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A former deputy of the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) is suing the scandal-scarred agency and its embattled leader, sheriff Charles “Chuck” Wright Jr. — alleging political retaliation, wrongful termination and defamation.
The lawsuit – filed on Monday (February 3, 2025) by former SCSO first lieutenant Jeremy Byrd – traces his firing back to Wright’s controversial deputization of his own son, Jared “Andy” Wright, which has had a “snowball effect” that has since imploded the sheriff’s legacy.
Within days of appointing his lip-syncing dependent, FITSNews was the first to report on nepotism allegations against Wright – as well as an ethics investigation into his hiring practices by the S.C. State Ethics Commission (SCSEC).
“It’s not nepotism,” Wright insisted in a quickly deleted Facebook post that summer. “I already checked with ethics. I have hired several father-sons here at the office. It’s funny how no one cares until it’s my son (sic).”
Despite these claims, the commission told FITSNews the sheriff never requested an opinion prior to hiring his son.
Pressed by an echo chamber of media scrutiny, Wright eventually issued a statement claiming he had recused himself from his son’s chain of command.

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Per Byrd’s lawsuit (.pdf), Wright placed his chief deputy in charge of “any disciplinary actions” against his son… a move which, according to the veteran law enforcement officer, did nothing.
“This did not cure any potential nepotism concerns,” the pleading noted. “The appeals process for any disciplinary actions requires the involvement of the sheriff. However, because (he) recused himself… any disciplinary appeals process… would instead remain with the chief deputy, who issues disciplinary actions in the first place.”
Byrd’s suit indicated he also raised concerns about “the appearance of impropriety, potential nepotism, and preferential treatment” and was approached by multiple lieutenants under his command with similar concerns.
Within two months of Wright hiring his son, Byrd claims to have found himself under investigation for allegedly saying, “the wrong man won the election, hence the reason we are in the situation we are in.”
Despite denying the comment, Byrd’s lawsuit detailed how he was issued a Garrity warning, forced to take a polygraph test, placed on paid suspension and ordered not to discuss the investigation with anyone else.
He did, however, reach out to three lieutenants whose names came up in his interview. According to his lawsuit, he “did not discuss the allegations against him,” but instead, “merely informed the lieutenants that their names had been brought up…”
According to Byrd’s lawsuit, these calls set off alarms within SCSO leadership. Despite having “served honorably” with an “exemplary service record,” he was terminated for “insubordination” on August 26, 2024.
After firing Byrd, the sheriff purportedly referred to him as a “mole” – telling others in the department that he had “found the mole.”
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RELATED | NEPOTISM INVESTIGATION LAUNCHED
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Ironically, within the same week, FITSNews published a bombshell exposé on 33 pornographic emails linked to the county’s IP address. These .eml files contained graphically sexual content — including bestiality and lesbian fisting — sent to county employees by now-retired SCSO Sergeant Robert Allen Wood between 2007 and 2008.
A longtime investigator with SCSO’s Criminal Investigations Division (CID), Wood appears to have shared his hardcore pornography pics with coworkers — on company time — for at least a year.
A total of 57 photos, four videos, and two external links were obtained from those files.
Despite the dissemination of hardcore pornography, an ongoing SCSEC investigation, a deputy’s arrest for felonious misconduct and a former deputy’s request for a jury trial — Chuck has yet to respond to a single email from this reporter.
UPDATE | In a rare response from SCSO public information officer Kevin Bobo, the agency declined to issue a comment on Byrd’s lawsuit.
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THE LAWSUIT…
(S.C. Seventh Judicial Circuit)
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Andrew Fancher is a Lone Star Emmy award-winning journalist from Dallas, Texas. Cut from a bloodline of outlaws and lawmen alike, he was the first of his family to graduate college which was accomplished with honors. Got a story idea or news tip for Andy? Email him directly and connect with him socially across Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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Got something you’d like to say in response to one of our articles? Or an issue you’d like to address proactively? We have an open microphone policy! Submit your letter to the editor (or guest column) via email HERE. Got a tip for a story? CLICK HERE. Got a technical question or a glitch to report? CLICK HERE.
***
ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Andrew Fancher is a Lone Star Emmy award-winning journalist from Dallas, Texas. Cut from a bloodline of outlaws and lawmen alike, he was the first of his family to graduate college which was accomplished with honors. Got a story idea or news tip for Andy? Email him directly and connect with him socially across Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
***
WANNA SOUND OFF?
Got something you’d like to say in response to one of our articles? Or an issue you’d like to address proactively? We have an open microphone policy! Submit your letter to the editor (or guest column) via email HERE. Got a tip for a story? CLICK HERE. Got a technical question or a glitch to report? CLICK HERE.
3 comments
You get what you vote for. The uneducated electorate in Spartanburg love Chucks tough rhetoric but can’t see that the violent crime rate in Spartanburg county has exploded since he became sheriff. He also almost single-handedly got William Timmons re elected to the house. The Greenville sheriff supported Timmons opponent and Timmons lost Greenville by a wide margin, he did however win in Spartanburg because wright was afraid to endorse Timmons opponent. Wright talks tough but he’s a feckless weak wimp who would sell his own family down the river to make himself look good. Have you ever seen him take personal responsibility for anything?
Sounds to me like a bitter person with a personal bias towards Sheriff Wright or a fan of William Timmons opponent. . The people of Spartanburg are not uneducated, as you claim, they are common sense South Carolina residents who support a Sheriff who will stand up for them. There are 3 types of people in this world, “People who know, people who don’t know”, and then you have the real scary folks, “people who don’t know they don’t know!” I think you fall into the later group, FYI, education does not make one smart, it makes you educated.
It doesn’t matter if Sheriff Wright hired other fathers and sons within the sheriff’s department. It isn’t the same thing as hiring his own son. This is nepotism at its best and obviously did nothing to foster a good working environment. Even taking himself out of the chain of command for any possible disciplinary issues that may have involved the son was not sufficient, in my opinion. The sheriff could have used his influence to get the son a job with another agency. I have watched abuses in State law enforcement agencies in which a hard working, extremely dedicated and very knowledgeable employee is targeted because they won’t “kiss the ring” of corrupt agency heads when they have brought in their lackeys to continue their efforts of corruption and be able to keep it covered up from the public. It is a shame and disgrace. But, God doesn’t like ugly and what is meant for evil can turn out to be for good. I wish the best for the fired deputy and pray truth will prevail.