Yet Another Lawsuit Accuses Town of Enabling ‘Pervert On Patrol’

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A newly filed lawsuit in Charleston County, South Carolina, has accused the Town of Sullivan’s Island of enabling misconduct on the part of its former police chief by ignoring years of internal complaints and documented misconduct.

Filed by an active-duty officer with the Sullivan’s Island Police Department (SIPD), the 37-page complaint outlines a workplace culture marred by sexual harassment, intimidation, and official inaction — much of it exclusively reported by FITSNews in our four-part ‘Pervert On Patrol‘ series (and reflected in prior lawsuits).

Notably, this filing focuses on the town’s former administrator and ousted police chief, making no allegations against the department’s current command staff — which our media outlet has consistently praised for their commitment to professionalism and transparency.

In keeping with our editorial standards, FITSNews is withholding the plaintiff’s name due to the nature of the allegations and the presence of sensitive details regarding her minor children.

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“LIKE ANY OF THOSE LOL…”

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While the plaintiff’s filing brings new scrutiny to the case, the misconduct she described follows a familiar pattern — one town officials were warned about years ago, and one our founding editor Will Folks documented long before former Sullivan’s Island police chief Chris Griffin was forced out of uniform.

In November 2019, then–chief Griffin attended the S.C. Police Chiefs Association (SCPCA) Annual Leadership Conference in Myrtle Beach — a trip that would help define not only his legacy, but the town’s complicity in it.

According to the latest filing — which cited a prior lawsuit — Griffin sent nearly 20 sexually explicit, racist and demeaning messages to two women he had just met at the event, including content glorifying bondage, anal sex and sex toys.

The messages, described in the lawsuit as “unprompted and inappropriate,” ended with Griffin asking the two women, “like any of those lol.”

Evidently, they didn’t…

According to the lawsuit, the SCPCA’s director and a local police chief met with Sullivan’s Island town administrator Andy Benke the very next day — warning that if Griffin was willing to send messages like that to strangers, he might act the same way toward his own subordinates.

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Rather than refer the matter to an independent agency or initiate a formal disciplinary process, Benke reportedly consulted with the town’s legal team. Their conclusion, per the lawsuit, was that Griffin’s behavior wasn’t criminal — but an administrative issue best handled internally.

Despite Griffin’s formal expulsion from the SCPCA in December 2019 — and a subsequent lawsuit filed by the women who received his messages — attorneys representing the current plaintiff said 664 pages of personnel records contained no evidence of formal punishment.

Just a few months later — while Griffin was still under a so-called “investigation” for the SCPCA incident — yet another complaint was lodged against the police chief.

According to the lawsuit, on March 28, 2020, Griffin “willfully, wantonly, and knowingly” violated two lawful orders to stay out of an accident scene “well outside of SIPD’s jurisdiction” and already under the control of the Charleston Fire Department (CFD).

Refusing to heed CFD’s instructions, Griffin allegedly told the firefighters to go “fuck” themselves, entered the wrecked vehicle, and removed personal belongings — actions detailed in a formal complaint submitted by CFD Chief Daniel Curia to Benke.

“The disrespect shown by Chief Griffin toward Charleston Fire Department personnel indicates an unimaginable lack of professional courtesy and maturity on the part of your police chief,” Curia wrote. “This is the person you want leading your police force?”

Once again, Griffin does not appear to have faced any internal consequences — according to the same 664 pages of personnel records obtained by attorneys for the latest plaintiff.

And the pattern kept repeating…

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“THE FEMALE BATHROOM IS FOR OUR FEMALE TEAMMATES ONLY…”

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According to the latest lawsuit, Benke was warned about Griffin again in 2021 when a female SIPD officer reported that detective Chris Blanton had “frequently” interrupted work-related conversations to ask invasive questions about her and her wife’s sex life.

Despite Blanton “admitting to particularly egregious comments he had made about insemination and other comments sexual in nature,” Town Council was reportedly told only that he’d made “inappropriate comments” — resulting in a three-day suspension and a pay cut.

Following her administrative leave, resignation, and eventual lawsuit, the former officer accused both Griffin and Benke of being intimately aware of — and “frustrated” by — her complaints. The town is believed to have settled her case for $105,000 in damages in 2023.

That same year — as the town quietly settled a misconduct lawsuit naming Griffin — he was already lining up his next hire. By August, he’d successfully lured a new officer from the Mount Pleasant Police Department (MPPD) to join SIPD.

Within weeks of joining SIPD, the lawsuit claimed this officer was navigating the same toxic work environment her predecessor tried to expose — one marked by inappropriate comments, invasive behavior and misconduct long enabled by town leadership, including Griffin.

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RELATED | PERVERT ON PATROL

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Among the incidents cited in the lawsuit were several involving locker room and bathroom access — including claims that male officers left stuffed animals in the women’s facilities and that the plaintiff was allegedly told to share her locker combination with Griffin. 

These invasive acts were exclusively reported by FITSNews around the time they occurred.

Internal correspondence obtained by the officer’s attorneys showed she emailed then–deputy chief Glen Meadows to report her concerns — writing that male officers were “crossing a boundary” and that she felt “very uncomfortable” knowing they had access to her locker.

In response, Meadows issued a department-wide directive, writing: “The practical joke of placing stuffed animals, etc., in the female bathroom/locker room ends IMMEDIATELY,” adding, “The female bathroom is for our female teammates ONLY.”

