27 Facts About Peter Newsham

Peter Newsham is currently Chief of the Prince William County Police Department in Virginia, having been appointed to that post in November 2020.

Peter Newsham became the Chief of Police in January 2017, after having previously served as deputy to his predecessor, Police Chief Cathy Lanier.

In November 2020, it was announced that Newsham would be leaving the District to become Chief of Police for nearby Prince William County, Virginia; he was succeeded in the District of Columbia in January 2021 by Robert Contee.

Peter Newsham was born in Providence, Rhode Island, and grew up in Weymouth, Massachusetts.

Peter Newsham never worked on Capitol Hill, and ended up applying to the Metropolitan Police Department.

In 1996, Peter Newsham attended the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law and earned his JD degree in 2000.

Peter Newsham participated in the investigation of the May 2001 disappearance of federal intern Chandra Levy.

In July 2004 Peter Newsham was placed in charge of Regional Operations Command-North.

In that capacity, Peter Newsham reported in 2003 that the department had confirmed that a class of armor-piercing handguns that Congress was seeking to ban had been tested by the department and found to be capable of penetrating police body armor.

In 2007, Peter Newsham took over as Assistant Chief of the Internal Affairs Bureau.

In 2008, Newsham oversaw the issuance by police of the first handgun permits in the District of Columbia in 32 years, following the ruling by the United States Supreme Court in District of Columbia v Heller, which struck down the District's ban on handgun ownership.

In 2013, Peter Newsham commanded the response to the Washington Navy Yard shooting.

In 2016, Peter Newsham oversaw the investigation of the murder of Seth Rich, noting that there was no information to support internet rumors that the death was connected to WikiLeaks involvement in the 2016 Democratic National Committee email leak.

Peter Newsham was a finalist for the position of chief of police in both Fort Myers, Florida, and Phoenix, Arizona.

Peter Newsham was one of eight finalists for the position in Fort Myers.

Peter Newsham visited the restaurant in a show of support the following week, speaking out against the consequences of fake news.

In January 2017, Peter Newsham oversaw city-wide police preparations for the Inauguration of Donald Trump, with its anticipated high number of protests.

In February 2017 Peter Newsham was nominated as Chief of Police by Mayor Muriel Bowser.

Peter Newsham has identified his priorities as chief to address trust in the community and officer morale.

Peter Newsham disputed whether the data, taken over a four week period, was representative.

Peter Newsham was inadvertently caught on camera saying that he thought homicides would continue unabated.

In January 2020, Peter Newsham announced that DC police will no longer handcuff children under 12, except as needed to protect the child or the public from danger.

In March 2020, Peter Newsham praised incoming US Attorney Tim Shea for the latter's agreement to aggressively pursue gun violence and gun crimes by repeat violent offenders.

In particular, Peter Newsham objected to provisions regarding the release of body-camera footage, which historically had generally not been released.

In July 2020, in response to litigation filed in the aftermath of the use of force to clear protesters for the Donald Trump photo op at St John's Church, Peter Newsham denied that officers in his department were involved in that action.

In November 2020, it was announced that Peter Newsham would be leaving the District to become Chief of Police for nearby Prince William County, Virginia.

Peter Newsham has lived in Washington for over 30 years and is a Boston Red Sox and New England Patriots fan; however, he has stated that the Washington Commanders is his favorite National Football Conference team.