South Carolina H 5191: Detective William Singleton Memorial Highway

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 5191 Text of Previous Version (May. 12, 2026) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 5191

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

Recalled

May 12, 2026

H. 5191

Introduced 
by Reps. Pope, Guffey, King, Ligon, Martin, Moss, Sessions and Terribile

S. Printed 5/12/26--S.

Read the first time March 10, 2026

________

A concurrent RESOLUTION

To request the Department of Transportation 
name a portion of Black Street in the City of Rock Hill in York County, from 
Albright Road to Orange Street, "Detective William A. Singleton Memorial 
Street" and erect appropriate signs or markers at this location containing 
these words.

Whereas, born 
January 13, 1924, in Charleston, William Alphonso Singleton was the son of John 
E. Singleton, a machine shop worker, and Eloise Singleton, a domestic worker. 
By 1940, the family, which included two brothers and a sister, moved to Rock 
Hill where his father worked for the railroad; and

Whereas, William 
was attending high school when he registered for the draft in 1942. He enlisted 
in the United States Army in 1943 and served for the duration of World War II. 
He joined the Rock Hill Police Department around 1956; and

Whereas, Officer 
Singleton was wounded during a shooting in 1968 during an exchange of gunfire 
with a suspect at a shopping center. He was placed on administrative suspension 
during the investigation and ultimately acquitted. The suspect was charged with 
assault with a deadly weapon; and

Whereas, later 
in 1968 Officer Singleton was promoted to detective. On November 9 of that 
year, Detective Singleton was answering a call on Black Street when he was 
approached by Lorena Rhinehart. She told Detective Singleton that a man named 
James Charles Jeter had threatened to kill her. Moments later, Jeter exited the 
building, pulled out a .22 caliber pistol as he approached the two, and started 
shooting. Unable to draw his own revolver, Detective Singleton tried to shield 
Rhinehart from the gunfire; and

Whereas, 
Detective Singleton's heroic actions saved Rhinehart's life but cost him his 
own. He had received fatal head wounds and was pronounced dead later that night 
at Charlotte Memorial Hospital. Only 44 years old, Detective Singleton was 
survived by his wife Bettye Dunlap Singleton, sons William II and Wyatt, and 
daughters, Beverly and Barbara. He was laid to rest in Barber Memorial 
Cemetery. Detective William A. Singleton was inducted into the South Carolina 
Law Enforcement Hall of Fame in 1980; and

Whereas, it is 
only fitting and proper that Detective William A. Singleton, a dedicated member 
of the Rock Hill Police Department who gave his life in the line of duty, is 
honored with a street in Rock Hill named in his memory. Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by 
the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring:

That the members 
of the South Carolina General Assembly, by this resolution, request the 
Department of Transportation name a portion of Black Street, in the City of 
Rock Hill in York County, from Albright Road to Orange Street "Detective 
William A. Singleton Memorial Street" and erect appropriate signs or markers at 
this location containing these words.

Be it further 
resolved that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to the Department of 
Transportation.

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This web page was last updated on May 12, 2026 at 05:44 PM