What's behind the long recruitment process for Toronto's new police chief

After two years without a permanent chief, last week the Toronto Police Service selected the city's new top cop.

The lengthy timeline that led to the appointment of Myron Demkiw, a 32-year-veteran of the service, has some experts and critics asking why it took so long to select a qualified candidate who was within the ranks of the service all along.

Jim Hart, the chair of the Toronto Police Services Board, said the board intentionally set out to hold the most extensive public consultations for a chief selection process that it has ever organized. Coupled with what it felt was "solid leadership" from James Ramer, the interim chief, the board felt it could give the process more time to play out, he said.

In the end, the service posted the chief's job in May 2022, nearly two full years after former chief Mark Saunders announced his retirement.

"We would have put it out much sooner if Chief Ramer didn't do such a fantastic job, quite frankly," Hart said.

"There was a lot of change going on in the organization, the Missing and Missed report, there was police reform, and Chief Ramer was leading all of that. So we thought to bring somebody brand new into the organization in the midst of that would be really bad timing." 

In all, the service spent $150,000 on a community consultation and report from Environics Research and hired executive search firm Boyden to reach out to both local and International candidates.

Julius Haag, a sociology professor at the University of Toronto who studies policing, questioned what the lengthy consultation and recruitment process produced in terms of value for dollars.

"It's surprising that it did take so long to identify and select an internal candidate," he told CBC Toronto.

"And certainly, when the consultancy report comes back from Boyden, I think many people will be interested in the findings and what contributed to that process." 

Haag said Demkiw faces a number of challenges if he wants to make good on pledges of reform. He will also face skepticism as a white male leader tasked with addressing discriminatory practices within the service.

"People will ask questions about whether the chief-designate is the person to try and rebuild some fractured relationships with many racialized communities here in Toronto," Haag said.

Demkiw was not available for an interview with CBC Toronto, but is expected to speak publicly about plans for his three-year term when he officially takes over the role on Dec. 19.

John Sewell, a former Toronto mayor and a long-time critic of policing in the city, said the service has a history of hiring internal candidates for the top job, and called this recruitment process a "missed opportunity."