Former Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office corporal challenges ex-boss in June primary

A former Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office corporal will challenge his old boss for the position of sheriff in the upcoming primary election this summer.

Nick Duncan, who worked under incumbent Sheriff Chuck Wright for most of a decade, announced his campaign when he left the agency in November 2023.

In a conversation with the Herald-Journal, the political newcomer said he is campaigning on improved transparency and community relations while strengthening law enforcement in Spartanburg County.

Duncan originally planned to resign and then announce the decision after Thanksgiving in 2023. He chuckled as he recalled his campaign website posting in late October, earlier than expected.  He still had a few days left on the job.

"You know, when you tell the boss you’re coming for his job, it doesn’t really go very well," Duncan said.

After several years with Spartanburg Emergency Medical Services starting in the late 2000s, Duncan transitioned to law enforcement with the sheriff’s office in 2014. He started in the criminal investigations unit in 2017 and focused on property crimes until he resigned to focus on his campaign for the top job.

'He has to prove that he is still the man for the job'

Wright has held the position of sheriff since 2004.

Duncan said term limits and changes in leadership amongst government officials are beneficial and something he supports.

"A lot of people say with Mr. Wright, you know, that it’s his job until he decides he doesn't want it anymore. Nope, that's his job until 2020, 2024, 2028. He has to reapply every four years," Duncan said. "We are in a reapplication year, so he has to prove that he is still the man for the job."

Duncan added that while being in office for as long as Wright does not automatically mean Wright is unqualified, a "fresh set of ideas" can help "keep up with the times."

In 2016, Wright handily defeated challenger Russell Lynch, another former Spartanburg County deputy. Lynch ran as an independent. Duncan is running as a Republican.

More: Lawsuit filed for access to Spartanburg Sheriff's Operation Rolling Thunder records

Duncan acknowledged that Wright has strong local support and that beating him might be tough. But discussions and prayer with his wife prompted him to announce his candidacy, which is his first foray into campaigns or politics.

"My wife just kept pushing, she was like 'You never know unless you try,'" Duncan said. "I kept hoping (conditions at the Sheriff’s Office) would get better over the last five, six years, and it never did."

Duncan moved from Mauldin to nearby Laurens County when he was 13-years-old before he later relocated to his wife’s native Spartanburg County in 2010. They reside in Boiling Springs with their two children.

Candidate shares campaign issues he says set him apart

One pillar Duncan identified for his campaign was community relations initiatives outside the realm of public safety that he noticed practiced at other law enforcement agencies, such as programs to help feed the elderly or the Special Olympics.

Better pay for deputies, expansion of certain sheriff’s office divisions, and more transparency with the public are talking points Duncan mentioned.

"The deputies at the sheriff's office had started to get disgruntled, aggravated that they weren't getting pay raises," Duncan said. "Granted, that's not the sheriff. But they didn't feel like he was fighting for them, I guess you could say."

He hopes to expand the department’s gang unit. He said gang activity often intersects with property crimes investigations, the area where he spent much of his law enforcement career. The five people currently in the unit are stretched thin, he said.

Duncan claimed the sheriff’s office doesn’t have a full internal affairs division to handle officer reprimands or appeals. Currently, when the second-in-command chief deputy hands down discipline towards staff, Duncan says any appeal goes back to the chief deputy.

He said the appeals process is not the fairest, adding that some deputies have received lesser punishments for the same infraction than another deputy because of "social status." Duncan said the sheriff appoints the command staff, who often make key decisions for the agency.

More: Calls made for DOJ investigation at Spartanburg jail weeks after report on inmate deaths

If elected, Duncan said he would establish a citizens’ advisory committee where citizens can voice concerns about their neighborhoods and exchange information. Ideally, the committee would meet at least once a quarter or more frequently and rotate citizen participants rather than have the same individuals year after year.

"The reason I say a form of (advisory committee), I don't know if the same people coming in every month is great...I don't want only those opinions from those people," he said.

Sheriff candidate on transparency, search and seizure campaign

The Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office has recently been under scrutiny for deaths at the county jail and its annual search and seizure campaign, Operation Rolling Thunder.

Duncan said he wishes Wright would provide more transparency about the number of jail deaths and openly discuss cases of public interest. Investigations by the State Law Enforcement Division into use-of-force or death cases that involve local law enforcement often take time. Still, Duncan said that when those investigations are complete, he has no problem making the findings more accessible to the public.

The county and sheriff’s office were criticized recently for how stops were handled during Operation Rolling Thunder and transparency surrounding the campaign. Last month, the office agreed to procure records from the operation after a lawsuit was filed against the department and county.

More: Spartanburg Sheriff, attorney agree to release Operation Rolling Thunder records

Duncan said he thinks the operation does "a lot of good" in helping remove drugs off the street, but said it helps stop contraband commerce between major cities on the East Coast more than it helps Spartanburg County.

If elected, he would continue the operation. He said cases of civil asset forfeiture that result in no criminal charges are problematic.

Additionally, Duncan said he would give citizens a way to pursue use-of-force complaints and voice grievances.

"We would take complaints very seriously," Duncan said. "This goes back to the internal affairs division, to be able to take complaints from the public and the community divisions being able to come forward."

Although he considers training a necessity, Duncan said he doesn’t think much would change regarding use-of-force policy if he were to take office.

The sheriff's office did not respond to multiple requests from the Herald-Journal for comment on Duncan's assertions about the agency's operations.

Chalmers Rogland covers public safety for the Spartanburg Herald-Journal and USA Today Network. Reach him via email at crogland@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Former Spartanburg County corporal to challenge Sheriff in primary