The Plante administration will officially launch its public consultation to establish the “ideal profile” of the next chief of the Montreal Police Service (SPVM), on July 28. The City hopes to have completed the hiring process by the end of 2022.
Posted yesterday at 4:09 p.m.
“This step consists of consulting the stakeholders and the various representatives of the population on the ideal profile that we must seek at the head of the police service. We were inspired for this by what was done in Toronto, ”explained the president of the executive committee, Dominique Ollivier, on Wednesday.
She specifies that the City wishes to hire a person “who will be in tune with the people of Montreal, their aspirations, and who will correspond to their vision of public safety”. This will seek to establish “the qualities, characteristics and leadership traits” of an ideal police chief.
The announcement of a public consultation to choose the next head of the SPVM was first made last April by Mayor Valérie Plante, in the wake of the Montreal Forum for the fight against armed violence.
It is therefore on July 28 that the first public activity will be held. Several sessions will be scheduled until mid-September. Montreal plans in particular to carry out “an opinion survey of 750 citizens”, in addition to holding six discussion groups over the summer, in which residents, young people, police officers, community organizations and merchants will be able to participate.
Once the consultation is complete, “a report will be tabled and made public during a presentation to the Commission de la sécurité publique (CSP) this fall so as to complete the hiring process by the end of 2022. “, finally specify the municipal authorities.
Former police chief Sylvain Caron retired on April 11. He announced his decision last December. The steps taken for his replacement have been put on hold, the time to organize the consultations. In the meantime, Sophie Roy – she has accumulated more than 34 years of experience, having notably been deputy director of criminal investigations – who has been appointed interim director. She is the first woman to hold this position at the SPVM.