Incident: Wednesday, September 9, 2026, on Ladson Road in Charleston County, South Carolina. Confirmed by the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office and the South Carolina Highway Patrol on September 9 and September 10.
Deputy Sheriff Michael Hendricks, 33, of the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office was killed in an on-duty collision at approximately 11:45 a.m.
RIP. South Carolina Deputy Sheriff Michael Hendricks, who gave his life in the line of duty, is the 67th officer lost in 2026.
Deputy Sheriff Michael Hendricks was killed in a crash on Ladson Road between Highway 78 and Lincolnville Road around 11:45 a.m.
Deputy Hendricks was… pic.twitter.com/g5AlcFBkXaFree — the opening chapterUnits Are SurroundedFive shootings in five months between members of the Soboba Indian Reservation and law enforcement in the Hemet area of Riverside County. My story about being in the middle of it. The full book is coming.Read how it starts— Protecting the Blue (@protectingblue) September 10, 2026
According to the South Carolina Highway Patrol, a 2023 Volvo tractor-trailer traveling east collided head-on with a 2018 Ford pickup truck traveling west on Ladson Road, between Highway 78 and Lincolnville Road. Hendricks was driving the pickup, a department-issued vehicle. He was killed in the collision.
The driver of the tractor-trailer was transported to a hospital with injuries. That driver’s condition has not been released.
Ladson Road was closed for approximately six hours.
The South Carolina Highway Patrol is investigating. Cpl. Nick Pye is the agency’s spokesman on the case. What caused the collision has not been released. No fault has been assigned and no contributing factors have been identified publicly. Whether Hendricks was responding to a call at the time has not been released.
Hendricks joined the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office in April 2023 and was assigned to the Metro Unit. He began his law enforcement career in 2016 and previously served with the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office and the Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff Carl Ritchie said Hendricks “was someone who showed up every day ready to serve, ready to help people, and ready to make a difference.” Ritchie said losing a member of the agency “so suddenly leaves a hole that is hard to describe.”
The Charleston County Sheriff’s Office has placed a memorial patrol vehicle in front of its headquarters at 3691 Leeds Avenue in North Charleston, and said members of the public are welcome to leave flowers there. A procession was held September 10 at 2 p.m. at the Charleston County Coroner’s Office.
The sheriff’s office declined to release further detail, citing the family’s privacy. Survivors and funeral arrangements have not been released.
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