Detroit Police Chief James Craig receives 2-year contract extension

DETROIT – Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, Police Chief James Craig and police union representatives announced Thursday at DPD headquarters that Craig's contract has been extended until June 30, 2017.

Craig will not get a pay raise or extra benefits during this extension. Duggan said the deal includes a stipulation that if Craig doesn't give the Mayor at least 12 months written notice of his leaving, the contract is automatically extended through the next year.

Craig also agreed to pay back all the remaining money on his contract if he leaves before it expires.

Craig was hired to the chief position in May of 2013, a hiring decision made by then-emergency manager Kevyn Orr. Craig was hired to a salary of $225,000 a year. He came from Cincinnati where he was chief since 2011.

Craig is a native of Detroit, where he started his police career. He was laid off from the Detroit Police Department in 1981 and moved to the Los Angeles Police Department, where his 28 years of experience included serving during the 1992 riots that began after four officers were acquitted of nearly all charges in the videotaped beating of Rodney King. He also was chief of police in Portland, Maine.