Retired SLED Agents Inducted Into South Carolina Law Enforcement Officers Hall of Fame

Two retired SLED Agents were inducted into the South Carolina Law Enforcement Officers Hall of Fame today.

 

The late Lt. M.B. “Sonny” Huggins III M.B. “Sonny” Huggins, III was born in Florence County in 1941.

Sonny began his 27-year career at SLED in May 1973 following the death of his father, M.B. “Dusty” Huggins, Jr, the pioneer of fixed wing aviation at SLED.  Sonny was the second pilot at SLED.

He was instrumental in search and rescue of missing persons, convicts, destroying liquor stills and marijuana plants.  The United States Treasury Department honored Sonny with a plaque and certificate of appreciation in June of 1980 for his part in detecting drug smuggling in the state using the SLED aircraft. Sonny retired from SLED in July of 2000 with 28 years of service. 

By the end of his life, he had logged 17,546 flight hours, or roughly two full years in the air. Sonny died on February 14, 2015 at the age of 73. 

Lt. Horace P. “Hoss” Horton Jr. 

Horace P. “Hoss” Horton, Jr. was born in Laurens County in 1948. Hoss began his storied career at SLED after graduating from the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy on October 18, 1974. 

He spent the first 19 years of his career on the Bloodhound Tracking Team where he frequently received commendations from Chiefs, Sheriffs, Solicitors and even Judges for his ability to track fugitives and save missing people. He devoted the last 14 years of his career, 1993 through his retirement in 2007, to tracking fugitives on the Fugitive Team.  Hoss also served on the SWAT Team most of career. 

Hoss earned several commendations from around the state for helping other agencies start K9 teams and for helping train their K9’s. Hoss Horton retired on March 1, 2007, with over 32 years of service to SLED.  Hoss was honored in 2008 by SLED with the Medal of Honor for his distinguished service.