Cambridge Police Department commissioner Christine Elow has announced her retirement after 30 years with the city, a spokesperson for the city said Thursday. Her last day is Friday.
The change was planned only within the past few weeks, spokesperson Jeremy Warnick said. No formal ceremony for her retirement is planned, but one may be held based on her wishes, he said.
Superintendent of operations Pauline Wells is now acting commissioner, overseeing a department of around 290 sworn officers and 50 civilian personnel most recently budgeted at $56 million.
Elow was sworn in as commissioner in January 2022 after serving as acting police commissioner dating back to the previous August, replacing Branville G. Bard Jr.
She is a Cambridge native and Navy veteran who joined Cambridge police in 1995. She rose through the ranks, serving in the Patrol Division and overseeing the Professional Standards Unit before becoming deputy superintendent for day patrols and community services. In 2017, she was appointed superintendent of operations – Wells’ current position – and became the highest-ranking female officer in the department’s history. A promotion in 2019 brought her into an oversight role for departments such as Criminal Investigations, Administrative Services and Family and Social Justice.
“My entire career has been dedicated to serving the Cambridge community. I grew up in Cambridge and love working in this city,” Elow said at the time.
During her four years as commissioner, Elow guided the department through an important period of transformation, the city said, and under her leadership the department strengthened its commitment to transparency, procedural justice and community driven public safety.
Key milestones during her time as commissioner included advancing alternative public safety models, including helping with the launch of the Community Safety Department and implementing a co-response model with licensed clinicians; implementing a body-worn camera program; and as launching a Procedural Justice Dashboard intended to increase transparency and build trust.
Wells was born in Brighton but raised in North Cambridge and is a graduate of North Cambridge Catholic. She joined the Police Department in 1993. Before becoming superintendent of operations, she was commanding officer for Criminal Investigations and Administration Services. Over her career, she has served in various units within the department and been actively involved in the community, the city said. She has a starring role every City Council inauguration singing, and is a singer outside of her professional role as well. “Her musical career came by accident,” her online bio says, after joining a traditional sing-song one night at a local pub “while on vacation in Ireland in 2000.”
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