Electrician in Walterboro, SC

WALTERBORO, S.C. (WCIV) — The fight against a halfway house continues in Walterboro as residents will take their concerns to the Colleton County Council for the first time tonight.

Several Walterboro residents are worried the proposed halfway house located on Barracada Road, can bring dozens of sex offenders to the area.

Read more: Shield Ministries doctor explains treatment for sex offenders

Walterboro residents to shut down halfway house at council meeting, despite no set plans (WCIV)g

However, despite a conversation on the county council’s agenda tonight, officials say Shield Ministries has not revealed plans yet.

Shield Ministries purchased the land of an old, abandoned church—speculated to be the future halfway house.

According to Colleton County Council Chair, Steve Murdaugh, no permits were filed by Shield Ministries, an action required for a residential facility to come before the council.

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Despite the lack of action, residents say they want to get ahead of the issue, showing the county their concerns regardless.

“We don't expect an answer tomorrow. Really, we really don't expect an answer. We just want to present our case,” Walterboro resident Lisa Langdale, “Our plan is to give the county [our concerns], present our case and give the county every piece of ammunition we can to be able to say no to this because we just so feel like it's not the right thing for our community, and especially our neighborhood.”

Murdaugh says he does believe the proposed location is not suitable for the halfway house and could push for action to be taken tonight.

Shield Ministries responded to resident’s concerns in a statement saying, “right now, we are exploring all options with the property.”

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In Shield Ministries' 2021 annual report, 70 percent of their applicants are registered as sex offenders. The company says between 40 and 50 men will live at the Walterboro location.

The proximity of the location on Barracada Road of the proposed halfway house worries residents, as it’s a quarter mile from a Jehovah’s Witness meeting location, Kingdom Hall Church and at least four schools within an eight mile radius.

The South Carolina law states sex offenders can’t live within 1000 feet of a church or a school bus stop. The proposed location is just over 1000 feet from Kingdom Hall by a hundredth of a mile, and many bus stops are in the immediate area.

“Ultimately our goal is to stop this because we don't want it in our neighborhoods. We have children, we have families. It is residential. It's not secluded, or isolated and I think that's what it was called at one point--and it's not,” Langdale said.

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Sex offenders haven’t been a consistent problem for the town. Colleton County Sheriff’s Office reported statistics for sex offenses from 2020-2021 reveal sex crimes decreased nearly half, while other violent crimes increased.

Crime statistics Colleton County:

2020:

2021:

All of this and more will be discussed at the Colleton County council meeting tonight at 5:15 p.m. in Walterboro.

Stick with ABC News 4 for updates.

Colleton County has two large industries coming around Walterboro in the near future.

Published: Fri Mar 10 2023

WALTERBORO, S.C. (WCSC) - Colleton County has two large industries coming around Walterboro in the near future and county officials are already thinking about how this is going to affect housing.

Pomega Energy Storage Technologies, a subsidiary of Kontrolmatik Technologies that makes lithium-ion batteries, is investing $279 million to build a facility located in the Colleton Industrial Campus near Walterboro.

“That is the largest economic investment of a company coming to this county in history,” Colleton County Councilman Scott Biering said.

This industry will bring in 575 jobs, but that’s not all. Biering says Boise Cascade Company, a leading manufacturer for building materials, will also bring in 30 additional jobs and developers have already sent in applications.

“I think there’s two developments, like maybe 100 houses per development,” Biering said. “And that’s a big deal for us.”

Mark Wysong, the president of the Colleton County Chamber of Commerce, says this will bring greater prosperity to the city of Walterboro.

“Right now, that’s one of the biggest challenges that we have in Colleton County is affordable housing,” Wysong said.

Wysong says these industry jobs will increase the median income within the county, improving the housing market overall. Biering says there are roughly 9,000 people that leave every day to go work in neighboring counties and they want to try to keep those people a little closer to home.

“There’s not been a whole lot of homes and developers in this area for a long time,” Biering said. “So, this is something new to us to have this amount of interest.”