But even with Meadows stepping in, inappropriate conduct reportedly escalated into retaliatory behavior.

Griffin allegedly remarked that “her boobs were too big” for a department-issued shirt, while he and officer Tom McLellan allegedly began referring to the plaintiff by a mocking nickname — using it in front of colleagues after she raised concerns about male access to the women’s facilities.

According to the lawsuit, McLellan then stalled on equipping the plaintiff’s patrol vehicle, and Griffin began questioning her requests for training and certifications — obstacles the lawsuit frames as part of a deliberate effort to undermine her.

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“ALL OF THIS COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED…”

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By December 5, 2023, internal correspondence showed Meadows met with the town’s human resources director to address the plaintiff’s mounting complaints against Griffin. But before the dust could settle, Meadows was approached by yet another female employee — a 19-year-old.

Accompanied by a male colleague her age, the lawsuit claimed she reported that Griffin made “inappropriate comments,” including questions about her relationship with her fiancé, suggestions that a platonic friendship was sexual, and remarks about her undergarments.

She also relayed comments from McLellan — who, after a mandatory sexual harassment training, allegedly discussed rape and pornography with her and another employee, then showed them the male-on-male rape scene from Deliverance while bragging about sex clubs he’d visited in New York.

During the same meeting, internal correspondence showed her colleague added that Griffin once said about her: “I bet she’s a freak in the sheets.”

Following these complaints, the lawsuit alleged Benke “once again” contacted the town’s attorneys for guidance. Meadows, meanwhile, urged for Griffin to be placed on administrative leave pending an investigation, according to internal correspondence cited in the lawsuit.

Instead of immediately removing Griffin, though, the town allegedly launched yet another “investigation.” 

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RELATED | THE RESIGNATION OF CHRIS GRIFFIN

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During a subsequent meeting with the plaintiff, the town’s human resources director reportedly learned that Griffin appeared to have been tracking her vehicle — and monitoring when other subordinates entered the town hall gym, suggesting surveillance beyond necessity.

The lawsuit claimed that during this same meeting, Griffin appeared outside the HR director’s office while the plaintiff was inside giving a statement — waving at her through the window, despite “no one” being expected at the building, which was closed at the time.

“I heard the door to the outer office open,” the HR director wrote in her typed statement. “When I looked out the glass in my door, Griffin was in the outer office… [The plaintiff] then stated that she was very nervous and did not want to go upstairs.”

After spotting his subordinate meeting with HR after hours, Griffin sent her a series of Snapchat messages — asking her to call him, offering no explanation and citing no official purpose. A screenshot of the exchange was included in the lawsuit.

According to internal emails, Griffin confronted Meadows directly, demanding details about the complaints. He later told another officer that Meadows should have warned him — implying there was a coordinated effort to undermine his leadership.

“It is very unfortunate that our employees and I have to be subjected to this,” Meadows later wrote to the town’s HR director. “I stand behind my initial recommendation that he should be placed on administrative leave and that all of this could have been avoided.”

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“LOOK AT THIS BULLSHIT THEY’RE WRITING ABOUT ME…”

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Citing concerns that Griffin’s behavior might escalate, the town finally placed him on administrative leave effective January 1, 2024 — barring him from contacting town employees or setting foot on the property while the investigation played out.

This was the moment Pervert On Patrol was born…

When Griffin was finally interviewed as part of the town’s internal investigation, he reportedly blamed others, made excuses, and downplayed his conduct — insisting “everyone was lying,” according to records published by FITSNews and later obtained by attorneys.

Although the town’s investigation ultimately sustained sexual harassment allegations against Griffin, Sullivan’s Island paid him $10,000 in exchange for a signed agreement not to pursue any claims related to his employment or departure — effective February 20, 2024.

That same evening, Meadows was unanimously appointed as the town’s next police chief.

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RELATED | DISGRACED POLICE CHIEF RETURNS TO LAW ENFORCEMENT

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Just three months later, Griffin was quietly hired as the police chief of Jamestown — a remote Berkeley County town with fewer than 70 residents. According to April Zakis — the former police chief of Jamestown — Griffin openly discussed his accusers, showed her photos of the plaintiff and even shared ‘Pervert On Patrol’ articles through his personal Snapchat account: @Pilot0911.

“He actually sent me a link to your article,” said Zakis last year. “He was like, ‘Look at this bullshit they’re writing about me. This is almost hysterical.’ And then he said, ‘I don’t even care because there’s no truth to it.’ So I reminded him that he resigned under investigation.”

Griffin’s bravado didn’t last…

As previously reported by FITSNews, Griffin’s Jamestown tenure collapsed within six months — after SIPD submitted an amended separation report citing “misconduct” as the reason for his departure.

The filing — submitted to the S.C. Criminal Justice Academy on September 16, 2024 — was brought before the S.C. Law Enforcement Training Council (SCLETC) the following month. And while SCLETC is known for reinstating disgraced officers — including admitted drug dealers in Spartanburg County — this time, the council voted unanimously to uphold the misconduct finding.

With Griffin’s termination and decertification finalized in November 2024, attention has shifted back to Sullivan’s Island — where the latest lawsuit alleges the town failed to act decisively despite repeated reports of sexual harassment and inappropriate conduct.

The plaintiff, an active-duty officer, is seeking actual, consequential, and punitive damages for injuries including reputational harm, humiliation, and mental anguish — with the final amount to be determined by a jury.

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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