Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best To Announce Resignation: Reports

SEATTLE, WA — Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best will announce her resignation Tuesday, following a City Council vote to force some officer layoffs and reduce her pay, according to multiple media reports.

Related: Seattle City Council Approves Initial Round Of Police Cuts

KING 5, KIRO 7 and Q13 Fox reported the chief's plans late Monday night, citing unnamed sources within the department. According to KING 5 reporter Chris Daniels, one source said the the proposed pay cut played a role in the decision, among other recent actions at council.

Best was named police chief in 2018 and has worked at the department for nearly three decades.

Council members launched a budget inquest on police department spending in early June, amid ongoing protests, leading to the vote on a rebalanced 2020 budget package Monday. The cuts approved this week amount to less than $4 million of the police department's remaining $170 million for the year, but most council members have pledged to secure more significant adjustments in the 2021 budget.

Related: Seattle Agrees To Order Limiting Some Crowd Control Practices

Community groups, activists and protesters have repeatedly called for cutting the police department's $409 million budget in half, redirecting funds toward community-led services and public safety solutions.

An amendment that would have capped pay for the police department's executive staff was changed Monday to reduce the impact on Best, after some council members noted she would have been among the least-paid department heads in the city. Under the version passed at full council, Best's salary would be adjusted by a much smaller margin, landing at roughly $275,000 annually.

Journalist Erica C. Barnett reported that Best intends to retire on Sept. 2 , per an e-mail sent to police department employees Monday night.

A news conference formally announcing Best's planned departure is expected at 11 a.m. Tuesday morning.