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528 Edgefield Street
Greenwood, SC 29646
Greenwood County has two special teams. The Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team and the Bloodhound Tracking Team.
Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT)
Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT)
The Greenwood County SWAT Team is a multijurisdictional team staffed by members of the Greenwood County Sheriff’s Office and the Greenwood City Police Department. Membership on the team is voluntary and is a collateral duty performed in addition to the officer’s regular duties and responsibilities.
Mission
The mission of the Greenwood County SWAT Team is to preserve life and protect the community by the use of teamwork, specialized training, tactics, and equipment to complete high risk assignments. SWAT is a rapid deployment and reaction force which complements the proactive patrol of deputies and police officers in situations that are beyond the resources of the uniformed officer. SWAT is organized to go anywhere at any time to arrest violators of the law and to provide a safer living environment for the public. SWAT response shall always be in a controlled, disciplined, and professional manner to protect and serve the community.
Organization
SWAT Commander
The SWAT Commander is appointed by the Sheriff and Chief of Police. The Swat Commander is responsible for overseeing all SWAT operations and also coordinates all internal training for the members of the team.
Assistant SWAT Commander/Entry Team Leader
The Assistant SWAT Commander is selected from one of the Entry Team Leaders by the SWAT Commander. In addition to their duties as an Entry Team Leader, the Assistant SWAT Commander assists with monitoring Incident Action Plans during operations and assumes the duties and responsibilities of the SWAT Commander in his absence.
Entry Team Leader
Entry Team Leaders are senior SWAT Operators who have been selected by the SWAT Commander to lead their team during operations in accordance with the Incident Action Plan. Team Leaders are responsible for maintaining their team’s operational readiness at all times.
Entry Team Operator
Entry Team Operators receive training in special weapons and tactics and secure the crisis site during high risk SWAT operations.
Bloodhound Tracking Team
The function of the Bloodhound Tracking Team is to increase the chances of apprehension of those involved in criminal activities, which engage in fleeing from law enforcement. In addition, the Bloodhound Tracking Team will search for lost or missing children as well as adults. This unit consists of eight to twelve team members at any given time, who are under direct command of the Sheriff. Team personnel are on call twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week and can respond anywhere within Greenwood County quickly and efficiently. The bloodhounds are trained at least twice a week resulting in over 100+ hours of training per year per hound. Each Deputy is assigned regular law enforcement duties within their respective divisions in addition to their member status. Team members are tasked with several aspects of training to include, the ability to track with the bloodhound with and without the implementation of perimeters, crime scene preservation, tactical movement, building entry and clearing, subject control, the use of man tracking skills, and the care of the hounds.
Currently the Greenwood County Sheriff’s Office has five hounds, which are actively trained to respond. Beaufort is a half bloodhound and half redbone hound. Beaufort is a seven-year veteran of the tracking team. Scarlet is a Bavarian Mountain Hound. Scarlet is a six-year veteran of the tracking team. Sam, Riley and Duke are half bloodhound and half redbone hounds. Sam, Riley and Duke are all five-year veterans of the tracking team. All five bloodhounds have been trained, since puppies by GCSO Team Members. Combined, these bloodhounds have been involved in excess of over 100 calls and the capture of fleeing criminals. The bloodhounds have been responsible for finding several lost children as well as adults in Greenwood County. The Bloodhound Team also participates in many community civic events such as fundraisers for the Humane Society, National Night Out, Parade’s and numerous speaking engagements within Greenwood School District 50, 51 and 52. The Greenwood County Sheriffs Office’s Bloodhound Tracking Team is a vital tool, which is utilized by GCSO to provide the citizenry of Greenwood County with professional law enforcement service.
• Over 2000 U.S. kids get lost every day
• Less than 10% are reported
• 90% of families will experience losing a child in a public place
• 95% remember the trauma of get- ting lost
• Parents rank losing a child 5 times more concerning to them than terrorism and 3 times more concerning than abduction
• Kids get lost most often in malls and stores (45%)
• Nearly 1 in 3 families that visit an amusement park lose a child while they are there.
• Only 9% of parents put some form of safe ID on their children
• 76% of parents want to know what to do to prevent a child from getting lost
• 7 out of 10 kids get lost at least once
• The Dept. of Justice reports over 1.3 million children lost or missing each year. Of those, approximately 100 kidnappings compared to 800,000 children lost for other purposes that are not of their own will (family-related snatchings, lost for benign reasons such as wandering away
Any questions and/or interest in the Bloodhound Tracking Team please contact:
Co-Commander: Alex Rhodes
Mobile: 864-323-5593
Email: arhodes@greenwoodsc.gov
Co-Commander: Heather Clary
Mobile: 864-323-3669
Bloodhound Tracking Team
528 Edgefield Street
Greenwood SC 29646
Office 864-943-8600
Fax 864-942-8589
For further information on the Greenwood County Bloodhound Tracking Team click HERE
