Bluffton has a new police chief, a former officer with a troubled tenure in the same department
Bluffton has selected Joe Babkiewicz, a former Bluffton police officer with a troubled history in the town’s police department, as its new police chief.
Babkiewicz, who served as a police officer in Bluffton for 13 years before working in the private sector, was picked by town manager Stephen Steese out of a nationwide pool of 75 applicants. He was one of 17 applicants from South Carolina.
Babkiewicz will replace the previous chief, Stephenie Price, who resigned earlier this year, making him the town’s third police chief in three years. He will begin work Dec. 29.
He joined the Bluffton Police department in 2008, eventually rising to the rank of captain before a significant demotion by Price dropped his rank two levels back down to sergeant in 2021. He resigned from the force shortly afterward.
Price, the chief at the time, told the Island Packet in 2021 that Babkiewicz was demoted “due to deficient judgment and decision making” and a “culmination of things.” She did not explain further.
In January 2017, Babkiewicz, was put on probation and reassigned after leading an operation that resulted in an improper arrest. The month prior, Babkiewicz and his team arrested a man on Hilton Head on an outstanding outside of their jurisdiction without notifying the police agency in charge — in this case the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office. This led to Babkiewicz being reprimanded and placed on 90 days probation.
Babkiewicz said he left the department last year in order to spend more time with his daughter before she went off to college, but when the opportunity to become chief presented itself, he couldn’t turn it down.
“It was always a goal of mine to be the chief of police for Bluffton,” he said, emphasizing the word Bluffton. “I had no desire to be a police chief anywhere else.”
In order to select the chief, the town conducted a series of surveys to determine what kind of chief it was looking for.
“What came out a lot in the surveys was having somebody that bought into what Bluffton is. They could come here, be involved in the community, kind of drink the Kool-Aid of Bluffton, and understand the state of mind that we like to talk about,” Steese said.
The department hasn’t just had frequent turnover in the chief position. Officer turnover has been high as well.
Babkiewicz hopes to create a culture that fosters higher retention rates in the department.
“We are one group, a united group to serve the Town of Bluffton,” Babkiewicz said. “I think as long as you implement that culture and you lead by example, the officers will follow and they’ll buy into it.”
The new chief says the first thing he’ll do is assess the department to see what needs to be changed immediately and what may take more time. Part of that assessment will be hearing what people, both employees of the department and members of the public, have to say. From there he’ll make a strategic plan.
The Massachusetts native has a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and master’s in criminal justice and public administration.
During his tenure with the Bluffton Police Department, he worked in various divisions including investigations, patrol, the K-9-unit, internal affairs, special response team, field training, community events and criminal investigations. He completed the FBI National Academy in 2013.
Babkiewicz’s starting salary is $125,000 with a $5,000 increase after six months and another $5,000 raise after a year.
This story was originally published December 15, 2022 at 1:57 PM.
