Disgraced former SC Upstate sheriff released after maxing out prison sentence
A disgraced former sheriff has been released from prison after maxing out his sentence.
Former Greenville County Sheriff Will Lewis was released on April 1, his lawyer Rauch Wise said Wednesday.
Lewis was found guilty in 2019 on a charge of misconduct of a public officer stemming from an allegation he hired a 22-year-old assistant at a salary of $62,000 and gave her a county vehicle to pursue an extramarital affair with her.
Wise said Lewis was denied parole in January.
“I will never understand the reason why,” Rauch said. “You had a man with no criminal history, good family support.”
Lewis was sentenced to a year in prison after a jury verdict.
He was removed from office after the verdict.
Lewis was elected sheriff in 2016 and the woman alleged he drugged and raped her on a business trip in Charlotte in 2017. She sued Lewis and Greenville County, then settled for about $200,000 and dropped the lawsuit.
She testified during the misconduct trial that she woke up in a Charlotte hotel room to Lewis sexually assaulting her. The State is not naming her because she was a victim of sexual assault.
Lewis said during his testimony at trial he had not broken the law and denied her allegations.
He said the affair was consensual.
Lewis reported to prison last October after an appeal was denied by the S.C. Supreme Court. He was sent to an out of state prison for his protection, a Department of Corrections official said.
Wise said Lewis was beginning a new job outside law enforcement and living in Greenville. Lewis had worked as a police officer in Greenwood, a deputy for the Greenville Sheriff’s Office and an investigator for a law firm in Greenville before running for sheriff.
He could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
Wise said he wished Lewis could have resumed office after his brush with the law because it gave him a true understanding of what it’s like to be charged with a crime.
“He would have been a better sheriff,” Wise said.