Federal lawsuit filed against Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, fired master sergeant

BEAUFORT COUNTY, SC. (WTOC) - The mother of a teen that was held at gunpoint by an intoxicated Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office master sergeant has filed a federal lawsuit.

READ: Beaufort County deputy fired for ‘breaking several policies’ following off-duty incident

William “Billy” Squires, the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO), and five “John Does” people are named in the lawsuit.

The lawsuit alleges on September 28, Squires, who was a master sergeant at with BCSO at the time of the incident, pointed a loaded pistol at a group of teen boys while “visibly intoxicated” and after “operating his work vehicle.”

Multiple people in the neighborhood called the police as the incident unfolded. The lawsuit says Squires “provided a false account of the events” to officers that arrived on scene.

The lawsuit also says following the incident, Squires was ordered to submit to a sobriety test by BCSO, but he “willfully refused.”

Squires was ultimately fired by the Sheriff’s Office following the incident.

Laquesha Habersham, who filed the lawsuit, is seeking a jury trial.

We reached out to the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office for comment; a spokesperson declined, saying the office doesn’t comment on pending litigation.

We have attempted to reach Squires for comment but have not been able to reach him yet.