Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy resigns
Courtesy: City of Chattanooga
UPDATE: Chattanooga City Councilwoman Raqueta Dotley says she has not been given a reason on why Chief Murphy has resigned so far.
She does say that she wants to thank Chief Murphy for her service and said, “She really came in as the first African-American female chief and has done a great job making sure that our city stays safe.”
Dotley will be chairing the committee to find Chief Murphy’s replacement as she currently chairs the Council’s Public Safety Committee.
She says this committee is in planning stages but knows what the first steps should look like.
Dotley said that she is looking for, “First and foremost are the voices of Chattanoogans, the voices of the community, to say, “What do you want to see? What do you want the characteristics of your or our police chief to be, so that will be the primary thing as we going, and then community leaders and faith leaders will be involved as well, so that’s the first step there.
Dotley says the search should interest top candidates.
She added, “As always, you know, life moves on, things go on, and as Chattanoogans, we are resilient, and we will continue to build on this great infrastructure we already have.”
We’ll let you know when those committee sessions are scheduled.
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy has resigned from her post according to Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly.
“This morning I accepted the resignation of Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy, effective immediately. While the circumstances surrounding the situation have been challenging, I respect her desire to preserve the integrity of the Chattanooga Police Department,” said Mayor Kelly. “The brave men and women of CPD serve our community with distinction every day and over the past 2 years, Chattanooga has seen significant reductions in crime and CPD has grown their reputation as national leaders in community policing, violence reduction, crisis co-response, and solving cases. Under Chief Murphy’s leadership, the department has achieved a homicide investigation closure rate of more than 90%, which is roughly double the national average and is a testament to the strong relationship CPD has built with the community they serve. Public safety is the foundation of healthy communities, and finding the right person to lead the Chattanooga Police Department as our next Chief of Police is mission critical.”
This resignation comes as Chief Murphy has been under investigation from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.
Mayor Kelly will convene a community advisory committee for the search, which will be chaired by City Councilwoman Raquetta Dotley and will include community and faith leaders as well as CPD officers.
Former Chattanooga Police Chief Fred Fletcher will assist the search committee in an advisory capacity.
Current Executive Chief of Police Harry Sommers will assume the Chief of Police role on an interim basis until a permanent chief is hired.
Sommers stated, “The men and women of CPD work hard every day, often in the face of grave danger, to keep our community safe and enforce the law. It’s an honor to lead one of the finest police forces in America as Interim Chief. While our officers may have new leadership, their commitment to service with integrity is unchanged. We will continue to effectively enforce the law while building relationships with the community in order to prevent crime.”
We are working to learn the reasoning behind Chief Murphy’s decision to resign.
