Allendale forestry officer Stacey DeLoach graduates criminal justice academy, sworn in

For Allendale County residents, the practical change is clear: Stacey DeLoach is now one more local forestry officer with criminal-justice training, full arrest powers and statewide authority to help prevent, investigate and enforce wildfire laws close to home.

DeLoach, the South Carolina Forestry Commission’s Allendale/Hampton Sector Fire Management Officer, graduated from the SC Criminal Justice Academy’s Class 853 and was sworn in at headquarters in Columbia. She had previously served as a forestry technician in the same sector, giving her added responsibility as the county faces the familiar risks that come with illegal burns, woods arson and other fire-related offenses.

The Forestry Commission says every officer is trained and certified by the SC Criminal Justice Academy, then receives additional instruction in forestry law, wildland fire behavior, forest fire investigation and incident management. That matters in Allendale County because these officers do more than patrol timberland. They are the agency’s primary law-enforcement force for statewide forest fire law enforcement, with statewide jurisdiction and full power of arrest.

The agency’s enforcement record shows why that authority matters. In fiscal year 2019-20, Forestry Commission law-enforcement officers conducted 381 fire investigations and 122 timber theft and fraud investigations. They wrote 74 fire citations, made four arrests for woods arson and collected more than $11,000 in fines. For rural counties like Allendale, those figures underscore how quickly a suspicious burn can turn into a criminal investigation when fire threatens land, homes and working forests.

DeLoach’s post also reflects the Forestry Commission’s broader regional structure. The Edisto Unit serves Aiken, Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper counties, with headquarters at 5500 Broad River Road in Columbia. That regional reach gives Allendale County residents a direct line into a statewide system built to respond when a fire crosses from nuisance to danger, or from accident to criminal act.

The graduation follows a pattern inside the agency of turning field personnel into law-enforcement-capable officers. The Forestry Commission previously congratulated Santee Assistant Unit Forester Austin Phillips on graduating from the same academy, and its Tree Country archive noted Kershaw/Lee Sector Fire Management Officer Colby Blizzard graduated with Class 835. DeLoach’s swearing-in adds another trained officer to a roster that increasingly links forest protection with public safety enforcement.