Video shows Beaufort County officer-involved shooting that led to SC trooper’s firing
UPDATE: In a January 2021 meeting, the S.C. Criminal Justice Academy issued their final decision on Jordan Ward’s allegation of misconduct, which was “proven by substantial evidence.” The body voted to allow Ward to keep his law enforcement certification, while putting a finding of misconduct on his record. The agency also mandated Ward take “refresher training” on use of force. The punishment means Ward may be hired by another law enforcement agency.
Recently released video from the South Carolina Highway Patrol shows the Beaufort County police chase and officer-involved shooting that led to a trooper’s termination.
Trooper J.W. Ward, of Troop 6, was fired Nov. 8 after an internal investigation revealed that the suspect he pursued did not pose an immediate threat to Ward’s safety or others during the Oct. 1 traffic stop on Highway 21 between Roseida Road and the Marine Corps Air Station, according to a statement from Capt. Roger Hughes.
Dashcam video shows that the suspect ran a stop light a few seconds after the light turned red on Highway 21 in the Beaufort area around 8:30 p.m.
Ward then did a quick U-turn, turned on his lights and accelerated, the video shows. The suspect in a Pontiac G6 begins weaving in and out of traffic as the trooper follows at a high speed.
A few minutes into the chase, Ward performs a Pursuit Intervention Technique (PIT) maneuver and causes the driver to lose control, the video shows.
The Pontiac momentarily rests perpendicular to traffic flow on Highway 21, and the officer stops his vehicle and exits. As the car reverses, Ward yells “Get out of the car!” with his weapon drawn and aimed at the suspect, the video shows.
As the car accelerates away, Ward yells “Get out of the car!” once more and fires one round at the vehicle. The bullet did not hit the suspect. The trooper then resumed the chase at speeds up to 113 mph as he radios in “shots fired.”
As he chases the Pontiac, Ward reports over the radio that the suspect “looked like he was reaching to the floorboard for a gun” when he fired his weapon, according to the video.
Ward performs two more PIT maneuvers and the driver finally stopped on Green Pond Highway in Colleton County, according to the video. The chase lasted more than 16 minutes.
Two officers detained the suspect, who was arrested and charged with disregarding a traffic control device, failing to stop for a blue light, driving under suspension and operating with an uninsured, expired vehicle license, according to a SCHP release.
Ward is heard on video after the incident telling another officer that he told the suspect to put his hands in the air before he fired his service weapon. However, the video does not show this.
No one was injured in the pursuit, according to a SCHP release.
SLED continues to investigate the incident, according to Hughes.
Immediately following the incident, the SCHP suspended Ward without pay as South Carolina Department of Public Safety Office of Professional Responsibility and State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) investigated, according to Hughes. Ward had worked at the SCHP since 2017.
He was terminated after an internal investigation found that Ward’s actions “were not in line with his training or the department’s Emergency Response/Vehicle and Foot Pursuit policy,” Hughes said in a statement.
As of earlier this week, SLED was still investigating the incident.
The chase was the 36th officer-involved shooting in the state in 2019. It is the second involving the S.C. Highway Patrol.
This story was originally published November 16, 2019 at 12:53 PM.
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