NORTH CHARLESTON — Police Chief Greg Gomes will retire after less than a year on the job, ending nearly three decades of law enforcement work for the state's third-largest municipality.
Gomes succeeded now-Mayor Reggie Burgess in helming the department. The 48-year-old took over on May 1, 2023, after Burgess retired and started his City Hall campaign.
Gomes confirmed his decision to The Post and Courier before making the announcement in an April 19 video message. His last day is June 30.
The shakeup brings more change to a city already in flux. Former Mayor Keith Summey left office in January after a nearly 30-year reign. The November 2023 election brought five new faces to the city's 10-person council.
Burgess, just four months into his first term, must now lead the search for a new police chief.
Burgess briefly addressed reporters inside City Hall hours after Gomes' announcement. The mayor said Gomes called him the night before, but his decision didn't come as a surprise.
"He had an exit plan a long time ago," Burgess said. "He spoke to me yesterday and said, 'I think it's time.'"
The two first met when Gomes attended North Charleston High School, where Burgess worked as the school resource officer. Gomes secured a job in the radio shop as a civilian employee shortly after graduating in 1995. He became a sworn officer in 1998 and ascended the ranks.
Transition period
Gomes said he initially intended to retire as assistant police chief when Summey left office; he never expected to be the top cop. But he agreed when Summey asked him to guide the department through this transition period.
Gomes did not know how the November election would pan out. A new mayor could've hired a different police chief. When Burgess won, he kept Gomes in the role.
"All I tried to do is navigate this city and this police department through a huge transition — one that hadn't taken place in over 30 years," Gomes said. "That was my only thing that I wanted to accomplish. And I felt like I've done that."
Gomes said he's immensely proud of his work in the last 11 months. He's aimed to be an outspoken, transparent leader — even when his opinions didn't align with the mainstream.
Gomes played an instrumental part in efforts over the years to create a regional police academy in the Lowcountry to reduce waiting times for training slots for new officers. Gomes argued it would help area police agencies get new recruits on the street more quickly and ease the burden of the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy, which has struggled with backlogs.
Academy officials have resisted the move, seeing those efforts as a threat to their funding and the consistency that comes from training all new officers in one place.
The academy did agree to a more limited partnership that allows prospective officers to attend the first half of training at technical colleges around the state.
"I've always been OK ... calling out the profession when I think it was falling short of what the citizens expect," Gomes said. "I just always kind of did it my way."
He cited key accomplishments during his tenure as chief: Securing $5,600 pay raises for all certified police officers and the opening of a new training facility.
Clashes with a councilman
Gomes was tasked with seeing through a couple of newer initiatives started under Burgess' administration, including a gun violence reduction grant program that brought the department under sharp scrutiny.
City Council in December 2022 gave $100,000 to 13 nonprofits with the goal of lowering an alarming surge of gun-related incidents. But a Post and Courier investigation revealed that city leaders — from the police department’s top brass to elected officials — failed to closely monitor the program.
District 5 Councilman Jerome Heyward was an early advocate of pumping taxpayer money to the "boots on the ground" organizations.
Gomes' decision to retire comes two weeks after he released body-worn camera footage of Heyward arguing with a police officer during a February incident. The officer responded to a noise complaint at The Montague Room, a restaurant with purported ties to the councilman. (S.C. Secretary of State paperwork lists a woman as the business’s registered agent; Heyward previously told the newspaper he is not the owner.)
Law enforcement leaders including the local Fraternal Order of Police president condemned Heyward’s behavior and asked Gov. Henry McMaster to take action. Heyward blasted the officer’s incident report, telling a reporter it was filled with discrepancies.
The Post and Courier reached Heyward on April 19. He declined to comment on Gomes' retirement.
Who's next?
Neither Gomes nor Burgess know who will be the department's 11th chief, though the decision ultimately falls to the mayor. Burgess said he'll meet with his executive staff and top police officials to decide how they'll conduct the search.
Burgess did not say whether he'll consider candidates from across the U.S., but he highlighted the importance of choosing a leader who prioritizes fostering strong relationships with the North Charleston community — a skill of both his and Gomes.
Gomes agreed: "If you want to see how our police department is doing, look at our relationship with the community. If our relationship with the community is strained, we won't have success."
He believes the next police chief should already have a connection and relationship with North Charleston. He said he has "real concerns" with hiring an outsider.
Councilman Michael Brown of District 1, who serves as mayor pro tempore, said council will advocate for a national search for the next police chief. Officers within the department could apply. Brown said a wide search would ensure a "fair opportunity for anyone."
He said Gomes' decision didn't come as a surprise because he'd stepped into this role until the mayor adjusted to his new job.
"We’re really going to miss him," Brown said. "Chief Gomes has been with the department for at least 30 years."
Gomes, who was born and raised in North Charleston, has only worked for its police department. He spent time on the Police and Community Team as a patrol officer. He worked as a detective in the narcotics and investigations units for 12 years. He was recognized in 2006 as the Drug Enforcement Administration's task force officer of the year.
He told the newspaper he plans to stay in the tri-county area, where he lives with his family. He wants to continue his involvement with law enforcement in some capacity after retiring from North Charleston.
Kenna Coe and Glenn Smith contributed to this report.
