Today, we’re talking about the boys in blue. Well, actually, the men + women patrolling our streets in navy blue. That’s right – we’re here with the rundown on Greenville police. What types of calls do they respond to? How do their jurisdictions differ? When I see a bike cop, are they with the City or the County?

The differences (🎶 one of these things is not like the other 🎶)

Jurisdiction:

Greenville County jurisdiction includes all municipalities within Greenville County (including the City of Greenville).
City of Greenville jurisdiction includes the City of Greenville.

Title:

Greenville County police are called deputies.
City of Greenville police are called officers.

Colors:

Greenville County colors are navy + gold.
City of Greenville colors are navy + silver.

Badges:

Greenville County police wear a 7-point-star shaped badge – with a written indication of rank.
City of Greenville police wear a shield shaped badge – Lt.’s, Sgt.’s, Captains and the Chief have gold badges; every other rank will have a silver badge.

Body worn cameras:

Greenville County deputies use torso mounted body cams.
City of Greenville officers use collar, shoulder, glasses or headband body cams.

Department leader:

The head of the Greenville County department is the Sheriff (who is elected).
The head of the City of Greenville department is the Police Chief (who is appointed).

Cars:

Greenville County patrol cars are navy or black.
City of Greenville patrol cars are white or black.
Pro tip: Highway patrol cars are silver.

The similarities

What they’re wearing: Dark blue uniforms.

Calls: County + City police can – and do – respond to any type of call.

Bikes: Both utilize bike units.

HQ: Both agencies are located at 4 McGee Street (they’ve essentially split the building down the middle – City on one side and County on the other). In case you’re wondering, this type of setup is pretty rare.

K-9 and SWAT: Both County + City police have and utilize K-9 and SWAT units.

Becoming a cop: Applicants for both the County + City attend the S.C. Criminal Justice Academy (at no cost). They have to pass a background investigation covering credit history, driving history, criminal history, civil checks, + personal references. Plus, they’ll go through a polygraph, medical exam, physical fitness test, a drug screening + a psychological test. And I thought a panel interview was a lot. 😅

Community outreach: Both City + County participate in community outreach programs.

Greenville County police have programs like Adopt-A-Cop, Bigs In Blue + the Marcus Whitfield Youth Camp.
City of Greenville police host events like Christmas in July + programs like The Officer Allen Jacobs G.R.E.A.T Camp and the Youth Leadership Academy.
Both the City + County offer ride-alongs – find out how to participate in the County’s TRIP program here, and the City’s Ride-Along program here.

Here’s the 411

Aside from jurisdiction, the differences between Greenville’s County + City police are fairly minor (and mostly aesthetic). At the end of the day, the most important thing the two share is a goal of protecting + bettering our community.

Quiz

(function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(d.getElementById(id))return;js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src='https://embed.playbuzz.com/sdk.js';fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}(document,'script','playbuzz-sdk'));