Leon Lott (born 1953) is the commander of the

South Carolina State Guard The South Carolina State Guard (SCSG) is the designated State Defense Force, state defense force for the state of South Carolina. The State Guard maintains its headquarters in Columbia, South Carolina, Columbia. Battalions are located in the cit ...

and the

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

Richland County, South Carolina Richland County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 416,147, making it the second-most populous county in South Carolina, behind only Greenville County. The county seat and larg ...

. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

Early life

Lott was born in

Aiken, South Carolina Aiken is the most populous city in, and the county seat of, Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. According to 2020 census, the population was 32,025, making it the 15th-most populous city in South Carolina, and one of the two largest ci ...

and attended Aiken High School. As a youth, Lott was arrested for throwing eggs at vehicles on

Interstate 20 Interstate 20 (I‑20) is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the Southern United States. I-20 runs beginning at an interchange with I-10 in Reeves County, Texas, and ending at an interchange with I-95 in Florence, South Carolina. B ...

. Lott struck the cruiser of the chief investigator for the sheriff’s department. While he and a few others were detained, they were not charged. After graduating high school in 1971, he studied at the

University of South Carolina Aiken The University of South Carolina Aiken (USC Aiken or USCA) is a public university in the Aiken, South Carolina area. It is part of the University of South Carolina System and offers undergraduate degree programs as well as master's degrees. Addi ...

where he earned an associate degree in police administration. He transferred to

University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina (USC, SC, or Carolina) is a Public university, public research university in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1801 as South Carolina College, It is the flagship of the University of South Car ...

to obtain a Bachelor of Science degree in sociology followed by a master's degree in criminal justice. Later, he earned a master's in emergency management from

Lander University Lander University is a public university A public university, state university, or public college is a university or college that is State ownership, owned by the state or receives significant funding from a government. Whether a national u ...

Career

Lott became a patrol officer for

in 1975. He later served as a narcotic agent, a lieutenant, a captain, and a watch commander. In 1993, Lott was appointed as the police chief of

St. Matthews, South Carolina St. Matthews is a town in Calhoun County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 1,841 at the 2020 census, a decline from 2,021 in 2010. It is the county seat of Calhoun County. St. Matthews is part of the Columbia, South Carolina ...

, a small town in Calhoun County. In 1996, Lott campaigned to be

of Richland County as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

, winning the election that November.

Sheriff

As sheriff, Lott oversees the Richland County Sheriff's Department. As of the 2020 census, the population of Richland County, South Carolina was 416,147 and is the second-largest county in the state. Lott oversees approximately 1,000 department employees. In 2010, he traveled to the

Kurdistan Kurdistan (, ; ), or Greater Kurdistan, is a roughly defined geo- cultural region in West Asia wherein the Kurds form a prominent majority population and the Kurdish culture, languages, and national identity have historically been based. G ...

region of

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

and assisted in the establishment of the first Iraqi female police academy. In 2016, Lott permitted the A&E network to feature Richland County deputies in the television show

Live PD ''Live PD'' is an American television program that aired on the A&E Network from 2016 to 2020. It follows police officers in the course of their patrols live, broadcasting interactions with the public. The show was hosted by Dan Abrams with a ...

. The show aired through 2020 until it was cancelled amid

protests A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration, or remonstrance) is a public act of objection, disapproval or dissent against political advantage. Protests can be thought of as acts of cooperation in which numerous people cooperate ...

and riots following the

murder of George Floyd On May 25, 2020, George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black American man, was murdered in Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old White police officer. Floyd had been arrested after a store clerk reported that he made a purchase using a c ...

by a Minnesota police officer. In 2021, Lott stated Richland County would eventually return live to a show by a different name. In September 2016, Lott fired a deputy that gained national attention for flipping an

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

female student onto the floor at Spring Valley High School. Lott mentioned the incident made him want to "throw up"; he terminated the officer and called the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

and Justice Department to investigate, though the officer was not charged. In 2019, a school resource officer in

Richland County School District Two Richland County School District Two (commonly referred to as Richland Two) is a nationally recognized school district located in suburban Columbia, South Carolina, United States, in the northeast section of Richland County. It is one of the fas ...

was publicly accused of inappropriate sexual conduct toward a teenage female. Lott fired and arrested the deputy, Jamel Bradley, and stated, " radley isa monster that worked among us that we did not know about." But Lott drew criticism from the public when it was revealed that Bradley had more than five reports alleging predatory behavior around minors, but the department had dismissed the claims. In 2021, Jonathan Pentland, a white drill sergeant at Fort Jackson, was filmed assaulting a black man in Columbia. Lott arrested the soldier and charged him with assault and battery. Lott had initially stated that Pentland may have himself been the victim because the unidentified black man had been vaguely accused of other assaults. Later, the department shifted and said that Pentland was the aggressor. The

Post and Courier ''The Post and Courier'' is the main daily newspaper in Charleston, South Carolina. It traces its ancestry to three newspapers, the ''Charleston Courier'', founded in 1803, the ''Charleston Daily News'', founded 1865, and ''The Evening Post'', f ...

accused Lott of "victim blaming." In 2021, Lott was named national Sheriff of the Year by the

National Sheriffs' Association The National Sheriffs' Association (NSA) is a U.S. trade association. Its stated purpose is to raise the level of professionalism among U.S. sheriffs, their deputies and others in the fields of criminal justice and public safety. Since its found ...

, the first person from South Carolina to ever receive the awards. Lott ranked Number 3 in the Post and Courier Columbia Power List 2023.

South Carolina State Guard

On December 1, 2018, Lott was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General and took over command of the South Carolina State Guard. The S.C. State Guard serves with the S.C. Army National Guard, the S.C. Air National Guard, and the S.C. Emergency Management Division.

Personal life

Lott is married with four children and four grandchildren. He identifies as

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lott, Leon 1953 births South Carolina sheriffs American militia generals Live PD Living people Lander University alumni University of South Carolina alumni University of South Carolina Aiken alumni USC Aiken Pacers baseball players USC Aiken Pacers athletes People from Aiken, South Carolina