D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser will reappoint Police Chief Peter Newsham and State Superintendent of Education Hanseul Kang despite a 40 percent rise in homicides last year and the public school system’s struggle to regroup from scandals that included fraudulent graduation rates.
Bowser, who began her second term in office this year, made the announcement Monday at a press conference. The mayor added that her administration will focus more on illegal guns and repeat violent offenders.
Newsham, who was named chief in 2017, has fielded criticism for the actions of some of his officers, but Bowser intends to extend his contract when it expires this month.