PORTSMOUTH, Va. - Portsmouth City Manager Angel Jones has announced the selection of the city’s new Police Chief Renado Prince.
Prince is currently an Assistant Chief in the Portsmouth Police Department. He will begin as Chief of Police starting September 4.
“Through contributions from the various panels, Police Department observers, and community forum participants, and their ratings, we had three dynamic candidates to consider for the City of Portsmouth’s new Police Chief. Each individual had positive strengths in one area or another, however, there was one candidate that was the unanimous choice of the various panels and the Police Chief Forum. While this was a tough decision, that same candidate rose to the top. As a result, I have offered the Chief of Police position to Assistant Chief Renado Prince,” said City Manager Jones.
Prince joined the Portsmouth Police Department as an Assistant Police Chief in 2018 and has worked for over 38 years in law enforcement.
For 22 years he worked in the Wilmington, North Carolina Police Department and as the Chief of Police/Airport Security Coordinator for the Albert J. Ellis Airport in Jacksonville, North Carolina. He is also a retired United States Air Force Master Sergeant.
“I am grateful and excited for this upcoming challenge and I am optimistic about the partnerships and improved community relationships that we will make with the citizens of Portsmouth. The Police Department must be and will be a part of the community, and not apart from the community,” said Prince
This announcement comes after the city laid out a comprehensive crime plan to curb violence and make neighborhoods safer during a City Council meeting on Tuesday.
Former Police Chief Angela Greene was initially put on administrative leave in September 2020, a few weeks after she announced that Sen. Lucas, NAACP members, school board members and public defenders had felony warrants issued in relation to their participation in a June 10 Confederate monument protest where a man was severely injured.
She was fired in November 2020.
Greene has since filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against the City of Portsmouth in April 2021.
Related: Summer surge in gun violence prompting Portsmouth city leaders to take action
