Kenneth Jeffrey Johnson
Agency patch
Corporal

Kenneth Jeffrey Johnson

South Carolina Highway Patrol — Blythewood, SC
Felonious
End of Watch July 7, 2002
Age 38
Tour of Duty 12 yrs
Gender Male

Incident

Corporal Kenneth Johnson was shot and killed while conducting a holiday weekend public safety checkpoint in Berkeley County at 2:15 am.

He and other troopers were positioned on College Park Road, between I-26 and US 17A, and had stopped a pickup truck. As a trooper wrote the female driver a ticket for possession of an open container of an alcoholic beverage, Corporal Johnson walked around the back of the truck to check the identity of the male passenger. As he did so, the man jumped out of the truck and opened fire, striking Corporal Johnson in the abdomen just below his protective vest. As the man attempted to escape, the other troopers returned fire, wounding him, and took him into custody.

The male subject was an escapee from a Charleston County work release detail. The female driver of the truck was also charged with possession of a stolen vehicle. The male was convicted of seven counts, including murder, on May 18th, 2003, and was sentenced to death the following day. In October 2015, the man committed suicide by hanging himself in his jail cell.

Corporal Johnson had served with the South Carolina Highway Patrol for 12 years.

Survivors

He is survived by his wife and two children.

In Our Keeping

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Stewardship
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Added to badge.nw
August 2, 2026
Last updated
August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Tributes

I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Corporal Johnson gave the South Carolina Highway Patrol 12 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of South Carolina. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Corporal Johnson.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Type Highway Patrol
Location Blythewood, Fairfield County, SC
Platform Identity schp.sc.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch July 7, 2002
Tour of Duty 12 yrs
Age 38
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious
Cause Detail Gunfire
Weapon Handgun

The Sacrifice · Felonious

Kenneth is one of 15,742 officers killed feloniously in the United States, 57.1% of the 27,551 remembered there.

34,102 officers are remembered on this memorial. Each number below is one of them.

  1. See the roll
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Compare against
I

Time

In 2002, 73 officers in the United States were killed feloniously, the 96th heaviest of 213 years on record. The heaviest was 1921, with 248.

Every year on record · United States
II

Who

Kenneth was 38. Of the 14,219 killed feloniously in the United States whose age is recorded, half were between 31 and 47; the middle age was 38. Kenneth had served 12 years; the middle length of service was 6 years.

Age at death
Where he stood among them
Age by years of service
III

When

July holds 9.3% of these deaths in the United States; December holds the most, 9.4%. Sundays: 15.2%.

By month
By day of the week
IV

How

Felonious deaths account for 57.1% of all 27,551 deaths in the United States, the most common cause. The weapon recorded was handgun, in 23.4% of these deaths.

Every cause
Weapons recorded
V

His people

South Carolina Highway Patrol has 52 officers remembered here, Kenneth among them.

Across the years
VI

Where

Corporal Kenneth Jeffrey Johnson

South Carolina Highway Patrol · End of Watch July 7, 2002

Where the Name Is Cut

National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial · Panel 21-E

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