Pamela Smith, the chief of the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), is leaving the police department after two years in her role, Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Monday morning.
“Chief Smith drastically drove down violent crime, drove down the homicide rate to its lowest levels in eight years, and helped us restore a sense of safety and accountability in our neighborhoods,” Bowser said in a statement. The mayor, who on Nov. 25 announced she would not run for reelection in 2026, gave no reason for Smith’s departure from the police force.
Smith’s exit follows a turbulent past several months between the White House and the local government of the nation’s capital. President Donald Trump has prominently criticized Washington’s local leadership as of late, claiming on Aug. 11 the city was entrenched in a “tragic emergency” of violent crime.
In August, Trump began an 30-day crime emergency takeover of the city’s police department, citing rampant crime, sending in the National Guard and appointing Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Administrator Terry Cole to be “emergency police commissioner” with all the powers of the police chief. The city’s police department was under direction to receive approval from Cole before issuing any order.
However, on Aug. 15, the Trump administration agreed to allow Smith to continue to remain in control of the MPD.
Smith said the increased presence of the National Guard in D.C. did not factor into her decision to step down from her role. The departing chief said she chose to step down to spend more time with her family following her trip to her native Arkansas for Thanksgiving, according to Fox 5.
Smith also did not appear to provide any remarks to the press during a press conference immediately following the late November shooting of the National Guard agents by an Afghan national in Washington D.C. Trump. Jeffery Carroll, Smith’s Executive Assistant Chief of Specialized Operations for the MPD gave remarks in Smith’s place.
Smith previously served 24 years for the U.S. Park Police and spent one year as its chief. She is the first black woman to serve as the police chief in Washington D.C. on a permanent basis.
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