SC school board member, retired sheriff’s deputy charged with child sex crime
A school board member in one district, who was also an employee of another Anderson County district and was a retired law enforcement officer, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct with a child.
Gregg Hayden, 48, was recently appointed to Anderson District 1 School Board when a member resigned and was the school safety and security supervisor for Anderson District 5. He also was a former lieutenant with the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office.
Hayden’s Linkedin profile says he worked fulltime for the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office from January 1995 to February 2024.
Hayden was charged with criminal sexual conduct with a minor third degree and attempted criminal sexual conduct with a minor second degree.
The Anderson County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release Hayden and the child are not related, but met through a church mentorship program.
The release said Hayden picked up the child to play basketball on July 30 and nearby drivers reported seeing signs of sexual abuse unfolding in the truck.
“It matters none what position you have held in the past or what position you currently hold, if you abuse a child we are going to do everything in our power to seek justice for any child victim,” Sheriff Chad McBride said.
An Anderson One spokesperson released this statement: “Anderson One is aware of the arrest of one of our board members, who was recently appointed to the board in April 2025. Anderson One is reviewing the appropriate next steps.”
Hayden resigned the school board position Thursday afternoon, effective immediately.
Anderson Distict 5 said, “Mr. Hayden was hired on February 5th, 2024 after he retired from the Sheriff’s Office, and the school district accepted his resignation yesterday.”
This story was originally published August 7, 2025 at 1:34 PM.