South-Carolina

DOJ reveals findings on violence at South Carolina jail

Published

3 months ago

January 16, 2025

DOJ reveals findings on violence at South Carolina jail

Detainees are routinely subjected to the threat of stabbings, sexual assault and gang violence inside the crumbling walls of a South Carolina jail, according to a Justice Department report released Wednesday.

The Justice Department launched an investigation into the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center in November 2023 based on reports of violence, homicides and unsafe conditions, said Adair Boroughs, U.S. attorney for the district of South Carolina. The probe uncovered a failure by jail staff to protect detainees from assault, partly due to chronic staffing shortages and systemic security issues, according to the report.

“The incidents of violence at Alvin S. Glenn are pervasive, systematic and commonplace,” Boroughs said. “Alvin S. Glenn is marked by a culture of violence that poses a risk to those that are housed there as well as to staff and to law enforcement.”

Boroughs said local officials have made some headway in addressing structural concerns through renovations but “widespread violence” at the facility continues. The Justice Department warned in its report it may file a lawsuit after 49 days if Richland County doesn’t address the dangerous conditions, which investigators say amount to constitutional violations.

The Justice Department under the Biden administration has investigated conditions at prisons and jails across the country, including in Texas, Georgia, California, Kentucky and Mississippi. Alleged issues at detention facilities include physical violence, sexual abuse and crumbling infrastructure.

DOJ blames chronic staff shortages for jail violence

The Justice Department’s new report said there were at least 60 stabbings in 2023 at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center, which is located in South Carolina’s capital city of Columbia. The DOJ noted the rate of such assaults at the center roughly matches the New York City jails, where the city was recently found in contempt in federal court for systemic violence at its facilities.

Investigators blame, in part, a chronic staff shortage going back at least five years that has impeded routine security checks at the Richland County jail and forced staff to monitor several units at once.

Detainees were often found assaulted or dead only after medical staff made their rounds, officers came to deliver meals, or when a victim’s relative called the jail to report an assault, the report said.

In one case, the DOJ said a detainee was beaten and stabbed “multiple times” in three years at the jail, and in every instance, staff was not present. In the first stabbing, the jail took no action until the victim’s mother called two days later, according to the report. In February 2024, the same person suffered his fourth assault, this time by seven detainees.

The jail has also routinely failed to protect detainees from sexual assault, the Justice Department alleges. One person, who was admitted in August 2023, was reportedly assaulted by his cellmate three times in two days in his first month, but staff didn’t listen to him when he tried to get help. The DOJ report said the man “resorted to cutting himself in order to be placed on suicide watch, where he could report the rapes and get away from his attacker.”

The Justice Department did not name victims of the reported assaults in its report.

Chronic staffing shortages have also endangered jail staff. The Justice Department cited a 2023 study by the South Carolina Association of Counties, which found that understaffing at the jail “contributed to an increase in officer injuries and workers’ compensation claims over the past five years.”

USA TODAY has reached out to Richland County for comment on the report.

Contraband, crumbling facility fuel violence

In dozens of interviews with detainees, the Justice Department said many described being assaulted and confirmed unchecked gang violence such as robberies and extortion. Nearly all of the interviewed detainees told investigators they witnessed violence regularly. But the report said it is unclear how pervasive the pattern of violence is since the jail does not keep complete or accurate records of incidents.

The Justice Department said violence, including gang-related incidents, is fueled by unusually high levels of contraband such as shanks, drugs and lighters. In 2023, investigators said 150 weapons were found – almost quadruple the average amount recovered in state prisons in the U.S.

In addition to smuggled weapons, illicit drugs led to eight overdoses over the course of two months in 2024, the Justice Department said, three of which resulted in deaths. The report said detainees were able to get contraband in through holes in the building and that some jail staff also smuggled in items, including cocaine and oxycodone.

The report also criticizes structural issues with the facility, including holes in walls, ceilings and fences, as well as broken light fixtures, furniture and toilets that have been used to craft weapons.

The Justice Department recommends that the jail update its staffing plan, control contraband, revise detainees’ housing placements based on risk of violence, address maintenance issues, and revise how it responds to violent incidents.

Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, said the jail has a “constitutional duty to protect people in its care from the horrific violations we uncovered here.”

“Incarceration in our nation’s jails should not expose a person to severe and pervasive violence like that in the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center,” Clarke said. “Most people in the jail have not been convicted of any crime — they are awaiting hearings or trial dates. They have a right to be free of violence, threats and sexual assault.”

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South-Carolina

South Carolina Transfer Sakima Walker Commits to Cal Women’s Basketball

Published

3 hours ago

April 28, 2025

Press Room

South Carolina Transfer Sakima Walker Commits to Cal Women’s Basketball

South Carolina transfer Sakima Walker announced on social media on Saturday that she had committed to Cal’s women’s basketball program.

