A former sheriff in South Carolina is back in prison after a court rejected his appeal of a 2019 conviction on charges that he used his power and office to pressure a 22-year-old personal assistant into having sex with him. Prosecutors said sheriff Will Lewis hired the young woman at $62,000 a year, gave her a county vehicle and other perks to groom her into a sexual relationship and then tried to use his position to keep it going after he lost control of the department.
Savanah Nabors testified that her encounter with Lewis in a Charlotte hotel began as unwanted compliments, but escalated quickly after they went out for drinks on company time and he invited her to a taxpayer-funded budget meeting. She later woke up to find him on top of her, raping her, she testified.
Lewis was convicted of misconduct in office and will spend one year in prison, but he says he has learned from the experience and intends to return to law enforcement after his sentence. The new Greenville County sheriff has a list of priorities, including curbing online child predators and creating a full-time gang investigation unit.
He also wants to establish a “Adopt-A-Cop” program that allows the public to donate money for deputies’ equipment, such as body cameras. Greenville County only pays a portion of the cost when deputies request equipment, such as bulletproof vests. Lewis would like to see the system fully implemented by February.
