Master Officer Don Turner has never expected a pat on the back. Not for lugging boxes of soft drinks as a delivery driver for Pepsi, for taking drunk drivers off the road as a trooper with the SC Highway Patrol, or for educating young drivers as a State Transport Police officer. That’s because he’s doing what he’s supposed to be doing.
“If you’re doing what you should be doing, you’re making a difference,” he said.
Starting as a merchandiser stocking shelves during college, Turner accepted a full-time position as a delivery driver for Pepsi.
“You got a free workout,” Turner laughed, recalling the long hours and physical demands of the job.
In 2007, after nearly 10 years at Pepsi, a friend of Turner’s, who was a state trooper at the time, encouraged him to trade in his truck keys for patrol car keys and apply with the SC Highway Patrol.
“I kept asking questions and finally went through the hiring process,” Turner said. “I made it on, and it’s been non-stop ever since.”
During his time with the patrol, Turner understood that law enforcement entailed more than serving justice. It also meant seeing the humanity in violators, and not just the poor decisions they have made.
“A lot of people aren’t themselves when they’re drunk. Some of them get pretty belligerent,” Turner said. “But they’re a totally different person when you meet them and they’re sober.”
Turner experienced this lesson firsthand while arresting an intoxicated driver in 2012. “On the way to the jail, he realized he was an alcoholic,” Turner said. “I kept telling him, ‘Hey, let me get you some help.’” On the court date, the man accepted Turner’s offer to connect him with a rehabilitation center in Greenwood. “I wish I knew how he was doing today,” Turner said. “I haven’t seen him since.”
In 2015, Turner decided to make the switch to another Department of Public Safety law enforcement division, the State Transport Police, which enforces federal regulations and state laws pertaining to commercial motor vehicles. His decade of experience as a delivery truck driver gives him a unique perspective on his duties as an STP officer. He uses that perspective to educate truck drivers.
“I know you've got to have merchandise delivered by a certain time, but you've got to go about a safe way of doing it,” he said. “If you wreck and die, you’re not doing your family any good.”
Turner also helps lead the DRIVE 2 Zero program, which educates drivers on drunk or distracted driving by using a go-kart to simulate both impairments. Just last year, DRIVE 2 Zero held 92 events across the state, reaching nearly 8,500 people with their message — many of whom are high school students just beginning their journey as drivers.
For Turner, one of the major highlights of his current position at DRIVE 2 Zero is the opportunity to interact with students and be a positive role model.
“I really enjoy going around and meeting some of the youth,” he said. “Some of them don’t have the best home life. If you’re there, you can reach out to them and just let them know somebody out here cares.”
Upon retirement, Turner plans to drive out West and spend time hunting, fishing, and woodworking. Until then, he will lead with the same compassion for his community that spurred him to join the profession in the first place.
“There’s been some good times and bad times,” Turner said, reflecting on his law enforcement experience so far. “But it’s always nice when you can help somebody turn their life around.”
