Raleigh picks department veteran for its next police chief
Rico Boyce will be the Raleigh Police Department’s next chief.
The 25-year veteran of the department was selected out of 51 candidates who applied to succeed Estella Patterson, who is retiring after nearly four years as chief. Her last day is Saturday.
“It is truly an honor, and I am excited to continue serving the greatest officers in the world while building lasting relationships with our amazing community members,” Boyce said in a news release Friday. “I am grateful for Chief Patterson’s mentorship and guidance, and I look forward to building upon the remarkable work she has done as chief.”
Boyce started his career at the Raleigh Police Department and has held every rank through deputy chief, working in each of the department’s five divisions. His duties as deputy chief of Administration have included overseeing the Internal Affairs Division. He has been a patrol and school resource officer, and a member of the gang suppression and financial crime units.
He “pioneered the drone unit” and began developing an autism awareness program that will alert officers of people with special needs, according to the city’s news release.
“We are grateful to the community and the many stakeholders for their participation in this comprehensive process, which vetted candidates from all over the U.S. and Canada,” City Manager Marchell Adams-David said in the release. “We have confirmed that Rico Boyce is the right person for the job, delivering the right combination of leadership, empathy, tactical knowledge, and community connection.”
The Raleigh Police Department declined to make Boyce available for interviews on Friday.
3 finalists spoke at forum
Boyce was one of three finalists who spoke at a community forum Monday night. He also answered questions during several panels that included law enforcement, community leaders and city leadership during the hiring process.
“Currently here in the Raleigh Police Department, we have three recruiters,” he said during Monday’s forum. “But we have 726 sworn officers. My priority will be on the 726 that are dedicated, who have committed to being here in the Raleigh Police Department and keeping our community safe each and every day. You focus on retention, those 726 are going to go and be your recruiters. We won’t have a recruiting issue.”
Boyce’s salary as chief will be $235,000, according to a city spokesperson. He will oversee more than 900 employees, and a nearly $139 million budget. The police department had 51 vacancies out of 792 positions at the end of January, and officers rallied outside city hall last year demanding pay increases.
“The men and women of the Raleigh Police Department, I want to tell you this — you’re not gonna get a bigger cheerleader than Chief Rico Boyce,” he said during the forum, with applause from many officers in attendance.
He was endorsed by the Raleigh Police Protective Association and given a nod from Patterson earlier this year.
“I think he’s primed to take the reins and move us forward as an organization,” she said in an interview with Raleigh Magazine from earlier this year. “I believe he has the support of the city — and that’s somebody I would support.”
The other two finalists were Joshua Wallace, commander of the criminal network group in the Chicago Police Department’s Bureau of Counterterrorism, and Sonia Russell, the Detroit Police Department’s commander of Crime Control strategies.
Boyce will become acting police chief on Saturday and be sworn in as chief later in March.
This story was originally published February 28, 2025 at 1:36 PM.
