McClatchy News Service

Jami Resch, the police chief of Portland, announced her resignation on Monday and asked for Chuck Lovell, an African American lieutenant, to replace her.

“I have listened and our community and you have said show us change,” she said in a tweet. “It starts with trust. This change in leadership comes from my heart.”

The announcement from comes amid mounting criticism over Resch’s handling of protests and unrest that shook Oregon’s largest city as part of a nationwide movement sparked by the death of George Floyd.

Resch was just six months into the job as top cop before making Monday’s surprise announcement.

“I felt like if I in some small way could be the start for some community healing, it was my duty to do that,” Lovell said during a press conference, according to The Oregonian newspaper.

Police departments across the country have faced upheaval as Floyd’s death has forced a reckoning over police brutality towards African Americans.