SC gov picks Public Safety chief as state top cop

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Longtime State Law Enforcement Division veteran Mark Keel says he will make collaborating with and supporting local law enforcement a top priority in leading the agency.

Keel thanked South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley on Wednesday for nominating him to run the agency where he served for three decades, eventually as its second in command.

The state’s law enforcement officer of the year in 1990, Keel was named SLED’s chief of staff in 2001 and for a short time was the division’s interim chief. He left SLED in 2008 to run the Department of Public Safety.

Keel must now face Senate confirmation. Haley says she will press lawmakers to make that a quick process and says she’ll ask a selection commitment to pick Keel’s replacement at Public Safety.