The D.C. Council Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety voted unanimously Wednesday in favor of giving acting Metropolitan Police Chief Robert J. Contee III the position permanently.
All members of the committee — Charles Allen (D-Ward 6), Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3), Anita Bonds (D-At-Large), Vincent Gray (D-Ward 7) and Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2) — supported Contee during the 17-minute hearing that was held virtually.
His nomination now heads to the full council for a vote, though a date has not yet been determined.
Allen, the committee chair, said Contee is “the right person for the right time.”
“Our police department faces significant challenges,” Allen said. “But he is the person to do the job. In my conversations with him and at the hearing last week, Contee shows that he is open to change and he understands aspects of the department must evolve.”
Allen said he would like to see Contee improve the department’s performance in such areas as transparency, data collection and the way officers engage residents.
Gray said he has known Contee through the years from his time as a council chairman, mayor and representative from Ward 7.
“I have followed Chief Contee’s career and knew of his work as the Sixth District Commander, which is in Ward 7,” Gray said. “He embodies the best of the District of Columbia.”