Washington, D.C., Police Chief Pamela Smith announced her resignation Monday after two and a half years on the job, departing under pressure following the Trump administration’s federal takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department and expanded federal law enforcement presence in the city.
“There comes a time when you just know it’s time,” Smith told Axios, which first reported the resignation.
Smith exits as MPD faces mounting scrutiny over alleged manipulation of crime statistics. As of October, roughly three dozen officers had filed complaints with the Justice Department accusing department leadership of directing downgrades of serious offenses. Some precinct reports allegedly contained up to 150 potentially misclassified cases in the Seventh District, with about half later upgraded by supervisors.
Both the DOJ and the House Oversight Committee are investigating whether the numbers were distorted through internal reclassification. The DOJ’s criminal probe is being handled by D.C. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office.
