PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. — D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham is leaving his post to join the Prince William County Police Department as its newest chief. Newsham is replacing Prince William County’s former Chief, Barry Barnard, who retired July 1.
Prince William County Supervisor Chair Ann Wheeler said it was a long hiring process with a pool of over 50 candidates from 16 states and Washington D.C.
“Obviously, it's a great place to come work, and we had a lot of excellent candidates,” Wheeler said. “A group of eight people put together throughout the community looked at the various candidates and narrowed it down to the last ones that we interviewed as a board yesterday.”
She said the board came out with a resolution to hire Newsham and it was approved with a 7-1 vote. Wheeler said she knows everyone on the board supports Newsham’s success going forward.
“I'm excited to have him. His record is exemplary in D.C. and the breadth of knowledge that he's going to bring to Prince William County, we're excited,” Wheeler said. “We think we've gotten a wonderful person. We've got a great police department now and he'll just take us up a whole other notch, though that's going to be hard because we're pretty good now.”
In his new role with Prince William County, Wheeler said Newsham will be making $215,000. According to the D.C. Department of Human Resources, Newsham made $273,156 in 2019. However, Newsham is entitled to 80% of his salary after he leaves D.C. Police.
The Prince William County Police Department President said there’s been a positive reaction to Newsham’s hiring.
“He really wasn't one that was on our radar, but we saw the announcement last night with everybody else and we're excited to welcome him to our police family and move forward with the new chief,” Prince William County Police Association President Eric Beard said.
Prince William County Supervisor Andrea Bailey said Newsham wasn’t her first choice, and one of Bailey's staff members told WUSA9 that she would have preferred a woman or person of color to fill the position.
“It was not my first choice and moving forward, because the vote was a bipartisan vote behind closed doors, I think it speaks for itself,” Bailey said. “I’m going to work very hard to make sure that this transition is wholesome and respectable and collaborative.”
Bailey said she will be instrumental in helping Newsham learn the diversity of the county, adding there will be an opportunity for the new chief to sit down with different community leaders moving forward, including the NAACP and CASA.
“I think that he needs to listen to their voices as we go forward, and I think that he would be open to that," Bailey said. “ But again, I believe in teamwork. I would say that my community specifically is very much a diverse community, and so it's going to take some educating and some partnering and collaboration with the chief to make sure that he's welcome 100%.”
Newsham will take over as chief in February 2021, according to supervisors.