Sergeant John Specht is Hartsville’s Hidden Hero for the month of March. Sergeant Specht has been with the City of Hartsville Police Department for 25 years. He currently serves the Police Department as a Patrol Sergeant and the Fire Department as a Volunteer Firefighter. Some of his day to day duties include patrolling areas of the City and conducting proactive enforcement to help deter crime. He has worked in many different areas of the Police Department ranging from Patrol to Investigations. Sergeant Specht has been involved in many special missions with Hartsville Police Department including being a K9 Handler of Officer Sobek and being a part of the SC Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. He also has other specialized areas of service including: firearm and rifle instructor and armorer, a Clandestine Lab Site Safety certified officer, SCUBA diver, and Special Response Team operator and certified sniper.
Sergeant Specht’s favorite part about his job is that it is different every day. He works both day and night shift and says the two shifts are completely different. When asked what Sergeant Specht loves about Hartsville, he said “I was raised here, so I know a lot of people. People here trust me and will tell me things that they may not tell anyone else. This helps us better serve the people of Hartsville.”
While Sergeant Specht is quite humble, Lieutenant Jason Privette bragged on the Sergeant’s career with the Hartsville Police Department. Lieutenant Privette said, “His biggest accomplishment is preparing new officers for this career. He has always been willing to lead others by sharing knowledge he has gained and it has always been evident in the performance of those he has trained.”
The citizens and staff of the City of Hartsville are certainly lucky to have Sergeant John Specht as a part of the team and members of the Police Department are proud to call him brother.