Horry County school board gives security office ‘no confidence’ vote in aftermath of recent incidents
HORRY COUNTY,S.C. (WBTW) — The Horry County Schools’ Board of Education on Monday overwhelmingly supported a no confidence vote for the district’s security division one month after a student got a gun into Myrtle Beach Middle School.
It’s not clear what the next steps will be following the 8-3 vote.
“At this time, I am not sure of what changes or decisions will be made,” district spokeswoman Lisa Bourcier told News13. “The topic of school safety and security will continue to be discussed at upcoming board meetings.”
David Beaty is currently in charge of the district’s safety and security office.
Several parents with students in South Carolina’s third largest school district crowded a Feb. 26 board meeting to demand more secure campuses following reports on Feb. 6 of a gun that made it into Myrtle Beach Middle School.
“Teachers are working as TSA agents every morning in this school,” said Meredith Kennedy, a parent and chairwoman of the school’s improvement council.
Board members approved the no confidence vote without any explanation or context and after talking about school security matters privately.
It followed their Feb. 27 statement about promised upgrades to schools across the district by adding more metal detectors and hiring additional security staffers.
Jimmy Richardson, the 15th Judicial Circuit’s top prosecutor, said his office “aggressively” handles cases involving juveniles caught with weapons in schools, but couldn’t give specifics on the Myrtle Beach Middle School incident given the suspect’s age.
“What we’re looking to do in each one of these cases is not only to make sure that this young man doesn’t bring a weapon on school grounds again, but also to act as a deterrent for other kids that may think that they were going to do something like that,” he told the school board last month. “And ultimately, it will be up to a judge. But we take these things very aggressively.”
Last week, Superintendent Rick Maxey announced a new safety reporting system allowing threats to be reported anonymously and in real-time through school-issued tablets and computers.
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Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12. See more of his work here.
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