Mayor Muriel Bowser has named veteran police officer Robert J. Contee III as head of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) after Chief Peter Newsham, who will soon leave office.
Contee’s nomination was first reported by the Washington Post on Tuesday.
The 48-year-old veteran is a native of the District and has worked for the police department for 31 years. He joined MPD in 1989 as a cadet while he was still in high school. Three years later, he was sworn in as a member of the department.
Contee is currently serving as the department’s Assistant Chief of the Investigative Services Bureau, which “works with the community to solve crimes, bring offenders to justice, support the recovery of victims, and protect witnesses,” according to MPD’s website. DC Police Chief Newsham appointed him to the post in March 2018.
Contee has a Bachelor’s Degree in Professional Studies with a concentration in Police Science from George Washington University.
When I spoke to the next Chief of Police, Robert Contee, he told me the highest honor he could receive was to give back to the city that raised him––and that becoming Chief is a testament of what happens when you give kids a #FairShot. Let's get to work Chief. https://t.co/emZA06hLky pic.twitter.com/guL5WjEGov
— Mayor Muriel Bowser (@MayorBowser) December 22, 2020
He has also completed the Management College at the Institute for Law Enforcement Administration and the Senior Management Institute for Police (SMIP) of the Police Executive Research Forum in Boston, Massachusetts.
Police Chief Newsham, who has served the District since 2017, will soon leave MPD to lead the Prince William County Police Department starting February 2021. He was appointed by Bowser as Interim Chief of Police in 2016 and named as Chief of MPD in 2017. He was sworn in in May 2017.
My statement on news of Robert J. Contee III being selected as D.C. MPD Chief ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/tQG4RIqU7a
— AG Karl A. Racine (@AGKarlRacine) December 22, 2020
Speaking to WTOP, DC Attorney General Karl Racine expressed his support for Bowser’s pick for police chief, saying Contee is a native Washingtonian with a good understanding of the community and that he has the people’s trust.
Racine also shared a statement over Twitter, where he said “I trust that Chief Contee hears the calls for racial justice ringing across the country and will work to address the District’s structural barriers to equality.”