By Mariane Angela
Outgoing Washington, D.C., Police Chief Pamela Smith closed out her tenure Friday with a profane rant at her final press conference. Smith was accused of hiding rising crime in the District of Columbia by manipulating crime data and pressuring police to downgrade criminal charges to hide rising crime.
Smith abruptly abandoned prepared remarks to deliver a message aimed at her critics, saying she “dared not leave” without addressing haters directly. She invoked her religious upbringing, citing Bible study, choir rehearsals and church programs, to argue that attacks on her leadership had not shaken her faith.
“I dare not leave without saying something to my haters. Listen, I know you taught me well. We were raised in the church, Bible study, Sunday school, BTU choir rehearsal, Wednesday night Bible study, Tuesday night Bible study, children’s choir, you name it,” Smith said. “There’s enough Jesus in me that’s going to get me to heaven if I die tomorrow. But watch this, you’ve taught me well. And I just need you to just follow me with this just for a few moments, mom. Don’t, don’t, because listen, I listen to her even at 50-something years old.”
Smith delivered a profanity-laced message to haters before pivoting to a sermon-like declaration of forgiveness.
“So I’m going to the Bible when I say this to my haters. F you. No, it’s not a drop-to-mic moment. Watch me in this space. I forgive you,” Smith said. “I forgive you. Because the Bible makes it very clear. When Jesus was hanging on the cross, when he said to his father, even in the pit of agony and defeat, he said, ‘Forgive them, forgiveness,’ but they did not give you.”
Smith announced last week that she will step down as head of the Metropolitan Police Department. She served as chief of the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia from July 2023 until her planned resignation at the end of Dec. 2025, marking roughly two and a half years in the role. (RELATED: ‘What Does That Mean?’: Watch Muriel Bowser Step In When Police Chief Flubs Simple Question)
Smith’s exit comes after months of escalating tension between the White House and Washington’s local leadership, as President Donald Trump publicly accused the city of facing a “tragic emergency” of violent crime. Trump briefly moved to take control of the police department in August by deploying the National Guard and appointing a federal emergency commissioner, before reversing course days later and allowing Smith to remain in charge.
