Power, Pills And Pending Charges: The Fall of Sheriff Chuck Wright

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For more than two decades, Charles “Chuck” Wright ruled Spartanburg County as one of South Carolina’s most recognizable sheriffs — a law-and-order hardliner whose grip on power reached from church altars to corporate newsrooms that rarely questioned his authority.

He built a nationally recognized brand based on performative justice — praying on live television while leaning on crackdowns like Operation Rolling Thunder, a high-profile dragnet targeting “criminals” along Interstate 85, to bolster his supposed commitment to public safety.

But behind his religious-themed law enforcement spectacles, allegations of bribery, corruption, opioid abuse and retaliatory policing festered for years — whispered by deputies who feared for their careers, their reputations and, in some cases, the safety of their families.

Over time, those whispers reached the ears of county officials, state authorities and eventually federal agents — with Sheriff Chuck Wright becoming the subject of a rapidly expanding probe with no publicly known focus, one his most loyal followers continue to dismiss outright.

Last Friday, roughly one year into his fifth and final term, Chuck Wright quietly resigned from an office steeped in lawsuits — underscoring months of exclusive reporting from FITSNews related to the internal chaos and escalating federal probe surrounding his now-disgraced administration.

Chuck Wright — a man known to impanel a press conference at the drop of a shell casing — offered no farewell, no sermon and no spin. Just a 37-word letter to his longtime ally, S.C. Governor Henry McMaster, citing a “recent health diagnosis” as the impetus for his resignation.

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“It has been an honor and a privilege to have served in law enforcement since 1986 and as sheriff of Spartanburg County since 2005,” Wright wrote in the letter provided to FITSNews. “I hereby tender my resignation effective immediately.”

According to deputies familiar with the final hours of his reign, Wright and his wife, Kim Wright, slipped into the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) Thursday night — cleared out his office, and drove off in one of the family’s personal vehicles.

“They walked in through the front door,” said someone familiar with the department’s third shift. “And they went out the back loading dock door with boxes.”

Wright’s county-issued 2024 Ford King Ranch — now synonymous with his excessive use of taxpayer resources — was left parked outside the building overnight. By 10:00 a.m. EDT the next morning, deputies had searched the vehicle and moved it to a less visible location.

Months before his unraveling, Chuck Wright traded in a county-issued Tahoe with just over 28,000 miles on it for his beloved King Ranch — valued at more than $73,000. County records obtained by a former deputy show taxpayers covered a significant portion of the cost.

By Friday morning, it sat parked outside — marking the end of the line for a sheriff whose grip on power had finally slipped.

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? #BREAKING: Multiple sources tell @FITSNews that embattled Spartanburg County Sheriff Charles “Chuck” Wright cleaned out his office on or about Thursday evening — and left his county-issued 2024 Ford King Ranch parked in an “unusual location.”

Our call to the sheriff went… pic.twitter.com/YUYEPT2zXm

— Andrew Fancher (@RealAndyFancher) May 23, 2025

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Notably, no one interviewed by FITSNews could place Chuck Wright inside the building on Friday — the very day his resignation was signed and formally submitted. According to sources, the door to his office remained locked as late as 11:00 a.m. EDT on Friday.

As news vans gathered outside the sheriff’s office that morning — chasing the story of a carefully cultivated reputation collapsing overnight — few realized what multiple sources were already telling FITSNews: at least one federal agent was inside the building.

While their exact purpose remains unclear, the agent’s presence coincided with the sheriff’s departure.

“The resignation was a shocker to us,” said someone intimately familiar with the federal component of Chuck Wright’s investigation — a case largely underreported by local media until recently. “This might just be the best thing for Spartanburg County.”

By midday Friday, Governor McMaster had issued an executive order appointing Wright’s interim successor — Chief Deputy Jeffery F. Stephens of the lawsuit-addled Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office.

The swift transition suggested Wright’s resignation was expected — if not encouraged — by his legal handlers, including Columbia lawyer Gregory Harris and former U.S. congressman Trey Gowdy, who maintained a consistent presence throughout Wright’s unraveling.

Neither Harris nor Gowdy have confirmed an active involvement in Chuck Wright’s legal defense, despite multiple requests for comment.

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While the sheriff’s resignation came last Friday, signs of an internal shift emerged one week earlier — when Chuck Wright’s second-in-command was purportedly strong-armed by county government into delivering a written ultimatum.

According to sources, Spartanburg County officials received “informal advice” from the office of South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson on whether they should continue paying Chuck Wright a weekly salary in excess of $4,000 during his so-called “leave of absence.”

As previously and continually reported by FITSNews, Chuck Wright announced his medical leave of absence on April Fools’ Day — purportedly to address a long-rumored pill dependency, just as a federal grand jury was empaneled to hear evidence against him and his administration.

“He asked me three different times to find pills,” said a former deputy who was later subpoenaed to testify. “And that was such an awkward position to be in — when the top law enforcement officer of the county asks you to break the law… Then forces you to resign.”

In what eventually became a seven-week vacation from accountability, Wright remained out of sight — prompting internal concern over his supposed possession of fully automatic weapons and thousands of dollars’ worth of county-owned SWAT gear.

