Human Library Series: Get to Know Law Enforcement Officers

John's Island Regional Library -- Interested members of the community are asked to join us in a safe space to converse with law enforcement officers. For more information on the Human Library Series at Charleston County Public Library, and to see previous sessions in their entirety, visit our section on the Human Library Series.

Retired Police Officer Kay Wang patrolled the sea islands for years and remains an advocate for immigrants moving to the area. Wang's parents immigrated from Shanghai, China. Wang joined the U.S. Army in 1966 to fight in the Vietnam War as a combat infantry foot soldier, and he eventually served as combat photographer and journalist. After 26 years of service, Wang retired from the U.S. Army with the top enlisted rank of Command Sergeant Major. He later joined the City of Charleston Police Department and performed various duties on the sea islands during his years of service, including mounted horse patrol, transport officer, school resource officer and patrol officer. Prior to his retirement from the Police Department, Wang was named Community Police Officer of the Year. He currently mentors children of immigrant families. 

Rita Zelinsky is originally from San Antonio, Texas. She graduated from The Citadel and joined the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office in August 2003 as a Patrol Deputy. She became a Detective in 2007 specializing in crimes against children, vulnerable adults and sexual assaults. A member of the Lowcountry Sexual Assault Response Team, she developed and implemented policies and techniques for responding to and investigating sexual assaults in the Lowcountry. She also provided training to community agencies and law enforcement personnel in child abuse and sexual assault investigations. In 2011, she was promoted to Sergeant. During the next two years, she supervised the Special Victims Unit and the Metro Narcotics Unit as well as serving in the Office of Professional Standards. In April 2014, Rita was promoted to Lieutenant and assigned to the Patrol Division as the shift commander. In July 2015, she was transferred to the newly formed Community Affairs and Medial Relations Office. Her duties include organizing and implementing community outreach programs to ensure a strong relationship between the Sheriff’s Office and the community. She is also tasked with leading the Recruiting and School Resource Officer units. Rita is the assistant Public Information Officer, handling media contacts and requests for public information. She is one of the team leaders on the Crisis/Hostage Negotiation Team, the Honor Guard Team Commander, a Crisis Intervention Instructor and a member of the Peer Support Team.

Officer Terry Cherry is a community oriented police officer who has been with the City of Charleston Police Department for more than 6.5 years, having served on James and John’s Island as a patrol officer, neighborhood action team member, and the Team 3 investigator. She is a member of the LGBTQIA and Latino liaison committees within the police department and successfully executed a Problem Solving Initiative on the Islands, which involved diverse community engagement and strategic partnership building, for which she was awarded 2017 Officer of the Year. Officer Cherry currently serves as the City of Charleston Police Department’s Police Recruiter, tasked with attracting and retaining qualified applicants to join the CPD organization.