NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) - The Charleston County Sheriff reflects on her term during her last day in office. Kristin Graziano became the first female sheriff in South Carolina when she was elected in 2020. On her last day she said she's proud of it and described her term as being "an honor of a lifetime." "My entire existence in law enforcement, 38 years, it has been my goal to lift as I climb. I specifically lifted women up in this profession because this profession more than ever needs us, and people need to realize that," said Graziano. The sheriff thanked her team and acknowledge that projects that she's achieved. This includes the accomplishment of implementing an educational program at the Al Cannon Detention Center. "We did it. Not only did we do it, we are the most successful jail in the entire state with these programs. We are still building it, still building it today," Graziano said. "I was up visiting the women who are in the GED program. We've got our most ever women's classes now, which we've never really been able to offer them as much as the men." However, she was also met with criticism during her term. There were several jail deaths that caused concerns about inmate care, and Graziano brought in a new medical provider. She mentioned that those suffering from mental health issues can present issues beyond what her team can do. "People are going to say you had so many deaths on your watch. Well, no I didn't really actually per capita. We didn't have that many, you're going to continue to have those. The thing that people need to understand is that the people we deal with we don't get to choose who comes in our facility. We're going have sick people that we just can't help and that is going to be the case, but we're going to do our best," said Graziano. The sheriff credited her staff for being able to address those challenges during her tenure. "The people that we deal with on a daily basis, the challenges that they bring to us. Especially coming in the door off the street, homeless, mental health challenges, substance use disorder, the combination of all of that," Graziano said. "Then, how our staff, they jump in and handle these very, very complex issues." Graziano said she will be taking some time for herself while starting some new projects, including international work.