Personal Injury Attorney in Laurens, SC

“Sports’ Biggest Night in Laurens County” took over Belk Auditorium on the campus of Presbyterian College for the inaugural Laurens County Sports Awards and the Laurens County Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

The Laurens County Sports Awards, presented by M&M Scrap Metal, was a star-studded ESPYs-style red carpet event that recognized athletes and teams from the 2024-2025 season from Clinton High School, Laurens Academy, Laurens District 55 High School and Thornwell Charter School.

The Laurens County Sports Awards was held in conjunction with the induction of the Class of 2025 into the Laurens County Sports Hall of Fame. The sixth class of the Laurens County Sports Hall of Fame includes Ed Prescott, Travis Langford, Andy B. Young, Stan Whitlock and Hall King.

Award winners included:

Male Athlete of the Year – Tushawan Richardson

Female Athlete of the Year – McKenzie Clark

Team of the Year – Clinton High School football

Scholar Athlete of the Year – Elizabeth Reid

Best Performance of the Year - Zaylen Washington

Service Award – Karleigh Porter

People’s Choice Award – Peyton George

Courage Award – Zaine Kellett, Kemonte Pitts, Elijah Strait, Ry’Daijia Mars

Coach of the Year – Shannon McGee

Football Player of the Year – Garrett Murphy

Baseball Player of the Year – Bennett Edwards

Wrestler of the Year – Dakota McCall

Boys Tennis Player of the Year – Price Turner

Girls Tennis Player of the Year – Libbey Dailey

Softball Player of the Year – MeMe Smith

Boys Basketball Player of the Year – Tushawan Richardson

Girls Basketball Player of the Year – Zoe Young

Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year – William Reid

Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year – Elizabeth Reid

Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year – Jabari Dillard

Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year – Audri Dixon

Boys Soccer Player of the Year – Chris Fortman

Girls Soccer Player of the Year – Lillie Corley

Volleyball Player of the Year – Campbell Sherman

Competitive Cheerleader of the Year – Mary Frances Kennedy

Boys Golfer of the Year - Luke McMurray

Girls Golfer of the Year – Mia Carles

LAURENS, S.C. —

A man and woman have been charged after authorities removed 42 dogs from deplorable conditions at a South Carolina home.

At 11:30 p.m. Wednesday, deputies with the Laurens County Sheriff's Office responded to Townsend Street in Laurens regarding child abuse and ill treatment of animal allegations.

Upon arrival, deputies discovered the home to be in deplorable condition, with a strong odor of animal urine and feces, and several dogs found inside the home.

According to deputies, the dogs were being kept in small stacked crates with no food or water and the crate trays were full of feces, bile, and urine. In another dwelling on the property, more dogs were found in similar situations.

Deputies said many of these dogs were suffering from skin conditions, as well as flea and intestinal parasite infestation.

In addition, children at this home were observed walking through the home in bare feet on floors covered in feces, urine, and filth.

Other allegations of child abuse were described to deputies and evidence of further unlawful conduct toward a child was provided.

Animal Control, with assistance of Carolina Loving Hounds Rescue and Lucky Pup Rescue, removed 42 dogs and one rabbit from the property.

Candice Phillips was arrested and charged with unlawful conduct toward a child and ill treatment of animals.

Chad Avery Phillips was arrested and charged with two counts of unlawful conduct toward a child and ill treatment of animals.

"These despicable people committed these acts against these innocent children and animals," said Laurens County Sheriff Don Reynolds. "To say the conditions were deplorable is an understatement."

Chad Phillips was booked into the Laurens County Detention Center under a $15,000 bond.

Candice Phillips was not listed in the detention center website.

The Rhododendron eastmanii or May White Azalea was discovered by two botanists, Kathryn Kron & Rick Creel in 1999.

It’s a new species with white petals featuring a yellow blotch on some of the petals and found only in South Carolina.

“Biologist Dr. Charles Horn is a professor at Newberry College and he picked up on Kron and Creel’s discovery and has spent the past 20 plus years searching South Carolina and other states for the May White Azalea,” said Executive Director of the Laurens County Trails Association Bob Bryant. “To date, no one has found it in Georgia, North Carolina, Florida – it’s really quite rare, specific to Laurens, Newberry and Union counties and surrounding areas in the Upstate.”

The unique find led the volunteers of the Laurens County Trail Association to introduce some of the plants in the Laurens County Park to help preserve it.

“It seems to be suffering from loss of habitat. We’re down to 2,000 to 3,000 plants known to us so it’s endangered and a rare treasure,” Bryant said.

In 2017, the Association built the 2.1-mile trail at Laurens County Park but they’ve never named it and at the time, it didn’t feature the unique South Carolina plant.

From 11 a.m. to noon on May 22, they’ll celebrate with a ribbon cutting, officially naming the trail the May White Azalea Trail.

Bryant said Hurricane Helene damaged the park with hundreds of downed trees and debris along the trail. Currently, 1.7 miles are open to the public. The hurricane also damaged four of the 16 May White Azalea’s planted along the trail.

It won’t be visible at the ribbon cutting but once bloomed, visitors will be able to view the plants as they walk.

Dr. Horn will speak along with others with the Laurens County Trail Association during the ceremony. Afterward, visitors can walk the trail and enjoy the recently cleared picnic area.

“It’s a dedication of the trail but more so, a celebration of the people of Laurens County who appreciate the great treasures of our natural beauty here and those who are working together for the common good,” Bryant said.

The nonprofit has been active since 2013.

