Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon spoke to a standing-room-only crowd at the Cayce-West Columbia Chamber Morning Business Meeting at Stone River in West Columbia, Tuesday. He gave some background information about himself and an overview of his time as sheriff.

Koon was elected sheriff in 2015. He said in his tenure he has encountered a train wreck, plane crashes and the threat of civil unrest.

Koon is from Lexington and a graduate of Lexington High School and the University of South Carolina. He spent 20 years with the Lexington Police Department. Since his election, Koon has been named the state’s Sheriff-of-the-Year and he has received the Strom Thurmond Excellence Award. He is also an FBI Academy graduate and two-time SC State Fair Boiled-Peanut Eating champion.

Koon said the LCSD hired 90 new staff positions last year and and all the county’s schools have access to a School Resource Officer. He also said the county’s crime rate has declined even as the county’s population has increased. Moving forward, Koon said the challenges facing Lexington County, and law enforcement, stem from homelessness, mental health issues and opiate abuse.