.The 6-foot-5 Walker played in 15 games for the Gamecocks this past season and averaged 1.4 points and 0.7 rebounds. In 2023-24 she played in 31 games and had one start while averaging 2.0 points and 1.3 rebounds.

In Walker’s two seasons at South Carolina, the Gamecoack were national champions in 2024 and national runnersup this season.

Cal will be the third four-year school for Walker, who played her first two college seasons at Rutgers. She is a graduate transfer with one year of eligibility remaining.

Walker is the first of several transfers Cal coach Charmin Smith is expected to bring in this offseason. Smith has had success with transfers, and they contributed to the 2024-25 Cal team that went 25-9 and got to the NCAA tournament..

Trusting God’s plan EVERY step of the way. Grateful for where I’ve been, excited for where i’m going. #GoBears🐻 #thisonespersonal pic.twitter.com/a2IxX9LI0z
— Sakima Walker (@SakimaWalker) April 26, 2025

Zahra King, who was a promising freshman on the Cal women’s basketball team this past season before entering the transfer portal, has committed to SMU, according to multiple sites.

Cal has had five players from the 2024-25 squad enter the transfer portal – King, Marta Suarez, Kamryn Mafua, Claudia Langarita and Natalia Ackerman – and three of them – King (SMU), Suarez (TCU) and Mafua (Utah) – have committed to new schools.

Cal coach Charmin Smith has not yet brought anyone in from the transfer portal, but that undoubtedly will change over the coming weeks. Smith has had success pulling in transfers who contributed to the 2024-25 team that went 25-9 and got to the NCAA tournament.

King did not play a lot for Cal this past season, averaging 8.2 minutes, 2.8 points and 1.3 rebounds in the 19 games she did play. But she did show potential.

Now she joins an SMU team that is overhauling its roster through the transfer portal under new head coach Adia Barnes, who previously was Arizona’s head coach. The Mustangs had nine players leave through the transfer portal since the end of the 2024-25 season, but they have brought in 10 transfers.

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South-Carolina

South Carolina Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 results for April 26, 2025

Published

22 hours ago

April 27, 2025

Press Room

South Carolina Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 results for April 26, 2025

The South Carolina Education Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at April 26, 2025, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from April 26 drawing

01-12-14-18-69, Powerball: 02, Power Play: 3

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 Plus FIREBALL numbers from April 26 drawing

Midday: 3-9-8, FB: 9

Evening: 4-5-5, FB: 0

Check Pick 3 Plus FIREBALL payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 Plus FIREBALL numbers from April 26 drawing

Midday: 8-4-7-9, FB: 9

Evening: 7-2-2-7, FB: 0

Check Pick 4 Plus FIREBALL payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash Pop numbers from April 26 drawing

Midday: 09

Evening: 12

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Palmetto Cash 5 numbers from April 26 drawing

11-12-25-37-39

Check Palmetto Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from April 26 drawing

12-20-26-38-40, Powerball: 05

Check Powerball Double Play payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

The South Carolina Education Lottery provides multiple ways to claim prizes, depending on the amount won:

For prizes up to $500, you can redeem your winnings directly at any authorized South Carolina Education Lottery retailer. Simply present your signed winning ticket at the retailer for an immediate payout.

Winnings $501 to $100,000, may be redeemed by mailing your signed winning ticket along with a completed claim form and a copy of a government-issued photo ID to the South Carolina Education Lottery Claims Center. For security, keep copies of your documents and use registered mail to ensure the safe arrival of your ticket.

SC Education Lottery

P.O. Box 11039

Columbia, SC 29211-1039

For large winnings above $100,000, claims must be made in person at the South Carolina Education Lottery Headquarters in Columbia. To claim, bring your signed winning ticket, a completed claim form, a government-issued photo ID, and your Social Security card for identity verification. Winners of large prizes may also set up an Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) for convenient direct deposit of winnings.

Columbia Claims Center

1303 Assembly Street

Columbia, SC 29201

Claim Deadline: All prizes must be claimed within 180 days of the draw date for draw games.

For more details and to access the claim form, visit the South Carolina Lottery claim page.

When are the South Carolina Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 10:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 11 p.m. ET on Tuesday and Friday.
Pick 3: Daily at 12:59 p.m. (Midday) and 6:59 p.m. (Evening).
Pick 4: Daily at 12:59 p.m. (Midday) and 6:59 p.m. (Evening).
Cash Pop: Daily at 12:59 p.m. (Midday) and 6:59 p.m. (Evening).
Palmetto Cash 5: 6:59 p.m. ET daily.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Carolina editor. You can send feedback using this form. Our News Automation and AI team would love to hear from you. Take this survey and share your thoughts with us.

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