Tampa police Chief Lee Bercaw is retiring in August to take a job as an associate professor at the University of South Florida. Bercaw, 54, announced the surprise decision Tuesday in a letter to Mayor Jane Castor and the City Council and at a news conference alongside Castor at police headquarters. He was originally expected to stay on as chief until September 2027, well after Castor’s term ends. “An opportunity opened up, and I couldn’t let this door close,” Bercaw said at the news conference.