After shooting, Hilton Head to re-explore police force. ‘We’re at a crossroads’
An old debate over whether Hilton Head Island should have its own police force is back on the table.
Days after a shooting on Coligny Beach injured eight people and sent Fourth of July crowds running for safety, the Hilton Head Island Town Council held a special meeting Thursday to discuss whether the town needs to change its approach to public safety.
Since its establishment in 1983, the town has not had its own police force, instead relying on the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office to patrol areas and respond to crimes. Whether town and county officials are doing enough to prevent crime has long been a source of public debate among island residents.
Hilton Head Island’s longstanding reputation as one of the safest communities in South Carolina is “not accidental,” said Hilton Head Island Mayor Alan Perry at the meeting. Yet visitor patterns are changing, and community expectations are growing, Perry said.
“Our responsibility as a town council is to ensure that we evolve with those changing needs,” Perry said.
‘At a crossroads’
Town officials have four options, Town Manager Marc Orlando said at the meeting.
One is for the town to establish its own full-fledged police force, he said. Another is to strengthen agreements with the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office. A third, hybrid option would be to add more officers and greater responsibilities to the town’s existing community code enforcement team. The fourth is to keep the status quo.
The fact that a new county sheriff will be sworn in come January plays into the conversation, Perry said. Current Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner, who has served in that role since 1999, is not running for re-election. County residents will elect a new sheriff in November, who might have a “different philosophy” on how to police Hilton Head and the county as a whole, Perry said.
“We’re kind of at a crossroads here,” Perry said.
The discussion took place on the heels of a court ruling that put an end to a six-year-long legal feud between the town and Beaufort County over the cost of policing.
Former Hilton Head Island Mayor John McCann took the county to court in 2020 over an extra police fee that island property owners pay each year on top of their property taxes. Last month, the South Carolina Supreme Court upheld the fee, which the county uses to pay BCSO for policing services on Hilton Head.
The county expects to collect $6.9 million through the fee in 2027, according to Orlando. Combined with town’s public safety department budget, Perry said the Hilton Head community collectively spends more than $9.4 million on public safety.
“The question is whether our collective resources, deployment strategies and partnerships remain aligned with today’s operational needs,” Perry said.
What’s been done so far?
Some work has been done over the past few years to enhance public safety on Hilton Head Island.
In recent years, the town has significantly expanded its code enforcement division. Once a two-person team tasked with monitoring issues like illegal signs, trash and land-use violations, the division has evolved into a fully staffed department with the authority to manage active daily community pressures, including parking enforcement and short-term rental compliance.
Flock Safety cameras have been installed along Hilton Head roads, which BCSO uses to track down suspect vehicles during crime investigations. The cameras are owned by the town, but only one town employee has access to the data, according to previous Island Packet reporting.
The town also recently announced a project to install new cameras on beaches and parking lots, and is exploring new ways to use artificial intelligence to monitor and respond to issues.
What else is on the table?
The town is weighing several short-term and long-term options to address public safety concerns.
Law enforcement officials are asking the town to enact an 8 p.m. juvenile curfew to give officers the “necessary tools” to crack down on late-night juvenile loitering. Orlando said he’d be able to put together a curfew ordinance for council review within 30 days.
Sheriff Tanner also asked the town to buy drones to help monitor beach activities.
Perry asked the town manager to put together a clearer timeline on potential actions by next Tuesday.
