Medaria Arradondo, who became Minneapolis' police chief in 2017 and served through the riots and protests sparked by the in-custody death of George Floyd, announced Monday that he is retiring. His term ends in mid-January.
"I have made the decision that I will not be accepting a new term as chief of the Minneapolis Police Department," Arradondo said during a news conference. "After 32 years of service I believe that now is the right time to allow for new leadership, new perspective, new focus and new hope to lead the department forward in collaboration with our communities and I am confident that the MPD has the leadership in place to advance this critically important work that lies ahead of us."
In stepping down, Arradondo ends a three-decade career in public service, during which he gained a reputation as a personable leader who relied heavily on community input as he tried to transform the Minneapolis Police Department, the Star-Tribune reports.
Arradando's timing means that both of Minnesota's largest cities will lose their police chiefs within the same calendar year. St. Paul Chief Todd Axtell announced last month that he would not seek reappointment when his term ends in June.
The chief's departure comes as the Minneapolis PD is down hundreds of officers amid the worst violent crime surge in a generation.
