{"id":1420,"date":"2026-06-11T18:35:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T18:35:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420"},"modified":"2026-06-11T18:35:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T18:35:13","slug":"1-kept-settlement-with-cmpd-chiefs-husband-out-of-charlotte-councils-hands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420","title":{"rendered":"$1 kept settlement with CMPD chief\u2019s husband out of Charlotte council\u2019s hands"},"content":{"rendered":"

A state investigation found that the city of Charlotte\u2019s settlement with Lance Patterson<\/a> \u2014 paid days before his wife became police chief \u2014 circumvented city council approval by one dollar.<\/p>\n

Read more Kayaker falls into NC mountain lake and vanishes. A body is found, searchers say<\/a><\/p>\n

Patterson, a former Charlotte Fire Department battalion chief, had a pending, seven-year-old lawsuit alleging racial discrimination against the city until the week before his wife, Estella Patterson, became chief of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department in October. N.C. State Auditor Dave Boliek on Thursday released his findings<\/a> and said his investigation was \u201cprompted by media coverage and public inquiries about the timing and approval of this settlement.\u201d<\/p>\n

Boliek said his office did not find any issues \u201cwith respect to transparency or the funding sources or approval process of the Patterson settlement.\u201d He noted, though, that the $99,999 settlement was a dollar short of needing council approval. Per city rules, any settlement less than $100,000 can be approved by City Manager Marcus Jones<\/a>. Anything more must go to council.<\/p>\n

The report also noted that the payment was divvied into a $59,999 sum for Patterson\u2019s attorneys and $40,000 for Patterson.<\/p>\n

The Charlotte Observer previously reported the city once offered to pay Lance Patterson $180,000<\/a> if he dismissed his case, and he accepted. But the case continued in federal and appellate courts when there was a disagreement about those calculations.<\/p>\n

In his Thursday report, Boliek said the city should publish all the settlement-related information it can in a timely manner. That\u2019s something the city has struggled<\/a> to do.<\/p>\n

Read more Panthers\u2019 Xavier Legette: \u2018I can\u2019t have another year like I did last year\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

An Observer investigation last month found that the city spent more than $1 million in mostly taxpayer funds<\/a> fighting and eventually settling with Patterson and other Black firefighters who accused the department of racial discrimination, retaliation and snubbed promotions.<\/p>\n

To report the city\u2019s spending, the Observer made a public records request for invoices it paid to law firms. City officials initially failed to provide those records, instead giving only a tally of dollar amounts. It later sent 80 bills after the Observer\u2019s attorney, Benjamin Leighton, sent a letter arguing the invoices are public documents.<\/p>\n

Charlotte\u2019s secret settlement with former Police Chief Johnny Jennings<\/a> in May 2025 prompted another review from Boliek. In Jennings\u2019 case, the council approved a $305,000 settlement to squash a potential lawsuit about threatening texts from a former council member, WFAE reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The city went weeks without disclosing the settlement.<\/p>\n

After Boliek\u2019s investigation, the city promised to release information about its settlements<\/a> \u201cwithin a reasonable time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Beloved BBQ joint closes restaurant after 10 years. Here\u2019s where its headed next<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A state auditor found no wrongdoing after reviewing Charlotte\u2019s settlement with Lance Patterson but noted the deal skirted council approval by one dollar.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":381,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1420","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-read-todays-edition"],"yoast_head":"\n$1 kept settlement with CMPD chief\u2019s husband out of Charlotte council\u2019s hands - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"$1 kept settlement with CMPD chief\u2019s husband out of Charlotte council\u2019s hands - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A state auditor found no wrongdoing after reviewing Charlotte\u2019s settlement with Lance Patterson but noted the deal skirted council approval by one dollar.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"\u0421harlotte Relocation Guide\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-11T18:35:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93\"},\"headline\":\"$1 kept settlement with CMPD chief\u2019s husband out of Charlotte council\u2019s hands\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-11T18:35:13+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420\"},\"wordCount\":459,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/85743fbca796c6c27619799dcefc52e4.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Read today's Edition\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420\",\"name\":\"$1 kept settlement with CMPD chief\u2019s husband out of Charlotte council\u2019s hands - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/85743fbca796c6c27619799dcefc52e4.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-11T18:35:13+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/85743fbca796c6c27619799dcefc52e4.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/85743fbca796c6c27619799dcefc52e4.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":674},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=1420#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"$1 kept settlement with CMPD chief\u2019s husband out of Charlotte council\u2019s hands\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"\u0421harlotte Relocation Guide\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"$1 kept settlement with CMPD chief\u2019s husband out of Charlotte council\u2019s hands - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"$1 kept settlement with CMPD chief\u2019s husband out of Charlotte council\u2019s hands - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide","og_description":"A state auditor found no wrongdoing after reviewing Charlotte\u2019s settlement with Lance Patterson but noted the deal skirted council approval by one dollar.","og_url":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420","og_site_name":"\u0421harlotte Relocation Guide","article_published_time":"2026-06-11T18:35:13+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/#\/schema\/person\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93"},"headline":"$1 kept settlement with CMPD chief\u2019s husband out of Charlotte council\u2019s hands","datePublished":"2026-06-11T18:35:13+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420"},"wordCount":459,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/85743fbca796c6c27619799dcefc52e4.jpg","articleSection":["Read today's Edition"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420","url":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420","name":"$1 kept settlement with CMPD chief\u2019s husband out of Charlotte council\u2019s hands - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/85743fbca796c6c27619799dcefc52e4.jpg","datePublished":"2026-06-11T18:35:13+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/#\/schema\/person\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/85743fbca796c6c27619799dcefc52e4.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/85743fbca796c6c27619799dcefc52e4.jpg","width":1200,"height":674},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1420#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"$1 kept settlement with CMPD chief\u2019s husband out of Charlotte council\u2019s hands"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/","name":"\u0421harlotte Relocation Guide","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/#\/schema\/person\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com"],"url":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1420","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1420"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1420\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/381"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1420"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1420"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1420"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}