COLOMBIA (AP) – The South Carolina Senate unanimously approved on Tuesday the appointment of the governor of an almost lifelong member of the Highway Patrol to head the state’s Department of Public Security.
Robert Woods IV can now withdraw his provisional title while running the agency that oversees highway patrol and state security. Woods has been doing the job for about a year after the previous nominee withdrew. In December, the governor convinced Woods to look for a more permanent job.
Woods worked for the agency for 29 years, except for a brief stint as a Charleston police officer early in his career, reaching the rank of major overseeing the administration of the Highway Patrol.
Woods told senators at his confirmation hearings that he plans to call for increases to improve low wages. He was also asked how he would handle low morale, and Woods said he knew what it was like to be a young soldier and wondered if his concerns were important.
Less than 20% of soldiers are black and there are even fewer women. Woods pledged to work to recruit more minorities and also try to increase the number of police on the roads from 800 to about 1,000.