Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon is one of four 2022 winners recognized by the Strom Thurmond Awards for Excellence in Law Enforcement.

The awards, established in 1983 and presented by the S.C. Law Enforcement Officers’ Association and the Strom Thurmond Foundation, annually recognize a city, county, state and federal law enforcement officer in the state “who [have] demonstrated the highest ideals of excellence in professional law enforcement,” according to a press release.

The winners were announced during a ceremony at Lexington Town Hall. Koon was unable to attend the ceremony, which organizers said was attended by about 100 state, local and federal law enforcement officials from the state, due to an out-of-state commitment, according to a sheriff’s department spokesperson.

Koon has served as sheriff of Lexington County since 2015.

Lexington-Richland District 5 Responds to Possible Illegal Practices

Lexington-Richland School District 5’s board has been warned about possible illegalities in its procurement practices, The State reports.

“The school district sent a letter to the S.C. Department of Education last week warning that a yet-unreleased audit ‘will likely identify significant deficiencies, material weaknesses, and/or direct and material legal noncompliance’ and that ‘any potential malfeasance’ will be ‘reported to the proper law enforcement agency,’” Bristow Merchant writes.

According to the story, the district says that when it receives a final audit report in June, “the board will ensure that any potential malfeasance is reported to the proper law enforcement agency and the district’s finance department will develop a Financial Recovery Plan approved by the board and submitted to the Department of Education within 60 days.”

Pawmetto Lifeline Holds ‘Kitten Palooza’ Adoption Event

Pawmetto Lifeline, located at 1275 Bower Pkwy. in Columbia, will host a Kitten Palooza adoption avent May 20 and 21.

“Our facility is at maximum CAT-pacity with over 100 more kittens waiting to come into our adoption program,” the no-kill shelter,adoption, medical and boarding facility posted to Facebook. “Let’s find some great homes so we can save more lives!”

During the event, all kittens on site can be adopted for $75 for one or $125 for two.

The facility will be open from noon to 6 p.m. each day of the event, and those who wish to “meet and greet” kittens must do so by 5:30 p.m.

“Each kitten’s adoption fee includes their microchip, spay/neuter surgery, current vaccines, and they are started on flea/heartworm prevention,” the Facebook post states.

More info is available at pawmettolifeline.org.

Lexington Police Announce Coffee with a Cop Series at Market

The Lexington Police department will host a series of Coffee with a Cop events during the town’s Saturday Market at Icehouse events at the downtown amphitheater.

The events will include child passenger car seat checks, with hot or iced coffee (complimentary) and baked goods from O’Hara’s Bakery Cafe.

The event will recur monthly, having started earlier this month and continuing on June 11, July 9, Aug. 13 and Sept. 24 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day.

“The safety of children riding in cars is a continued focus for the Lexington Police Department and Child Passenger Seat Technicians will be ready to check car seats for families who stop by,” states a department press release. “A LPD tent will be set up in the Icehouse Amphitheater and Pavilion parking lot [107 W Main St.] and parking spaces will be coned off for those who would like to pull in and have their child’s car seat checked.”

Lexington County Gas Prices Rise

Average gas prices in Lexington County and South Carolina were up over last week as of the Chronicle’s May 17 press deadline.

The average price for regular unleaded in the county, according to AAA South Carolina, was $4.199 (up from $4.052 on May 10). The average for the state was $4.228 (up from $4.077), and the national average was $4.523 (up from $4.374).

The lowest gas prices in the state this week are near the coast, where Horry County has the lowest average ($4.17).

According to gasbuddy.com, which lists user-reported gas prices by county, these stations had the lowest gas prices in Lexington County as of May 17:

City Gas (1301 Bush River Rd. in Columbia) — $3.99

Walmart (1019 Old Barnwell Rd. in West Columbia) — $4.01

Marathon (426 Columbia Ave. in Lexington) — $4.02

Shell (2884 Emanuel Church Rd. in Lexington) — $4.05

Gulf (1107 W Main St. in Lexington) — $4.07

Murphy Express (2925 Sunset Blvd. in West Columbia) — $4.08

Marathon (4001 Platt Springs Rd. in West Columbia) — $4.09

Shell (4329 Augusta Hwy. in Gilbert) — $4.09

Shell (1390 Boiling Springs Rd. in Lexington) — $4.09

G S Mini Mart (668 Main St. in South Congaree) — $4.09