SC will review National Guard security after shootings

S.C. National Guard officials will conduct vulnerability assessments of all recruiting stations, facilities and armories in the wake of attacks against military centers in Tennessee last week, Gov. Nikki Haley and S.C. Adjutant General Bob Livingston said Monday.

The state will use the assessments, to be conducted over the next week, to see which Guard service members should have firearms and to bolster security measures at Guard facilities as needed.

The Guard also will continue active-shooter exercises and other training with law enforcement, including the State Law Enforcement Division.

"I have ordered a full review of all South Carolina National Guard facilities and installations statewide,” Haley said. “The safety of our men and women in uniform is paramount, and I fully expect that this rolling review, starting this week, will result in the arming of some of our guardsmen. I will continue to work directly with Gen. Livingston and (SLED Chief Mark) Keel to make sure we are doing everything in our power to confront the threats facing South Carolina."

Haley’s husband, Michael, is a captain in the S.C. National Guard. He had worked full-time with the Guard as a federal military technician, but he took a job recently in the private sector, said Lt. Col. Cindi King, a spokeswoman for the National Guard.

The S.C. Guard has about 70 armories, recruiting centers and bases — including McEntire Joint Base in Hopkins, McCrady Training Center in Eastover and the Army Aviation Support Facility in Greenville, King said.

The state Guard has 10,000 Army and 1,200 Air Force members. About half work full time for the Guard, King said. The rest have other jobs but serve a weekend a month and two weeks a year with the Guard.

The vulnerability assessments come after five service members were shot and killed Thursday in Chattanooga, Tenn., in attacks at an Army recruiting center and Navy and Marine Reserve center. The gunman, who traveled to Jordan last year, was killed by police.

At least seven states, including North Carolina, have taken similar steps to arm or better protect Guard members against potential attacks.

Some states — Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Indiana — have allowed service members to carry weapons at Guard recruiting offices and other facilities. Florida has moved Guard recruiting operations to armories.

The Associated Press contributed

This story was originally published July 20, 2015 at 3:14 PM.