Charleston Police Department

History

In the early colonial period, police protection for the citizens of Charleston was performed by the Town Watch, a paramilitary unit. After incorporation in 1783, Charleston formally established the City Guard, another paramilitary force. The City Guard helped suppress the 1822 Vesey slave rebellion. From 1846 to 1855, the City Guard was reorganized several times and finally emerged in 1856 as a uniformed police force under the administration of Mayor William Porcher Miles.

The guard was armed with swords and pistols. It enforced a nine o'clock curfew for African-American residents of the city. Based at the Guard House at the corner of Broad and Meeting Streets, the force flogged those out after hours.

Before the close of the Civil War, martial law was enacted in Charleston, and the city police force disbanded. Civil police forces were revived and reorganized in 1865, following the election of P.C. Gaillard. These forces served as a counterpoint to the federal authorities until the end of martial law in 1877.

The election of Mayor W.W. Sale that same year marked the introduction of a city police organizational system of officers and men, divided between the main station and the upper station, a system that was continued by succeeding administrations.

By 1880, the police force had "one hundred men, including a chief, three to five lieutenants, six to ten sergeants, three to four detectives, and seventy-three to eighty-five privates". On 7 February 1888, a new station was opened at the corner of southeast King and Hutson streets.

In 1895, state authorities established a metropolitan police and seized control of the organization from January 1896 to 30 September 1897, at which time control was returned to the city. In 1907, a large, modern facility was erected at the northwest corner of Vanderhorst and St. Philip streets. The police department remained at this location until 1974, when they moved to their current location on Lockwood Boulevard.

In July 2011, the department was re-accredited through 2014 with the Accreditation with Excellence Award by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA). Replacing the former Flagship Award, the Accreditation with Excellence Award is the highest single-period accreditation award available. The department also received the Meritorious Accreditation Award in 2011, representing at least 15 continuous years of CALEA accreditation.

The CPD was criticized for its response to the 2020 George Floyd protests in downtown Charleston, which some called insufficient.

Organization and structure

The City of Charleston Police Department is organized and overseen by the chief of police, who is appointed by the mayor. The mayor is responsible for overseeing the police department and transmitting orders and directives from the city council.

Operational areas

The Charleston Police Department is divided into four operational areas, which are under the command of the three main deputy chiefs (except in the case of the Chief of Police Staff). These areas are the Chief of Police Staff, the Bureau of Operations, the Bureau of Investigations, and the Bureau of Procedural Justice, and Community Policing.

Headquarters building

The first policing organization in Charleston was the Town Watch. The watch had two main headquarters buildings, the first located above the Half Moon Battery (today the site of the Exchange and Provost). The second building was located on Broad Street between "the Public Armory, State House, St Michael's, and the Market". In 1838, the City decided that the City Guard (which evolved from the Town Watch after the city was incorporated) needed a new guard house. The new building was larger, and was used until August 1886, when it was irreparably damaged in an earthquake. The site of the new guard house is where the post office and courthouse would later stand.

1887 saw the birth of the Charleston Police Department as it is known today, as well as the construction of a central police station to replace the guard house. The station was located at the corner of King and Hutson streets, a lot which was "long vacant, neglected, and most unsightly". The station was located next to South Carolina State Arsenal. In February 1906, the Citadel Military Academy wanted to expand, and asked the city to sell the building to the state, an agreement that was finalized in 1908.

In 1907 a new headquarters building was opened at the northwest corner of Vanderhorst and St. Philip streets. This would be the headquarters building until 1968, when plans were begun to move the department yet again. In 1974 these plans were finalized and the department moved to their current location on Lockwood Boulevard.

Fallen officers

The Charleston Police Department has lost 24 officers in the line of duty since 1857. The CPD has the most fallen officers of any local city department in the State of South Carolina.

Services

The Charleston Police Department has a broad array of specialized services, including SWAT, K-9 Unit, Explosive Devices Team, Mounted, Civil Disturbance Team, Underwater Response, and Harbor Patrol.

In 2022 the city responded to 124,337 calls for service, which resulted in 4,451 arrests and two vehicle pursuits.

In 2024 the city responded to 112,791 calls for service, resulting in 5,535 arrests.

Demographics

;By gender

• Male: 83%
• Female: 17%

;By race (sworn officers)

• 69.00% White
• 14.00% Black
• 4.00% other
• 1.00% Asian

;By race (unsworn employees)

• 8.00% White
• 3.00% Black
• 1.00% other
• 0.00% Asian

References

References

1. "Mission & Overview | Charleston, SC - Official Website".
2. https://www.charleston-sc.gov/DocumentCenter/View/33741/Official-Budget-Book---2023- {{Bare URL inline. (August 2025)
3. https://perf.memberclicks.net/assets/CharlestonChief.pdf {{Bare URL PDF. (August 2025)
4. "Departmental Teams | Charleston, SC - Official Website".
5. (7 October 2012). "Patrol car makeover Bold new lettering mark of Charleston's Ford Interceptors".
6. https://charleston-sc.gov/DocumentCenter/View/34464/2022-CPD-Annual-Report {{Bare URL inline. (August 2025)
7. "Mission & Overview {{!}} Charleston, SC - Official Website".
8. (April 11, 2017). "Madness Rules the Hour: Charleston, 1860 and the Mania for War". Public Affairs.
9. "Records of the Charleston Police Department, 1855-1991".
10. "Reconstruction".
11. (1980). "Police and Politics: Charleston in the Gilded Age, 1880-1900". The South Carolina Historical Magazine.
12. "City of Charleston SC Police Department".
13. (July 2011). "CALEA Accreditation with Excellence".
14. (July 2011). "CALEA Meritorious Accreditation".
15. Yee, Gregory. (February 23, 2021). "Charleston police say they've changed since May 2020 rioting; report details how".
16. "PowerDMS".
17. "16. Armory (1750), Watch House (1767), Guard House (1838-1886) | Halsey Map Preservation Society of Charleston".
18. "Records of the Charleston Police Department, 1855-1991".
19. "South Carolina Line of Duty Deaths".
20. https://www.charleston-sc.gov/DocumentCenter/View/34486/2022-OIA-Annual-Report {{Bare URL inline. (August 2025)
21. (August 2025)
22. "Charleston Police Department pledges to advance women | the Daniel Island News".
23. https://www.cna.org/archive/CNA_Files/pdf/irm-2019-u-022344-final.pdf {{Bare URL PDF. (August 2025)