While supposedly in rehab, constituents observed Wright’s King Ranch shifting positions outside his Wellford home — where he had reportedly enlisted help from a known gambler years earlier to install a walk-in safe capable of holding “hundreds” of firearms.

Despite numerous reported sightings of the sheriff, his first confirmed appearance came on Mother’s Day — when he was captured on camera at Rejoice Lutheran Church in Inman, S.C., interacting with parishioners while wearing a five-pointed badge and a holstered gun.

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RELATED | SHERIFF’S CHAPLAIN RESIGNS AS PROBE OF CHUCK WRIGHT ESCALATES

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Rejoice Lutheran — pastored by former SCSO captain Jeff Valentine — is registered as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in the name of Wright’s aforementioned wife, Kim Wright, according to filings with the South Carolina Secretary of State.

As a nonprofit organization, the church is tax-exempt and faces minimal financial reporting requirements to the Internal Revenue Service — a noteworthy detail given its proximity to businesses previously implicated in multi-state money laundering schemes.

Within 24 hours of FITSNews publishing details about the sheriffs’ reemergence, sources say he received an ultimatum from SCSO Chief Deputy William “Billy” Parris — threatening to terminate his salary and revoke access to his King Ranch pickup unless he returned to work.

“It was like kicking a fire ant pile,” one source told FITSNews, describing Chuck Wright’s reaction after receiving the message on May 16, 2025. “He went ballistic — stormed into the county office, threw a piece of paper down, and said something to the effect of, ‘I’m back.’”

By 4:00 p.m. EDT, Chuck Wright was indeed back at the sheriff’s office — reportedly warning subordinates that multiple employees would be fired in the coming days. FITSNews was in the parking lot and exclusively photographed the sheriff entering and exiting the building.

While inside, sources allege Chuck Wright walked past the office of Chief Deputy Parris — who had assumed authority during his absence — and into his own. Rather than speak to Parris directly, he reportedly sent him an email stating he had reassumed all sworn duties.

Whether or not this actually happened, the idea that Wright reasserted his authority by email — rather than speaking directly to his second in command just steps away — was enough to spark fresh disdain toward a sheriff already scrambling to maintain his control.

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And just as abruptly as he had returned, Wright left the office in his King Ranch — trailing a blacked-out cruiser driven by his scandal-scarred son, Jared “Andy” Wright, a deputy whose nepotistic hiring remains under investigation by the S.C. State Ethics Commission.

Four days later — on Tuesday, May 20, 2025 — Wright once again returned to the sheriff’s office. This time, he was met outside by “journalists” from FOX Carolina, who made no mention of the federal probe, department turmoil or the controversy surrounding his disappearance.

Instead, they welcomed him back multiple times and asked how he was feeling.

“Glorious,” Wright responded, seated comfortably in his King Ranch with a Hardee’s to-go cup in the center console. “Thanks for the love. It’s been grand… God is so good. Boy, He is something else.”

That same Tuesday — as Wright smiled for uninquiring journalists and gave glory to God — sources tell FITSNews additional deputies were called to testify before the federal grand jury investigating his administration.

Though he claimed to be back in charge, sources inside the sheriff’s office say he wasn’t in the building for more than three hours between the day he returned and the day he packed up his office.

“I’m interested in how this will be resolved the right way — or should I say, the correct way,” quipped a well-known regional official. “Why would he come back for two days, take two days off, and then clean out his desk by Friday?”

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Despite vacating his office under the shadow of a multi-agency probe, Wright’s resignation didn’t end the story — it opened the political floodgates.

Nick Duncan — a former deputy-turned-sheriff’s candidate whose name appears in multiple lawsuits alleging Chuck Wright fired deputies for supporting his 2024 campaign — announced his candidacy for the upcoming special election within hours of the sheriff’s resignation.

Additional candidates who have announced their intentions include retired SCSO deputy Andy Clark and Pacolet police chief Joseph Hawes — with more potential candidates reportedly eyeing bids to inherit a department mired in lawsuits and a still-unfolding federal investigation.

For years, Andy Wright was widely seen as being groomed to be his father’s successor — a theory whispered within the department and echoed by the former sheriff’s closest allies. Amid ongoing scrutiny over his son’s nepotistic hiring, that future now appears increasingly unlikely.

As of this publishing, Andy Wright remains employed by his father’s former office, according to sources.

Andy Wright is just the most visible name in a broader legacy of nepotism and quiet patronage — one that includes Lawson Berry “L.B.” Watson, a blood relative and longtime code enforcement officer who stayed on the county payroll for nearly two decades despite minimal documented output.

According to sources, Watson resigned in February 2025 and continues to manage his Duncan-based grading business, Watson Construction — while maintaining a residence in Reidville previously shared with an ex-girlfriend who is currently employed by SCSO.

“The feds are a ways away from being done,” another source concluded. “Every time they start digging, they find something else, which leads them to something else, which leads them to something else… Normally you’d hit a brick wall. But not with Chuck.”

This story may be updated.

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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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