LAKE CITY, S.C. (WBTW) — A Lake City police officer has been suspended without pay amid an investigation following the arrest of his wife on gun and drug charges, officials said.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division is investigating allegations of official misconduct and possible weapons and drug violations involving Alisa Miles and Major Patrick Miles, a spokesperson told News13 Friday morning. Florence police asked SLED to look into the allegations after Alisa Miles’ arrest on Tuesday.
Lake City officials said Friday morning that Patrick Miles had been placed on unpaid administration pending the outcome of a SLED investigation. A document News13 obtained from the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy on Friday said he had been suspended without pay. As of Friday morning, he had not been charged with any crime.
Florence police arrested Alisa Miles early Tuesday morning after officers were called to investigate a suspicious person on Melrose Avenue. She was at the scene and carrying a handgun but did not have a concealed-weapons permit and was also found with drug paraphernalia and suspected methamphetamine, police said.
Alisa Miles was charged with unlawful carrying of a pistol and manufacture and distribution of meth, according to online records for the Florence County Detention Center. She was booked into the jail early Tuesday and released the same day on surety bonds totaling $2,220.
Patrick Miles has been with the Lake City Police Department since 2006, according to records from the state Criminal Justice Academy. His name was still listed on the staff directory of the city’s website on Friday.
The city said Friday in a news release that officials are cooperating with SLED during the investigation.
“Though command staff is in place to run the day-to-day operations, city administration is currently reviewing applications to fill the position of police chief,” Lake City officials said in the news release. “The city is working with local officials to aid and oversee the police department in the meantime.”
Lake City has been without a police chief since October when Jody Cooper left the department for a second time, without submitting an official resignation letter. He was given a severance package that totaled nearly $23,000 in salary and another $2,500 in time-off benefits.
Documents News13 obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request showed that Cooper is not eligible to be rehired by the city in any capacity and that he is subject to a non-disclosure agreement.
He previously left the department in 2016 for reasons that were not disclosed.
Cooper took over as police chief in 2021 and then assumed the role of deputy city administrator in July 2022. He is a native of Lake City and previously served as police chief from 2014-2016. He also worked for the department from 2006-2013 and several years prior to that.
