Crime & Safety
Carmen Best Confirmed As New Seattle Police Chief
The Seattle City Council unanimously approved Best as the new chief on Monday afternoon.

SEATTLE, WA - The Seattle City Council confirmed Carmen Best was confirmed as Seattle's new police chief on Monday, a vote that came after a rocky selection process that had initially left Best out of contention. Mayor Jenny Durkan selected Best from three finalists in July.
Best joined Seattle police 26 years ago. She has been the acting police chief since former chief Kathleen O'Toole left the department at the beginning of 2018. Best has previously been a deputy chief and head of the patrol division.
On July 7, Durkan revealed that former Pittsburgh chief Cameron McLay decided to drop out of the selection process. That allowed Best to reenter consideration for the chief job. Austin police Assistant Chief Ely Reyes and Minneapolis police Inspector Eddie Frizell were also in the running for the job.
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Best will be the first black woman to lead Seattle police. She takes over a department that is still operating under a consent decree with the U.S. Department of Justice. It will be up to Best to transition the department out of the consent decree and uphold use-of-force reforms enacted over the past few years.
File photo by Neal McNamara/Patch
Find out what's happening in Seattlefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
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