During a brief farewell to his force, Aiken County Sheriff Michael Hunt officially signed off the airwaves at 1:48 p.m. Tuesday. Seconds later, Marty Sawyer announced himself “in service” and became the 19th man to wear the badge.
From a crowded courtroom inside the Aiken County Judicial Center, Sawyer raised his right hand and swore to uphold the office to which he was elected on Nov. 5, after defeating Democratic candidate Lucas Grant.
Sawyer was joined by friends and family, including his wife Kimberly, who held the Bible on which he placed his left hand during a short swearing-in ceremony performed by the Honorable Courtney Clyburn Pope, Judge of the Second Judicial Circuit, which includes Aiken County.
“No matter what you ask of him, Marty is always willing to help,” Judge Pope said of Sawyer, who retired in early December after 35 years with the Aiken Department of Public Safety.
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Since then, he has been meeting with deputies and making big plans to “get it done” for Aiken County’s citizens.
On Tuesday, he clocked in before 8 a.m. During his first official appearance as sheriff, Sawyer outlined three priorities: staff morale and training, hiring more school resource officers, and putting more marked cars on rural roads.
According to Sawyer, at least 22 schools are without resource officers. He has also met with Aiken County Council members to discuss plans for a new sheriff’s office building.
“I can’t turn on the heater or air conditioner in my office because the mold and mildew are so bad,” he said. “The conditions in which our staff works are not acceptable.”
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Also in the works is outfitting patrol cars with printers and up-to-date electronics, so deputies who spend most of the workday in cruisers can more efficiently do their jobs. Sawyer also promised that within a few weeks, residents in rural Aiken County will see “more blue lights flashing.”
“Know that we are working. None of what I am proposing will happen overnight, but it will happen,” Sawyer said. Later this month, his office will hold a staff retreat, during which more wish lists will be made. Afterward, meetings will be scheduled with state legislators, city and county officials, and area law enforcement agencies to improve Aiken County, he pledged. “We cannot be the best we can be by ourselves. We have to work together to make Aiken County a safer place.”
In his much younger years, Sawyer served 16 years as a fire cadet with the Graniteville-Vaucluse-Warrenville Fire Department. At the time, it seemed he might be a firefighter for life until he scratched the itch and became a cop. Along the way, he crossed paths many times with Hunt, who eventually told Sawyer if he worked for Aiken Public Safety, he could arrest criminals and fight fires.
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Sawyer started with Aiken Public Safety in 1989, working as a patrolman for eight years. Leadership quickly saw his potential and assigned him to Special Operations, narcotics investigations, and the ATF Rage Task Force, a regional anti-gang group led by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
Hunt, meanwhile, mentored Sawyer, who eventually became Captain of Investigations in 2012. Hunt also endorsed Sawyer when he announced his Republican candidacy.
“It has been a privilege and a pleasure to lead you,” Hunt told deputies over the radio. “May God bless your families and continue to bless the sheriff’s office. I am officially out of service and retired.”
