Oconee County Sheriff Looks Forward, As He Reflects on the Past, to the Beginning of His Third Term
This is part one of a two part feature story on Oconee County Sheriff Mike Crenshaw as he prepares to begin his third term as Sheriff of Oconee County on January 1st, 2021. Part one looks back on the early part of his life and his decision to make law enforcement his career. (Special Submission)
There is a picture that has been above the light switch in office 227 at the Oconee County Law Enforcement Center, which is the physical office that Mike Crenshaw has worked in since he was first elected Sheriff.
The picture is black and white, and was taken decades ago. The picture depicts a law enforcement action as Sheriff’s deputies seized a moonshine still. However, every picture tells a story and the story of this picture goes far beyond what is visible to the naked eye.
First, it is about family. In that picture, besides then Oconee County Sheriff Myron Green, there is a young Mike Crenshaw, his two brothers and his late father, then an Oconee County Deputy. The Sheriff said he was around 10 years of age when the picture was taken sometime around 1975.
“There was a moonshine still that Sheriff Green and his deputies had busted out in the Madison community. I remember exactly where that was at and there must have been 500 one gallon milk jugs that they had out there,” says Sheriff Crenshaw. “They needed some help loading that stuff up. Of course, Dad got myself and my two brothers (Jimmy and Donnie), and then there is Jule Cobb, who was a deputy, and Myron’s son Frank Green and also Deputy Gene Rogers. I had the opportunity to work with Gene. He was still here when I came to work at the Sheriff’s Office.”
Secondly, the picture is a reminder of the oath that the Sheriff has taken twice before, and will take once again, for a third time in a few weeks. The picture is there for a purpose and it reminds the Sheriff of his oath to serve the citizens of Oconee County.
“I did hang that there for a purpose. When I come in everyday, to remind myself, of why we do what we do,” continues Sheriff Crenshaw. “It is to serve our community and to help others and not to get caught up in the 21st century with life being so fast, to always remember why we do what we do. Who knew when I was ten years old what that picture would mean to me? It does have a lot of meaning for me and a lot of folks there certainly influenced my life, every one of them. Every day when I come in, I see that picture and every day before I go home, before I turn the lights off, I see that picture. It keeps me grounded into why we do what we do.”
The Beginnings of a Career
Sheriff Crenshaw has served the citizens of Oconee County in law enforcement for over 33 years now. He began his career at the age of 21 as an officer for the city of Westminster and eventually made his move to the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office. However, if you count growing up in a family where his father served in law enforcement, Mike Crenshaw has been around law enforcement all of his life. The exposure to law enforcement helped to convince him that law enforcement could be a career path.
“Growing up, my father worked at the Sheriff’s Office. And back in the 1970’s, regulations were not a strict as they are now, so there would be times that I would get to ride with him,” recalls Sheriff Crenshaw. “Nowadays, we have to have all kinds of paperwork for ride-a-longs but back then, of course, we didn’t. So, that kind of sparked my interest, I guess in law enforcement. Riding with him, and seeing what I thought at the time was something that was very boring to me.”
Even though the Sheriff said that there were no blue lights or sirens with him riding along, it is what the Sheriff saw his father do that made a lasting impression on him as a law enforcement officer. A young Mike Crenshaw saw his dad building relationships with those he served. It helped to solidify the Sheriff’s belief in “Community Policing,” which is something that helps to build trust between citizens and law enforcement. Sheriff Crenshaw believes the basics of getting out and getting to know the citizens you serve is still the foundation of law enforcement today, even in the complex world of 21st century law enforcement.
“I would see him (Sheriff Crenshaw’s dad) stop in someone’s home. They would talk about hunting, fishing, the garden, sometimes bailing hay for the cows. Folks would give him a watermelon to bring home or a dozen ears of corn. To me, I wanted to see blue lights and sirens,” says Sheriff Crenshaw. “As I got older, lots of time late in the evening at night, dad would get a phone call at home and it would be from some of those people that he had gotten to know. Obviously, they trusted him so when something happened in their community, they would call him and give him information. That resonated with me and I have used that same philosophy my entire career from day one.”
“There used to be a store down on Dr. John’s Road, Harry Jones Grocery Story, and on patrol, I would stop in at Harry’ store. There would be some folks in there sometimes playing checkers and I would sit there and talk with them and stop and get to know people in the community,” continues Sheriff Crenshaw. “Sure enough, when a burglary happened down in that area, they would call me and give me information on it. So, I guess back then, growing up, that was ‘Community Policing’ before we even knew that it was called ‘Community Policing.’ So, that’s been my belief, my philosophy about law enforcement from day one.”
“Law enforcement has gotten complicated and complex when it comes to technology and liability but the basics of law enforcement is still the same,” according to Sheriff Crenshaw. “You get out here and you get to know the citizens you serve. That is how you get to be an effective law enforcement officer, not only from solving cases and making arrests but it is about building those relationships. If that traffic stop comes at night, that citizen is more at ease and that law enforcement officer is not as much on guard because they know each other.”
Moving Up Through the Ranks
For Mike Crenshaw, his law enforcement career began at the age of 21. A few years before that, Mike graduated from Westminster High School and attended Clemson University for a time. Even while attending classes at Clemson, he knew in his heart, however, that he wanted to be a police officer. He did some work with his brother in the construction business, even going to Tri-County Technical College to work on getting his builder’s license.
All the while, the future Sheriff was biding his time until he turned 21 and could go into the profession that has shaped in his life in so many ways. And while in hindsight he wishes that perhaps he would have stayed in school to complete his education, Mike says that he does not have any regrets with the path he has taken. And he still enjoys working on projects even today.
