Suspended Greenville Sheriff Will Lewis reads text messages in court, Thursday afternoon, Oct. 24, 2019, in Greenville, S.C. Lewis, 43, said he did not plan to have sex with his young female assistant at an out-of-town budget conference, but one thing led to another after they went out for drinks and ended up in her hotel room.(Josh Morgan/The Greenville News via AP, Pool)
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A South Carolina sheriff found guilty of misconduct for using his power and office to push a personal assistant to have sex with him faces up to a year in jail and will lose his job.
Greenville County Sheriff Will Lewis will learn his sentence Friday morning, about 12 hours after a jury found him guilty of one misconduct charge, but not guilty of another.
Lewis is the ninth sheriff in South Carolina convicted of crimes in office in the past decade. Two others are awaiting trials.
Prosecutors say Lewis hired a 22-year-old personal assistant after his 2016 election, paying her $62,000 a year when some starting deputies make just $30,000, then arranged an out-of-town meeting to try to have sex with her away from his wife and children.
By JEFFREY COLLINS
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