ST. LOUIS, MO (KTVI) – Just one month after announcing he would run for mayor, St. Louis Police Chief Sam Dotson has withdrawn from the race. In a statement, Dotson says he has decided that he can better serve the city by staying on a police chief.
Dotson has been police chief since December 2012. He announced his candidacy for mayor on October 5, 2016.
Here is the full statement from Chief Dotson
I love our city and feel privileged to serve it. I’ve worked to make our city better, fairer and safer for everyone. I started to run for mayor because I thought I could do even more for our city. But, over the past month with the death of Officer Blake Snyder and seeing the great team work among law enforcement to keep everyone safe and secure during the presidential debate at Washington University, I did a lot of thinking. My fellow officers reminded me of why I became a police officer in the first place, the sense of purpose that comes with the job, and why I am so proud to lead the men and women of the St. Louis Police Department. After giving this a great deal of thought, I decided I could best serve my city by staying on as chief, and not running for mayor. Crime is the number one issue in our city. To combat it, we need less politics, not more. We need fewer divisions and more collaboration. Instead of running for mayor, Mayor Slay urged me to focus on working with him to unite our city around a comprehensive plan to reduce the violence that is so corrosive to our city. This morning I told him I would. I am going to focus all of my time and effort leading the men and women of our police department, and bringing together people from all parts of our city and from all walks of life to redouble our efforts to make all of our neighborhoods safe. As with everyone, there will come a time when it will be time for me to walk away from my job and my service to this department. But, that time is not today. As chief, I took an oath and have an obligation to both lead and stand up for the men and women of our department without distraction or other interests. That is going to be my focus. So, I am ending my campaign for mayor. I want to thank everyone who encouraged me to run and supported my campaign. I am confident that when you hear why I made this decision, you will agree with it.