“I don’t regret the path that I took. I enjoyed building and actually built my first home with my brother’s help,” according to the Sheriff.
In April of 1986, a week after his 21st birthday, Mike saw an advertisement in the Westminster News as the city of Westminster was looking to hire a police officer. Mike contacted the then police chief in Westminster, Mike McGuffin, and filled out an application. About a week later, Chief McGuffin contacted Mike and offered him the job.
Mike began working as a Westminster City Police Officer in April of that year, and had a date scheduled to attend the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy in Columbia in order to receive his law enforcement certification. However, times were different in law enforcement back then in regards to the levels of training and what agencies allowed officers to do at that time.
“Nowadays, we don’t allow our deputies to ride by themselves until they get certified. And there is even Field Officer Training after you get certified,” according to Sheriff Crenshaw. “In 1986, that was not the case. The second or third day on the job, Chief McGuffin came to me about three o’clock that afternoon and told me that I had it. And I was the only officer on duty in the city of Westminster. I had an accident to work that afternoon and somehow I got through it. I certainly enjoyed my time there.”
While working as an officer with the Westminster Police Department, Sheriff Crenshaw also spent some time working part-time at the Salem Post Office delivering mail on Saturday’s. Even though it was part-time, Mike says that he made more money delivering mail part-time on Saturday’s than he did working full-time as a law enforcement officer. However, Sheriff Crenshaw came to the conclusion that working full-time for the United States Postal Service was not for him. His heart and his passion was being a law enforcement officer and that led to Mike Crenshaw’s next move in his career.
Oconee County Sheriff’s Office Deputy and More
In the spring of 1987, the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office had some openings and Mike Crenshaw applied. The Sheriff at that time was Earl Holcombe and one of the shift Sergeants working then was Steve Pruitt, who retired a few years ago after almost 40 years with the Sheriff’s Office. Mike credits Steve Pruitt for being an advocate for him in regards to getting hired as a Deputy Sheriff. He is also very appreciative to Sheriff Holcombe for giving him an opportunity to work as a deputy sheriff.
Mike began working at the Sheriff’s Office in July of 1987 and attended the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy in order to receive his law enforcement certification. In regards to some of the divisions and duties that the future Sheriff was involved in, Mike was a litter officer and also taught the Crime to Court training class, which was conducted monthly. During his early years in law enforcement, the Sheriff says that he learned about following up on tips and leads, which led to arrests over the years. Mike gives a lot of credit to Lt. Charles Reid, who he calls “a mentor,” as he eventually made the move into the Investigations Division.
After moving into Investigations in 1992, Mike was promoted into the Lieutenants position in Investigations after Charles Reid’s retirement under the Sheriff at that time, James Singleton. After staying in investigations until the mid-2000’s, Mike made another move as he was promoted to a Captain’s position, where he took over the day-to-day duties of the Animal Shelter. He stayed in that position until he made one of the most important decisions of his life and career, as he sought to become the top law enforcement official in Oconee County.
The Run for Sheriff
In 2011, then Captain Mike Crenshaw decided to throw his hat in the ring to become the next Sheriff of Oconee County in a field that initially featured four other candidates in the 2012 General Election.
The 2012 General Election was one of the most memorable due to that fact that several candidates had to obtain signatures via a petition in order to get back on the ballot after election officials cancelled the June primary due to reported issues with paperwork that candidates filed. That included all of the candidates for the Sheriff’s race that year, including Mike Crenshaw.
It was during this time in 2012 in the race to see who would succeed James Singleton as the next Sheriff that Mike Crenshaw decided to make another important decision of his life and career, to become the interim Chief of the Westminster Police Department. In retrospect, the soon to be elected Sheriff feels that accepting the role as interim chief was a huge part of instilling confidence in the voters of Oconee County that he was ready to become their next Sheriff.
“I think it did, absolutely. I think there were a number of factors during that election cycle that resonated with the voters for me,” says Sheriff Crenshaw. “I always believe that God has a plan and during that whole time, I did not go looking for the Police Chief’s job in the city of Westminster. Due to some circumstances that happened there, I was asked if I would consider an interim role and look at some things there. Unfortunately, I found some wrong doing there and we had to contact SLED (South Carolina Law Enforcement Division) and look at some things at the Police Department. It obviously did play a role during that time.”
A Man of Faith in Law Enforcement
Besides the support of family, friends and fellow officers in his job as Sheriff, the biggest strength that Sheriff Crenshaw says he receives in order for him to fulfill his responsibilities is his belief in God. The Sheriff believes that God has directed his life, while also acknowledging that sometimes in his life; he has had to be directed back onto the right path.
“I am a man of faith. I certainly believe in prayer. I think God has directed my life,” says Sheriff Crenshaw. “I’ve not always followed his plans but He has a way of reeling you back in. I am just very blessed and humbled to be able to serve and do what I love doing for the past 33 and one-half years.”
“I have not regretted it since. One of the great things for me about this profession is that no two days have ever been the same,” continues Sheriff Crenshaw. “It is something different each and every day. You get in this profession certainly to help others and I have tried to maintain that attitude and I have tried to be a positive influence to other folks. I think I have made a difference in some people and some different things that we have done over the years. I have certainly loved my career here. I was able to move up the ranks here at the Sheriff’s Office. I appreciate Sheriff Myron Green, Earl Holcombe, and James Singleton. Until you step behind that desk, you do not fully grasp the duties of an elected Sheriff.”