COLUMBIA, S.C. (WCSC) – The leader of the state’s Department of Corrections has been named to become the next U.S. Attorney for the District of South Carolina.
Bryan Stirling, who served as the head of the state’s prison system for more than 10 years, took the oath of office in a private ceremony at the U.S. District Courthouse, U.S. Attorney’s Office spokesperson Veronica Hill confirmed.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Stirling to the role.
“I look forward to continuing to serve the people of South Carolina and pledge to uphold the high standards set by those who came before me,” Stirling said.
As U.S. Attorney, Stirling will oversee federal criminal prosecutions and civil litigation involving the United States in the District of South Carolina, leading a dedicated team of 120 prosecutors and support professionals with offices located in Columbia, Charleston, Florence, and Greenville.
Stirling is the longest-serving prison director in the country, leading a department of more than 4,000 employees who oversee 16,500 inmates across 21 prisons.
“Director Bryan Stirling is widely recognized as the best corrections director in the country, and his relentless spirit has turned SCDC into a model for other states to follow,” Gov. Henry McMaster said. “He revolutionized South Carolina’s reentry programs, resulting in the lowest recidivism rate in the country, and his efforts to combat contraband cell phones have made all our communities safer.”
McMaster said Joel Anderson will become the new director of the Department of Corrections.
“It has been the privilege of a lifetime to lead the men and women at the Department of Corrections and help transform the agency into a place where incarcerated people are returned to society safely with real second chances,” Stirling said. “It is my honor to leave the South Carolina Department of Corrections in the very capable hands of Joel Anderson.”
Hill said South Carolina’s recidivism rate, or the rate at which a convicted offender will commit additional crimes after being released, is the lowest in the country.
McMaster also praised Stirling’s work to fight contraband cell phones in state prisons.
Before joining the correctional system, Stirling served as deputy attorney general for nearly six years and served former Gov. Nikki Haley as her chief of staff from October of 2012 to September of 2013.
Haley appointed Stirling to oversee the state’s corrections department in October of 2013 and McMaster reappointed him in January of 2019.
He graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1991 and from the USC School of Law in 1996.
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