Serving Barnwell County and it's neighbors since 1852
Chief Robert Miller has come out of retirement to lead the Barnwell Police Department. He was welcomed at the Oct. 2 city council meeting.
Robert Miller Sr. has come out of retirement to lead the Barnwell Police Department (BPD) as interim chief after dedicating 43 years to the city.
“My goal is to make sure the City of Barnwell can count on us,” said Chief Miller.
Chief Miller was initially hired on June 26, 1978, as a patrol officer and worked his way through the ranks to hold the title of BPD’s longest serving officer as well as the department’s third Black officer. He served briefly as interim chief in 2021 after the departure of Chief Brian Johnson.
After retiring on July 27, 2021, Miller is honored to adorn the badge again and serve the city in this capacity. Miller was asked to return to the department after the resignation of former chief Lamaz Robinson in September.
“I felt very honored that they thought enough of little ol’ me,” he said. “That lets me know that the citizens of Barnwell and the city council think I did a good job while I was here. That is a great honor for me.”
When he first received the call asking him to return to the city, he prayed about it. His faith has always been an integral part of his life and he leaned into it when making this decision.
After thinking and praying on it, he decided to get back in uniform.
Miller is renowned in the city for exemplary service, so much so that July 27 was proclaimed as Robert L. Miller Sr. Day upon his retirement.
According to the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy, Miller can serve for a maximum of six months to one year. According to city administrator Lynn McEwen, the process of finding a new permanent chief has already begun.
In the meantime, Miller plans to lead the department with integrity and support his officers – some of which he worked with before.
He believes in professional policing and holding his officers, and himself, to a higher standard. To do this, Miller will maintain a transparent, fair, open-door policy to his officers and the community.
“If you represent the city, I want you to be professional,” said Miller. “I believe in doing things right, I believe in discipline, I believe in being a professional police officer, that is in my blood.”
One thing Miller plans to make sure all officers comply with is the proper use and importance of wearing a body camera, as “body cameras are very critical,” he said.
A main priority of Miller’s is safety of both the officers and the citizens. He recognizes that being chief is a “big responsibility” that comes with valuing each person he was sworn to protect, he said.
Miller hopes to leave the department in a good working order when the new chief arrives and ensure the satisfaction of the city while he is here.
“The goal is to put it back like it is supposed to be, and the citizens of Barnwell and the city officials are well pleased,” said Miller. “We are here to serve and protect.”
At the City of Barnwell’s Oct. 2 council meeting, three new officers were sworn in. According to Miller, a fourth officer is set to be sworn in at the council’s November meeting.
Miller is a graduate of Allendale-Fairfax High School and worked for five years at a local plant before deciding to pursue his dreams of becoming a police officer. He was informed of an opening in the department by the late Luke Gadson, who was Barnwell’s first Black officer. While being interviewed by the late Chief Bob Dixon for this position, Miller explained he always admired police and firefighters since he was a child.
After 43 years of dedicated service, he believes policing to be in his blood. His return to the department was seamless as if he never left.
Although a lot has changed regarding upgrades, programs, and systems in his two-year hiatus, Miller feels he hit the ground running.
“It came back to me naturally,” he said.
Miller lives in Red Oak. During his two-year retirement, he spent time working with Cave Funeral Home and tending to his cows and goats.
