Estella Patterson Named Charlotte Police Chief

Charlotte City Manager Marcus Jones announced Oct. 31 that Estella Patterson will be the next Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department chief, making her the first woman to hold the post. Patterson, who began with CMPD in 1996 and most recently led the Raleigh Police Department from 2021 to 2025, is set to begin Dec. 1 and will hold an introductory press conference on Nov. 3. She has said her priorities include reducing violent crime, boosting community engagement and improving officer morale and wellness. During her Raleigh tenure she led a recruitment plan that cut vacancies from about 150 to 40 in three years, helped create a Raleigh Police Foundation that raised roughly $4 million, and saw a 100% homicide clearance rate in 2024. Patterson is a U.S. Army Reserve veteran (1996–2005) with combat tours in Kosovo and Iraq, an Army Commendation Medal recipient and an FBI National Academy graduate; she will succeed Chief Johnny Jennings, who retires at year-end.