Charlotte police chief’s settlement will boost his pension. Small amounts add up.
When Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings signed a separation agreement with the city last month, it was the total — $305,000 — that caught the eyes of some people.
But it’s the smaller numbers in the agreement that could pay off big for Jennings, who reportedly signed the settlement rather than file a lawsuit against the city over comments made by former Charlotte City Council member Tariq Bokhari.
Bokhari, now with the Federal Transit Administration, pushed Jennings to supply CMPD officers with new bulletproof vests. If he didn’t, Bokhari would demand Jennings’ resignation and “cripple” his legacy, according text messages obtained by WFAE.
Charlotte City Council members gave the chief a retroactive pay increase from Jan. 1 through the end of the year worth $14,016, the separation agreement states. They also gave him a $45,699 retention bonus, according to the agreement.
The bonus was split into two payments, the first coming two weeks after Jennings signed the agreement on May 8. The second will come six months later, according to the agreement.
That money — roughly $60,000 — could boost Jennings’ annual pension by about $10,000, to about $173,000 annually, according to a Charlotte Observer analysis of available salary and compensation data.
Council members also gave Jennings an extra 40 days of vacation, which, if unused, could boost his pension even more — to about $180,000 annually or some $15,000 per month, the Observer calculated.
Pension benefits for local government employees in North Carolina take into account two factors: The person’s highest four years of consecutive earnings and the person’s years of service.
Jennings has been with CMPD since 1992. He earned an annual salary of $280,300 before the separation agreement, public records show.
But The Observer’s pension estimates are just that — estimates. Although Jennings’ 2025 salary is public information, his total compensation for 2025, which is used to determine his pension and includes bonuses and other pay, is not known.
How the math works
Pension calculations include bonuses. In recent years, Jennings has received bonuses between $7,500 and $10,000, according to state data. But 2025 data won’t be available until next year.
It’s also unclear how much sick or vacation time Jennings will have left when he retires. Those could increase his pension, said Sam Watts, Retirement Systems Division executive director for the Office of State Treasurer. The treasurer oversees the Local Governmental Employees’ Retirement System.
“An individual’s LGERS retirement benefit depends on many details, some of which cannot be fully known until the individual goes through the retirement process,” Watts wrote in an email to The Observer.
But that’s not all.
Local and state law enforcement across North Carolina also receive a benefit known as the “special separation allowance” after they serve 30 years or turn age 55 with at least five years of service. If they retire, they can start collecting the benefit, typically thousands of dollars a month, until they turn age 62.
The formula setting the benefit multiplies their final salary by .85% and then that by the number of years they worked. Because Jennings has 33 years with CMPD, that could equate to another $78,600 a year or $6,500 a month, the Observer calculated.
That amount would be paid by the city and stops when Jennings turns 62.
For weeks, the public knew little about the separation agreement that Jennings signed in early May.
Council members approved it in a closed session and city officials refused to share details, saying details were not public record.
On May 25, a Sunday, Jennings released specifics of the $305,000 closed-session agreement, signed by City Manager Marcus Jones and dated May 8.
He did so after State Auditor Dave Boliek announced he would investigate a payment made to Jennings without public disclosure and after Jennings and Jones amended the document to allow the chief to release. it.
The agreement also paid Jennings a $175,000 severance and $25,000 “for costs incurred related to the Dispute.”
That money won’t affect Jennings’ pension.
