Greenville Deputies Injured in Training After Using Wrong Ammunition, Sheriff Says

GREENVILLE COUNTY, S.C. — Two Greenville County deputies were seriously injured during a recent training exercise after mistakenly using live breaching shotgun rounds instead of blanks, according to Greenville County Sheriff Hobart Lewis.

The incident, which took place on July 29 in a vacant building on Wade Hampton Boulevard, is now under investigation and has prompted the sheriff’s office to suspend the use of shotguns in training sessions.

Training Gone Wrong: ‘This Should Have Never Happened’

Sheriff Lewis addressed the media Wednesday, calling the event a clear failure of safety protocols.

“I want to be very clear, this incident should have never happened,” Lewis said. “Multiple breakdowns in safety protocol, ammunition handling, and training procedures led to two of our deputies being injured.”

According to the sheriff, one deputy was struck in the groin, severing an artery, while the other was hit under the arm. One required emergency surgery, but both are expected to recover.

How the Mistake Happened

The SWAT training scenario involved a deputy tasked with retrieving blank 12-gauge shotgun rounds. Instead, a “baggie” of breaching rounds—normally used to blast through doors and windows—was mistakenly taken from a desk drawer. These rounds were incorrectly believed to be blanks.

The deputies tested the rounds by firing them into a berm but did so from a distance too far to tell if they were indeed blanks, according to the sheriff.

During the exercise, a deputy acting as an “armed suspect” fired one of the rounds, striking two others. The drill was halted immediately as the deputies began bleeding and were rushed to a hospital.

Changes Already Underway

Sheriff Lewis noted that ammunition is supposed to be secured in the department’s armory and that live and simulation rounds are clearly labeled and stored separately. However, in this case, that protocol was not followed.

In response to the accident:

• Shotguns have been temporarily banned from training scenarios.
• A departmental investigation is underway.
• Disciplinary actions are expected but have not yet been taken.

“We are taking every measure to ensure this never happens again,” Lewis emphasized.

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