Novato police chief to exit after less than 1 year

Novato police Chief Beth Johnson is stepping down this week after about 11 months in the post.

Johnson, 47, the first woman to lead the department, started the job in July. Her last day is Thursday.

“After 29 years, I am wrapping up my law enforcement career to focus on my family,” Johnson wrote in a text to the Independent Journal on Tuesday. “I was proud to serve the Novato Police Department and to be a part of the Novato community.”

City Manager Adam McGill, a former Novato police chief, declined to comment on Johnson’s exit.

Mayor Susan Wernick also declined to comment, deferring to the city manager’s office.

Councilwoman Pat Eklund said McGill notified her through by email that Johnson was no longer going to be chief, but the email provided no reason for her departure.

“I was really proud to have a female police chief,” Eklund said. “She was the first. This was definitely a surprise.”

Before heading the Novato Police Department, Johnson was a police captain in Martinez from 2019 to 2022, including five months as acting police chief from December 2021 through April 2022.

Before that, she worked for 21 years with the Walnut Creek Police Department, where she achieved the rank of lieutenant. She also spent four years as a dispatcher with the Arcata Police Department in Humboldt County.

Johnson joined the Novato Police Department at a starting salary of $226,596.

Johnson is Novato’s third police chief in less than four years. Her predecessor, Matthew McCaffrey, retired at the end of 2021 after two years in the position and six years with the department. McCaffrey had replaced McGill, who was chief from 2017 to 2019 before his appointment as city manager.

The Novato Police Department has an annual budget of about $18.9 million and a staff equivalent to 78.5 full-time positions.