It's a top billing that isn't anything to brag about: South Carolina is one of the top five dangerous states in the country, according to LawStreetMedia.com.
"It's a never-ending story when it comes to crime," Pam Shields said.
Being in the office is a rare occasion for Pam Shields. She's normally on the scene of the crime with the Sumter County Sheriff's Office.
"We respond to scenes, we're called when the incident happens," she said.
But Shields isn't a deputy--she's with the victim's advocate department, helping those who need a shoulder to lean on.
"If it's a mother that I need to tell that their child was murdered or raped or something happened to them, I always try to put myself in their position in other words I always try to be in an empathetic position, rather than a sympathetic position," Shields said.
The city of Sumter ranks number three on the list of most dangerous cities in South Carolina. Maj. Allen Dailey with the Sumter Co. Sheriff's Office says two things contribute to the violent crime in the area.
"Alcohol, drugs, that plays a big part in a lot of our crimes," Dailey said.
"We had call after call after call we got to this club. We had several shootings, we had a murder, a lot of violence, drug activity going on in there and we finally got, with the department of revenue, we shut it down," he said.
Dailey also says repeat offenders tend to add to the numbers.
But with law enforcement out in the streets and victim's advocate workers helping families, it makes things a lot easier to handle.
"We try to work together as a team and that helps a lot," Shields said.
Violent crimes was defined as rape, murder, robbery and aggravated assault
Within our state, Myrtle Beach and Spartanburg come in at the No. 1 and No. 2 most dangerous cities. The report named Tennessee as the most dangerous state.
To read more about the study and its methodology, go to LawStreetMedia.com.