Capitol Police are getting a new chief next month, a veteran officer who has spent almost his entire career there.  

The three-member Capitol Police Board said in a statement Wednesday it picked Assistant Chief Matthew R. Verderosa to lead the agency starting March 20.  

That’s about two months after current chief Kim C. Dine intended to resign after a tumultuous three-year tenure that included a botched response to a high speed car chase toward the Capitol the night of the 2015 State of the Union and incidents where Capitol Police officers left guns inside bathrooms around Capitol Hill, including one that was found by a child.  

This month, the board and its staff conducted interviews with as many as 10 candidates from within the department and outside the agency.  

“The Capitol Police Board is confident Chief Verderosa’s extensive experience and depth of knowledge will lead the department forward in the months and years ahead,” the board said in the statement.  

Chris Ferguson, second vice chairman of the Capitol Police Labor Committee, which often butted heads with Dine, welcomed the news.  

When asked if the union preferred an internal candidate or one from outside the force, Ferguson said, “We just want someone to have a positive effect on the troops.”  

“Hopefully we can move the department forward and that we can have a positive relationship with chief,” Ferguson said.  

Promoted to assistant chief in April 2015, the same month Dine submitted a resignation letter, Verderosa started his career in 1985 with the Supreme Court police before quickly moving to Capitol Police.  

He worked as a beat cop in the uniformed and patrol divisions, and as a detective within the department’s Protective Services Bureau before he was promoted to sergeant in 1992.  

Verderosa has conducted criminal and administrative investigations in the Internal Affairs Division and served in a series of high-level administrative roles, overseeing the Training Services Bureau and the offices of Human Resources and Administration.  

Before becoming assistant chief, Verderosa commanded the department’s Disciplinary Review Task Force on behalf of the Capitol Police’s Executive Team.  

Verderosa was not available for an interview Wednesday.  

Before he leaves, Dine will appear before the Subcommittee on Legislative Branch on March 1 to review the Capitol Police budget as it seeks more money to beef up security and add more officers around the Capitol in fiscal 2017.  

In statements Wednesday, members of congress commended the choice for the next chief while thanking Dine for his service.  

House Minority Whip Steny H. Hoyer, D-Md., said Verderosa was “a leader with exceptional qualifications, highly respected by the men and women of the force as one of their own.”  

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said in a statement Verderosa’s “leadership, expertise, and dedication ensures that we can continue to do our jobs with the knowledge that we are protected by our nation’s finest law enforcement personnel.”  

Reps. Candice S. Miller, R-Mich., and Robert A. Brady, D-Pa., leaders of the House Administration Committee, which oversee Capitol Police operations, said in a joint statement they look forward to collaborating with Verderosa.  

“Since Matt became Assistant Chief last year, the Committee has worked productively with him on a wide range of issues, each with the goal of making sure that the U.S. Capitol Complex is a safe and open environment for members, staff, and visitors,” the statement read.  

Related:

Search is on for New Capitol Police Chief


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