WASHINGTON — Amid rising crime concerns in the District this summer, D.C. leaders have announced the nomination of a new chief of police for the Metropolitan Police Department. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced the nomination of Pamela A. Smith as D.C.'s new chief on Monday.
Smith spoke passionately about her vision for the DC Police as its new leader. Saying she intends to "lead from the front" with "boots on the ground."
"Make no mistake about it: On this day, I am proud, I am humbled and I am excited to work alongside this team," Smith said in a press conference Monday.
If confirmed, Smith would be the first Black woman to hold the job.
"This historic moment is not lost on me," Smith said. "I join a legacy of strong African-American women who lead public safety in the District of Columbia."
Before being nominated as the District's law enforcement leader, Smith served as Assistant Chief of the Homeland Security Bureau (HSB), which includes the Special Operations Division and the Joint Strategic & Tactical Analysis Command Center. Before taking her current post, Smith served as the MPD's Chief Equity Officer (CEO), leading the department's efforts on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
"I am confident that with my experiences, both outside and inside of MPD, I bring a fresh perspective, a different kind of energy, a different level of passion to what I am going to do," Smith said.
Prior to joining the Metropolitan Police Department in May 2022, Smith served as a United States Park Police officer for 24 years. She began her law enforcement career in 1998, serving in field offices across the country (New York, San Francisco, Georgia, and Washington, DC). She was promoted to sergeant in 2009 and continued to move up the ranks until being appointed to the position of Chief of Police, US Park Police in February 2021.
When asked what the first thing she wants to do as chief of police, Smith's answer was simple, "Drive down crime."
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Smith's nomination comes nearly a week after D.C. Council passed emergency legislation aimed at tackling the District's ongoing violent crime woes. As of July 17, there have been 133 homicides in the District. That's up 18% from the same time last year. Violent crime as a whole is up 36% from this time last year, the data shows.
Another area of focus in the District is crime crime involving young people.
Smith said she supports an "all government approach" to addressing youth crime, and hopes for accountability for the parents, with the goal of creating a "legion of leaders in the District of Columbia."
Smith would replace Robert Contee III as the head of the Metropolitan Police Department. Contee retired from the police department to take a job with the FBI last month. Leaders said following Contee's retirement, an exhaustive nationwide search was conducted to find the right person to fill the role.
"I had a tremendous number of very qualified competent police officials who were interested in this job," Bowser said. "Inside the department and outside the department."
Lindsey Appiah, Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice, said she met with dozens of people from small cities and large cities before nominating Smith.
"It was very important to us that we meet with a lot of people, a cross-section, so that we can present to the mayor a robust set of candidates to make the right choice," Appiah said of the search process.
Smith also took time during her comments at Monday's press conference to address young women who may be watching and listening.
"No matter where you come from, no matter the challenges that you face or the adversity that is in your way, if you choose to serve in law enforcement, you become an integral part of any community. I stand here today as someone who as a child, I had no hopes, I had no dreams. They were far beyond my reach. But I believed that all things are possible, and I stand in this place because of what I believe in," Smith said.
Before she can become D.C.'s police chief, Smith must be confirmed by the DC Council. It is not yet known when that confirmation hearing will take place.