FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 6, 2003
CONTACT: SID GAULDEN, 803-896-8755
RUSSELL ROARK NAMED TO TOP POSITION
AT S.C. HIGHWAY PATROL
COLUMBIA – The South Carolina Department of Public Safety announces that Russell Roark has been named to lead the Highway Patrol, a division of DPS. Roark was appointed colonel to succeed Patrol Commander Mike Kelley who announced his retirement on Friday.
Roark has served as second-in-command of the 908-member law enforcement division since 2001. Prior to that, he was captain in Highway Patrol District One from 1999-2001 when he became lieutenant colonel. He has been with the Highway Patrol since 1982 when he was hired in Sumter County. Roark was promoted to corporal in Richland County in 1989, sergeant in Sumter County in 1993 and lieutenant in District One in Columbia in 1995.
“Russell is a conscientious and hard-working leader who I am proud to have as my successor,” said Col. Mike Kelley. “He has been instrumental in managing the division through some very difficult budget times. I am confident in his abilities to continue improving the Patrol’s service to South Carolina motorists.”
Working with Col. Mike Kelley, Roark has helped manage a number of changes and improvements to the Patrol including the conversion from a district to a troop structure, which allows for around-the-clock trooper coverage in every county in the state. There were 13 counties under the old structure that did not have full-time coverage. The Patrol also created an insurance enforcement team to remove uninsured drivers from the road, a DUI enforcement team and a school bus safety enforcement unit. The Patrol ACE team made a number of sizable drug seizures on the state’s highways.
“Col. Roark is a seasoned trooper who knows the Patrol inside and out -- from working collisions to balancing the budget,” said DPS Director B. Boykin Rose. “He is an excellent example for the hundreds of troopers he will lead.”
A native of Union, Roark and his wife, Sandi, and son, Connor, currently reside in Sumter County and attend Wise Drive Baptist Church. Roark is a graduate of the national FBI academy and attends St. Leo University in Sumter.
Harry Stubblefield, who has been serving as captain of the traffic management unit, will be promoted to lieutenant colonel, serving as Roark’s second-in-command.
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SI/52/03
