COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Justice Academy has a new class of graduates. Among them is an incoming South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) officer following in her late father's footsteps.
Catherine Jumper is eager to start her new job in SLED's alcohol enforcement unit. She's one of 37 new officers who graduated from the academy on Friday.
"I knew it was my calling to join law enforcement and the wonderful agency that I'm with," Jumper said.
She said her family accepts her career path despite her father being killed in the line of duty.
"They are very excited. Cautious, but very excited," Jumper said. "And they're supporting me every step of the way."
Sergeant William "Conley" Jumper of the Greenville County Sheriff's Office was killed after being hit while arresting a suspect in 2020. He served for 28 years.
"He is one of the main reasons I'm in law enforcement today," Jumper said.
Her father is honored in the South Carolina Law Enforcement Hall of Fame, next to where Jumper graduated.
South Carolina Justice Academy Director Jackie Swindler said he's excited to see Jumper following in her father's footsteps.
"I just, of course, talked to her to try to encourage her and to make sure she was comfortable and calm over choosing this profession," Swindler said. "To me, that's very special that she has that courage and fortitude to do this and to do it with a zeal that she did while she was here."
Jumper said the law enforcement community has continuously taken her under its wing.
She said becoming an officer wasn't a choice but a calling.
"You can't run from the fear of what could happen," Jumper said. "You know, you embrace it. Coming from a law enforcement family, it is in your blood, it's in your DNA, and you can't deny that fact. I knew it was my calling to join law enforcement."
The justice academy allows family members in law enforcement to present the graduate's certificates. The late Sergeant Jumper's cousin, also in law enforcement, presented Jumper's certificate.