Wysong says he knows locals will want to keep their small town the way it is, but no one should have to worry about losing it.

“While retaining the small-town feel, I think these new developments coming in will adopt that look and feel, so you retain this really small neighborhood community,” Wysong said.

Biering says these housing developments are only in the planning stages, and nothing has been approved so far.

“We like to live, work and play here,” Biering said. “We’d like to keep it closer to the center. So, I think the housing will be a big plus in that direction.”

Biering says Pomega is hopefully expected to break ground in 2024.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

WALTERBORO, S.C. (WCIV) — A new halfway house and treatment center coming to Walterboro is concerning those who live near the property.

Shield Ministries plans to use a vacant church campus off Barracada Road near Highway 17-A to help men enrolled in the organization's treatment and reeducation program.

But neighbors say they’re worried because a majority of the men in the program are registered sex offenders.

"We help them transition from the devastation of their past into a thriving future," said David Truluck, the executive director of Shield Ministries.

Shield Ministries said their focus is on reforming and preventing recidivism in men who have dealt with poverty, addiction, and violence.

The non-profit currently has two facilities in North Charleston and plans to open their third.

"We found this facility in Walterboro in Colleton County that was secluded, but not isolated, and would allow us to take these young men out of the environment that consistently contributed to their going back to prison," Truluck said.

In Shield Ministries' 2021 annual report, out of 60 participants, seven graduated the 18-month program.

70 percent of this year’s applicants are registered as sex offenders. Truluck said there will be between 40 to 50 men living at the Walterboro location.

Residents in the neighborhood are concerned about their children’s safety.

"How is it a good idea? Tell me how this benefits us as a county, as a community in any way, shape or form. There's no upside to this. It's not financial for us, not financial for anybody," said Nikki Nettles, a neighborhood resident.

"For them to all be in one place and to have to deal with it all in one place; I just think that's too much of a threat for the community," resident Lisa Langdale said.

Truluck said the men who have graduated the program have a zero-recidivism rate.

Truluck himself is a registered sex offender, something else that concerns residents.

"I worry. We already have a lot of people that walk up and down the road and now we're going to change the dynamics of who it is walking up and down the road, and that really worries me," Nettles said.

Dr. William Burke, the president of Southeastern Assessment, said their first obligation is public safety.

"We will be taking them to work, bringing them back to the facility. If there's any need for them to go into the town, we would take them so they would always be supervised by a ministry staff member," Truluck said.

Dr. Burke said every participant is polygraphed every six months, drug tested at random, and their telephone and internet usage is monitored daily.

If they don't follow protocol, they are kicked out of the program.

"It means that they are arrested, and they are scheduled to go before a probation board and or go before a judge to for them to determine do they go to prison or do they get another chance to back out in public," Dr. Burke said.

Dr. Burke said in order to prevent recidivism, they must provide a place for people to control their behavior.

"We don't want to be a community liability. We want to be a community asset. And we stress accountability and responsibility. And we have we make it clear that the men are going to be held to a high standard. If they do not meet that standard, they will be expelled from our program," Truluck said.

But residents don't want that happening in their backyard, near their children.

"Our plan is to stop this, but if we can't, then what do we do? We have to educate, we have to help each other," Nettles said.

Shield Ministries said they are still in the development stages, so there is no timeline as to when the facility in Walterboro will open.

A community meeting to discuss the halfway house is scheduled for Wednesday night at 6:30 p.m. across from tractor supply on Bells Highway in Walterboro.

Walterboro, S.C. (WCIV) — Walterboro had been in the spotlight for six weeks.

The front porch of the Lowcountry was busy with journalists, trial watchers, and the attention of people from across the country.

The trial is over, but what was the economic impact on the city?

For weeks Main Street, right behind the Colleton County Courthouse, was full of people looking for coffee and food.

At Twig, a boutique in Walterboro, traffic picked up in some areas but lacked in others.

"There was a lot of activity at the courthouse, but it didn’t trickle down," said Jessica Burdick, co-owner of Twig.

