CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - City leaders introduced the next police chief for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department on Monday morning.

Estella Patterson said her three main priorities will be to reduce violent crime, strengthen community relationships, and reduce job vacancies within the department.

Patterson called her return to Charlotte-Mecklenburg police “a full circle moment” because she spent 25 years with them before serving, most recently, as the police chief in Raleigh.

She’ll be the first female police chief in the history of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.

“I don’t see that my role is different because I’m a woman. In policing, we have the same standard across the board,” Patterson said. “But I hope to be a leader that will be compassionate, that will show th

See Full Page