| Post: | Chief |
| Body: | the Toronto Police Service |
| Website: | tps.ca/chief |
| Inaugural: | William Higgins |
| Formation: | 1834 |
| Reports To: | Toronto Police Services Board |
| Appointer: | Toronto Police Services Board |
| Department: | Toronto Police Service |
| Incumbent: | Myron Demkiw |
| Incumbentsince: | December 19, 2022 |
| Insignia: | Seal of the Toronto Police Service.svg |
| Insigniasize: | 70px |
| Flag: | Toronto Police - Chief of Police.png |
| Flagcaption: | Toronto Police Service emblem (top) and Chief of Police rank slip (bottom) |
| Flagsize: | 60px |
| Constituting Instrument: | Police Services Act (R.S.O. 1990, c. P.15) |
The chief of the Toronto Police Service is the professional head of the Toronto Police Service (TPS). Under the direction of the Toronto Police Services Board, the chief is responsible for the management and administration of the police service's operations.
Myron Demkiw is the current chief of police, having assumed office on December 19, 2022.[1]
Section 41 of the Police Services Act legally defines the role of police chiefs in Ontario. Under this law, the chief is responsible for administering the police force and overseeing its operation in accordance with the objectives, priorities and policies established by the board, ensuring that members of the police force carry out their duties in accordance with the Police Services Act in a manner that reflects the needs of the community, maintaining discipline in the police force, ensuring that the police force provides community-oriented police services, and administering the complaints system.[2] [3]
The Toronto Police Services Board recruits and dismisses the chief. Day-to-day policing and operational decisions of the Toronto Police Service are made by the chief, but must be consistent with the policies and objectives set by the Toronto Police Services Board.[4]
The position was known as "high constable" when the Toronto Police Department was formed[5] until 1859 and then as "chief constable" until 1957, when the Toronto Police Department was amalgamated with 12 other Toronto-area forces to form the Metropolitan Toronto Police.[6]
| Toronto Police Department (1834–1956) | High Constable | William Higgins | 1834 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Kingsmill | 1835 | ||||
| James Stitt | 1836 | ||||
| George Kingsmill | 1837–1846 | ||||
| George Allen | 1847–1852 | ||||
| Samuel Sherwood | 1852–1858 | ||||
| Chief Constable | William Stratton Prince | 1859–1873 | |||
| Frank C. Draper | 1874–1886 | ||||
| H. J. Grasett | 1886–1920 | Longest serving chief | |||
| Samuel Dickson | 1920–1928 | ||||
| Dennis Draper | 1928–1946 | ||||
| John Chisholm | 1946–1956 | ||||
| Metropolitan Toronto Police (1957–1998) | Chief of Police | John Chisholm | 1957–1958 | ||
| James Page Mackey | 1958–1970 | [8] | |||
| Harold Adamson | 1970–1980 | [9] | |||
| Jack Ackroyd | 1980–1984 | [10] | |||
| Jack Marks | 1984–1989 | [11] | |||
| William McCormack | 1989–1995 | [12] | |||
| Toronto Police Service (1998–present) | David Boothby | 1995–2000 | Last chief of the Metro Police; first chief of the Toronto Police Service | [13] | |
| Julian Fantino | 2000–2005 | [14] | |||
| Mike Boyd | 2005 | Interim | [15] | ||
| Bill Blair | 2005–2015 | [16] | |||
| Mark Saunders | 2015–2020 | [17] | |||
| James Ramer | 2020–2022 | Interim | [18] | ||
| Myron Demkiw | 2022–present | [19] |