Man charged with impersonating police officer at a middle school in Lexington

A Lexington man has been charged with impersonating law enforcement and carrying a firearm on school grounds.

The man – identified as 41-year-old Christopher Patrick Brewer – impersonated a law enforcement officer to enter Beechwood Middle School while carrying a personal handgun between 2022 and February 2026, according to the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department.

Brewer was arrested at his home on May 15 and has been released on a personal recognizance bond.

Brewer was certified as a constable but has not served since 2019 according to SLED records, said Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon.

Security camera video shows Brewer inside the school ground with his personally owned handgun, according to Koon.

Lexington One School District issued a statement to parents and faculty that was also shared with The State.

Brewer “was not a random person seeking access to Beechwood Middle School,” the district wrote in a statement to families shared with The State. “He is a parent who had legitimate reasons to be on campus at various times.”

Brewer was assumed to be law enforcement based on “how he dressed, identification he carried, and the positions he stated to hold in conversations with school staff and School Resource Officers,” the district wrote. He was treated as “someone legally permitted to carry a weapon on school grounds” due to this impersonation.

Lexington County School District One officials wrote that student privacy concerns, as well as the active nature of the investigation, limited their release of information.

This story was originally published May 18, 2026 at 3:51 PM.