breaking in where it is quite apparent people are at home sleeping.   Be sure to lock your doors, including those opening to screen porches or garages.  Also make sure your windows lock. 

We continue to have problems with criminals stealing valuables from cars late at night.  A car was stolen recently.  (The keys were left in the car.)   In response to this longstanding problem, the James Island Neighborhood Council along with the Island Sheriff's Patrol designed a sign warning residents to remove their keys and valuables and to lock the doors.   The usual pattern is that the criminals go down the street, checking each car to see if it is locked.   They pass by the locked cars and rummage through the unlocked cars.   We get reports of guns, cell phones, and laptops being stolen.  Let's not make it easy on the thieves.     Take the keys, remove the valuables, and lock the car.

The Neighborhood Council promotes crime watch activity in the Town.   Is your neighborhood represented?   Do you need help organizing crime watch?   Contact Neighborhood Council Chairman Zennie Quinn for more information at quinn3990@bellsouth.net.