The Abbeville County Council voted Monday night to request that the State Law Enforcement Division investigate the sheriff’s office following allegations of an 11-year-old sex tape involving Sheriff Charles Goodwin.
The accusation became public about two weeks ago when a woman, Mary Hedden, went before the county council to tell them a tape shows the sheriff and a female deputy together. Hedden’s son, who used to work with the sheriff’s office, was charged with misconduct in office for an unrelated incident. Hedden insisted that the sheriff be charged, too.
“I do appreciate them (county council) taking the initiative to go ahead and get SLED involved,” she said Monday, “But I don’t think that they have gotten all the evidence as a whole of the sheriff’s department.”
Goodwin has admitted that he is the man on the tape, but said his family had forgiven him since the 2001 encounter. The Democrat has served as sheriff of Abbeville County since 1988. He faces a Republican challenger in November.
On Monday, the county council’s vote formally requests that SLED conduct an inquiry into the office.
Ed Jenson contributed to this report.
