With three shootings involving law enforcement across the Carolinas in October so far, police departments along the Grand Strand say it’s been a tough couple of weeks but it’s a time for unity and healing.
Part of the force for 33 years, Deputy Chief Lance Winburn with the Horry County Police Department says he worries the national climate toward police officers has changed.
“There’s just not the respect for law enforcement there used to be, I think respect for life in general is on the decline,” Winburn said. But he feels on a local level especially after recent events, citizens are going out of their way to show their appreciation.
“When you get out and you talk with the local folks here especially in Horry County you have people that love us, they still respect authority,” said Winburn.
The state of South Carolina offers a peer counseling program where officers with every department are trained to help each other who have been through shootings first hand.
“We have individuals who are trained who have been through different scenarios. Shootings is one scenario. An officer who has a natural death is another type of scenario,” said Public Information Officer, Mikayla Moskov.
Chief Amy Prock with the Myrtle Beach Police Department says the department still mourns and remembers officers that were shot and killed on the job a few years back.
“We plan, we train. You just don’t know. You can’t predict the future, but we do everything we can to work with our community, to be as interactive as possible, but we just want to support our law enforcement families,” said Chief Prock.
