HERE NEWS

South Congaree, SC 03/15/2024 – The Town of South Congaree’s Police Chief has stepped down to take a position with the South Carolina Transport Police. Shumpert served the town faithfully working his way up through the ranks of the department for 19 years.

Appointment of Interim Chief

At a recent meeting of the town’s council, they promoted Special Operations Captain Chris Garner to be their interim chief. Garner comes from a long line of law enforcement officers in New York State. He has lived in SC for many years, is married to Connie Shockley Garner who retired from the Eleventh Circuit Solicitor’s Office, and they have a son William who works for the Lexington Police Department. Chief Garner retired from the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department as a regional commander and then went to work for the Town of Pelion where he was tasked with restarting that department after it had been dormant for many years. He has also been employed by the Springfield Police Department after retiring from Pelion PD. Garner said in a recent interview that he believes helping the public is the Lord’s work. “I have been blessed with a servant’s heart. I feel if you remember that God is in charge, it gives you a completely different perspective when you encounter people out here that are often having some sort of crisis or maybe even the worst day of their lives.”