In the past decade, they’ve promoted healthy lifestyles, educated others on the county’s natural resources and promoted conservation and preservation.

They’ve created or built multiple trails of all kinds, including walking or cycling trails, horseback riding trails and paddling trails.

Most notably, the volunteers were instrumental in the development of the 2-mile Swamp Rabbit Trail Loop, near the Laurens County Chamber of Commerce and Prisma Health Laurens County Hospital.

“With a little more public support, we would like to extend the trail throughout Laurens County, eventually connecting to as many other trails as possible,” Bryant said. “We would love to have a magnificent, few hundred-mile loop throughout the Upstate.”

In addition to celebrations like the May White Azaela Trail, their hope is to partner with organizations to continue adding more opportunities for the people of Laurens County.

“People connect to nature; nature connects to God for those who believe that and we’re better when we’re outside. These trails give families, friends and colleagues the opportunity to walk, talk, visit and play in Laurens County,” Bryant said.

The City of Laurens will once again celebrate Juneteenth from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. June 14.

The annual event brings the community together to celebrate the date African American slaves received word they were free in 1865. Though celebrations date back to 1866, Juneteenth wasn’t named a federal holiday until 2021 and communities across the country will recognize African American music, poetry, food and contribution to America’s history.

In the City of Laurens, festivities will kick off with a 9 a.m. breakfast conference in the Laurens County Museum’s Magnolia Room.

From 9 a.m. to noon, attendees will receive a catered breakfast, followed by keynote speaker, Professor of Political Science Booker Ingram from Presbyterian College.

“We’ll also have a women’s panel, led by Dr. Lacresha Byrd, discussing finances, education, health and history,” said Councilwoman Cassandra Campbell. “Like last year, we will also have door prizes and produce for attendees.”

Tickets are $25 in advance or $30 at the door.

The annual parade, featuring historical figures this year, will begin at 2 p.m. and will travel from Laurens Middle School to just beyond the historic courthouse square.

“I want to give kudos to community member Jendayi Shumate for the parade theme idea. We’ll feature prominent figures and specific events in black history,” Campbell said. “We will also have first, second and third place prizes for the best float or participation in the parade.”

From 3 to 10 p.m. many free events and opportunities will be available on the square and in surrounding establishments.

The Laurens County Museum will have a display of hats, scarves and ties spanning decades along with the popular doll display returning.

Live performances by Comedian Superdad Jones, Saxophonist Darius Starks, the Band Levelz with David E and Libation West African Drumming and Dance Group will take place on stage in downtown Laurens.

Special guests include Grammy nominated gospel artist James Fortune and speakers, Eric Haylock and Darius Stephen-York.

“We’ve invited the students at Laurens School District 55 to join us to celebrate. The student body often creates art or writing for the event and we’ll have young musicians on stage and participating in the breakfast,” Campbell said.

Around the square, opportunities for all ages will be available. Resource booths supporting the theme of the event: finances, health, education and history will be on hand and a children’s activity zone will feature Big Air inflatables, facepainting and more.

In addition, artisan and food vendors will offer handmade, unique items and classic foods like pork chops, hamburgers, hotdogs and corn will be available for purchase.

New this year, a talent show will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. on Friday, June 13 in the Capitol Theatre.

“We want to encourage everyone to sign up to participate and to join us for the entertainment. Tickets are $10. There will be prizes for first, second and third place,” Campbell said. “Snacks will be available for purchase and the funds we raise from the talent show or the parade floats will go toward our future Juneteenth events so we can continue to entertain and educate our community.”

Campbell said most of all, she hopes residents and visitors walk away encouraged.

“We want people to know the strong history they come from. We want them to know that Laurens is a united community and we have the backing of the city. We want to understand better how to operate financially, how to keep our physical body healthy and strong and our rights as citizens,” Campbell said. “We are super excited and trusting that people from near and far will join us to celebrate.”

For more information, to sign up to participate or purchase a ticket for the Juneteenth events, visit https://www.cityoflaurenssc.com/juneteenth2025.

In just a matter of weeks at least three sinkholes have been reported in Laurens County and several others in the Upstate, leaving many to wonder what is going on.

Some, have been found on private property and those are managed by the owner of the property, however, others, such as the one at the intersection of Church Street and W. Hampton Street and the newest sinkhole reported on East Main Street next to the Tractor Supply and Chick-fil-A in Laurens fall to the South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) for repair.

Hannah Robinson, Media Relations Manager at SCDOT said crews were assessing the situation yesterday and would report back about cause and timeline for repair.

More often than not, Robinson said, sinkholes are formed due to weather related or utility related reasons.

“Sometimes a utility is damaged under the pavement and when they crack, the road cracks with it. We’ve also had a lot of rain in a short period of time and the rain can cause water to get underneath the substructure or pavement which leads to cracks and potholes,” Robinson said.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), sinkholes are often a slow process in which the limestone, carbonate rock, salt beds or rocks are dissolved underground by water and cause a dramatic shift when the surface suddenly collapses.

They can vary from a few feet wide to hundreds of acres and from less than one foot to more than 100 feet deep.

Robinson said SCDOT crews are working closely with local utility partners to make repairs to the drainage system at Church and W. Hampton. They expect the work to be complete in the next month.

The sinkhole on East Main Street, at the entrance to Chick-fil-A does not fall in SCDOT’s right-of-way but they are working with the property owner to find a permanent repair solution. In the meantime, SCDOT is making temporary repairs to the intersection to maintain access to the entrance.