Saluda deputies’ patrol cars soon will sport ‘In God We Trust’ stickers

Patrol cars of the Saluda County Sheriff’s Department soon will sport a new sticker that declares “In God We Trust.”

The stickers will be put on all marked patrol cars at an afternoon ceremony on Monday, Saluda County Sheriff John Perry said in a news release Friday afternoon.

“I am very proud of my beliefs, and in a world that is turning against not only faith but law enforcement, I feel it is the right thing to do,” Perry said.

The stickers, which will be permanently affixed to the 20 marked patrol cars of the sheriff’s department, were paid for with a “local, private donation,” Perry said.

The initiative cost about $100, Chief Deputy Chris Corkrell said.

Perry is running for re-election this year, and his deputies raised the concern that potential challengers could accuse the sheriff of a publicity stunt.

“We had no issue with the message,” Corkrell said.

Sheriff Perry, however, brushed aside concerns the move could create a “backlash during an election year.”

“I want my guys to know that when they get in the car, and they hear the passenger door close, they know who is riding with them, ” he said.

The new graphic will be unveiled and put on patrol cars Monday at a 1 p.m. dedication ceremony at the Sheriff’s Department.

The move comes as a new Pew Research opinion poll finds that while South Carolina is the fifth-most religious state in the nation, nearly one in five adults identifies as non-religious, atheist or agnostic. Nearly three-fourths of adults in South Carolina say they believe in God with “absolute certainty,” one of the highest percentages in the country.

This story was originally published March 4, 2016 at 6:01 PM.