Burdick opened a coffee counter in her shop when the trial started, which made business boom. She started opening two hours early to meet the traffic and demands of hundreds of people.

"Folks around here were like, oh man, you know, be helpful serve coffee to people waiting in line at the courthouse, the law enforcement that stands around forever stuff like that, and so we got some and did a temporary coffee bar here," said Burdick.

On Saturday, she and her sister opened Colleton Coffee on Main Street. That was always in the plans but came the day after the trial ended.

Main Street wasn't the only busy place in Walterboro during the trial.

"Walterboro had a fairly significant impact. All hotels full, restaurants did a very good business other businesses," said Scott Groosm, Director of Tourism and Downtown development in Walterboro.

"It had a positive impact on us- we don’t know exactly how much yet, but as we get the returns in from accommodation tax and hospitality tax, we will be able to compare that," said Bill Young, mayor of Walterboro.

Although businesses did well, the city of Walterboro also invested a lot of money into the trial.

" We knew we couldn’t do anything about why people were coming here, but we could do something about the impression we made on people once they got here," said Young.

Extra law enforcement, fences, bathrooms, and high-speed wifi were necessary to make things run smoothly.

"It was a burden on us. I know I saw a figure that, over time, police 35,000. Taj ma stalls were a significant investment. It was something we had to have media and folks in courthouse comfortable we didn’t have enough restrooms," said Grooms.

Life on the front porch of the Lowcountry will continue as usual. Mayor Young said he is thankful people got to see what it's all about.

"People that never even knew where Walterboro existed now around the world know of Walterboro and where Walterboro is, so that is a plus for us," said Young.

WALTERBORO, S.C. (WCIV) — Walterboro residents are coming together to keep registered sex offenders out of their neighborhood.

Shield Ministries, a nonprofit organization, is planning to open their third treatment center at a vacant church campus in Walterboro.

Read More: Walterboro residents concerned by plans for halfway house with sex offenders

In Shield Ministries' 2021 annual report, 70 percent of their applicants are registered as sex offenders.

Neighbors say that has them worried for their children.

"When parents can't let their children go out to their yard and play because of fear, what quality of life is that?" asked Kevin Lyles, a resident who lives nearby.

Stepdaughter of Shield Ministries director fights against his sex offender rehab plans. (WCIV)

Executive Director of Shield Ministries David Truluck is also a registered sex offender.

His stepdaughter joining the fight to stop his ministry.

"David is my abuser. I am Melody Truluck's daughter and he is my stepfather. I actually know how these people are, and the second Melody found out about the abuse she immediately blamed me for everything," Meagan Bishop said at the meeting.

Bishop said her stepfather molested her when she was 11-years-old.

Read More: Supreme Court rules South Carolina's lifelong sex offender registry unconstitutional

She said when the news came out, her mother immediately gave up custody of all three of children to stay with David.

"If she didn’t care about her own children at that time, does this community really think she will care about other peoples' children and protecting them from him or the pedophiles that are coming straight from prison? It’s like their first stop," Bishop said.

She said David spent two days in jail and then was put on probation, something she refers to as a slap on the wrist.

Bishop said this is not a personal vendetta, instead it is to protect others from her abuser.

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"I never thought I’d have to face these people again or see them or have anything to do with them, but if I could share my story and warn these people that its going to directly affect about how much of a sham this ministry really is, then I can feel like I have done something right," Bishop said.

When asked about his arrest, Truluck said:

"We do want to work with the community and engage the community to ensure that all concerns are addressed and that we are providing a safe environment for the community.”

Truluck said Shield Ministries is willing to listen to the community.

Read More: Walterboro man sentenced to 25 years in prison for sexual assault of 12-year-old girl

But neighbors like Lyles aren’t so sure.

"When you have a pedophile leading pedophiles it puts a really bad taste in your mouth. If you save 100 or 1000 peoples lives and it’s at the expense of one child, is the risk worth the reward?" Lyles asked.

The community’s next plan of action is to create a petition to take to Colleton County Council.

There is no word yet on which council meeting they plan to attend.