Sanford to announce DPS chief at 1 p.m.

Gov. Mark Sanford will announce his nominee to lead the state Department of Public Safety today at 1 p.m. Sanford forced the resignation of James Schweitzer after a video surfaced of a trooper threatening to kill a suspect and using a racial slur in March. Sanford said the trooper should have been fired.The trooper was disciplined by being sent to sensitivity training.

The new nominee will replace Schweitzer if he wins confirmation by the S.C. Senate. The new DPS chief will also hire a new Highway Patrol colonel, who also was forced to resign over the trooper videos. Sanford's nominee will be under great scrutiny by the General Assembly, which is investigating the Patrol and has said it will not consider Sanford's nominee until its probe of Highway Patrol is complete.