CHICAGO — Interim police Supt. Eric Carter will retire May 15 — the same day Brandon Johnson is set to take over City Hall — he announced Thursday.
Carter has been serving as interim superintendent since mid-March, when former Supt. David Brown stepped down from the role. The city is searching for Brown’s permanent replacement.
It was not immediately clear who will take over for Carter in May while the search continues for a permanent police superintendent. Carter said in a statement he’ll help Johnson as he transitions into the mayoral role.
“It has been my greatest honor to serve as your interim superintendent, and I have committed to working with Mayor-elect Johnson to ensure that our department continues to deliver transformational service to Chicago’s residents and visitors throughout the summer season, as the search for a permanent superintendent continues and the subsequent transition,” Johnson said in a police news release.
Johnson and the next City Council are set to be inaugurated May 15. Johnson, who ran as a progressive, said on the campaign trail he’d fire Brown — but he’s made no public statement about Carter.
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Applications are open through May 7 for the police superintendent job. The Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability will sort through applicants and present three finalists to Johnson.
Johnson can pick from the finalists — or choose someone else, as past mayors have done — and nominate a superintendent. City Council must then confirm that person for them to take the job.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot congratulated Carter on his retirement.
“As a Marine, husband and father, he has given the full measure of himself in service to the residents of this city and the officers under his command,” Lightfoot said in a statement. “I am thankful for his dedicated commitment to our city and for leading the brave law enforcement officers who keep us safe. I wish him the best as he transitions to his next chapter.”
Before Carter served as interim superintendent, he had been first deputy superintendent — the agency’s second-in-command — since July 2020. He’s been with the department for 30 years, according to a city news release.
Carter previously led the department’s Bureau of Counterterrorism and Special Operations and has worked in other divisions. He spent the majority of his career in patrol and investigative positions and has worked on the FBI and DEA federal task forces, according to the city.
Carter is also a Marine Corps veteran.
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