What’s in new CMPD chief’s contract? Charlotte officials say she doesn’t have one
City of Charlotte officials this week did not provide documents related to the new police chief’s salary and any payments she’s receiving as she starts her new job.
But it remains unclear if that’s because no documents exist, or because the city administration has records but believes they aren’t required to make the records public under state law.
City Manager Marcus Jones, who hired Chief Estella Patterson with help from a search firm and a city hiring committee, did not respond to a request for an interview with The Charlotte Observer on Tuesday. Patterson started the job Monday.
City officials said Patterson took the chief’s job without any signed contract in place. The city administration provided that answer nearly a month after the Observer made a request for any contract.
But the Observer also asked for any documents related to compensation for Patterson; none were provided.
The Observer asked if that was because no documents existed or because the city administration believed they could withhold those documents. Jennifer Cook, a city spokeswoman, did not answer that question on Monday.
The city on Monday provided her annual salary of $285,000 and her previous salary at CMPD.
The Observer also requested details of any relocation payments Patterson is receiving, but the city did not provide any or say if any records were being withheld. Outgoing chief Johnny Jennings received a previously undisclosed $77,000 relocation package when he was hired in 2020, WCNC reported this year.
It is also unclear if Patterson has signed any kind of employment agreement with the city similar to that of former interim city attorney Anthony Fox. Fox’s salary for the rest of the year, as well as details of what would happen if he left the job early, was detailed in an employment agreement the city extended in June.
Patterson retired as chief of Raleigh police in March. The Charlotte Observer requested her final annual salary before retirement, her contract, and details of her pension on Nov. 3. A month later, the city of Raleigh has still not responded to that request.
This story was originally published December 3, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
