London police board appoints interim deputy chief
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A 34-year London police veteran will serve as one of the force’s deputy police chiefs until a permanent replacement is found, the city’s police board says.
Det.-Supt. Paul Reynolds has been appointed the interim deputy beginning Jan. 1, when Deputy Chief Stu Betts leaves to become the top cop in Peterborough.
Reynolds, who spent 14 years as a constable, has held various leadership positions in his policing career, including in uniformed division, corporate services, administrative support, professional standards, human resources and, most recently, the criminal investigations division.
“We have full confidence that his wealth of experience from a long career spent at London police service will serve him and the organization very well,” board chair Susan Toth said of Reynolds in a statement.
A father of two adult sons, Reynolds spent years coaching youth hockey and was a longtime board member of the London Jr. Knights.
“While my family and I made a personal decision that I wouldn’t put my name forward for the permanent deputy chief position, I am very honoured to have been asked by the board to fill this role on an interim basis until the search for a new deputy chief is complete,” Reynolds said in a statement.
In addition to searching for a new deputy chief, the police board is also recruiting a replacement for Chief Steve Williams, 56, who is retiring next year after a 31-year policing career.
The seven-member board has hired executive recruitment firm Odgers Berndtson to assist in the hiring of the next chief and deputy chief. The London, U.K.-based company will recruit and evaluate candidates before the board interviews them and ultimately negotiates their contracts.
Betts’ departure leaves London’s other deputy chief, Trish McIntyre, as the internal front-runner for the top job, which has a history of being filled internally. McIntyre, the force’s highest-ranking female officer, previously said she was “seriously considering” applying to become the city’s 21st police chief.
Toth previously said the board is aiming to hire a new chief before Williams retires — May 1 is his last day, though he could be off the job by March because of banked time — but she didn’t rule appointing an interim police chief for a short period.
dcarruthers@postmedia.com
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