Municipal police governance in Canada: An examination of the relationship between board structure and police independence

Municipal police boards in Canada serve an important function as they strive to mediate competing but compatible notions of police accountability and police independence; doctrines essential to a liberal democracy. There is considerable variation in the structure of Canadian police boards and this major paper examines their relationship with police independence. Through an empirical survey of Canadian municipal police chiefs that report to a police board, this pan-Canadian study is the first of its kind in more than 20 years. The findings refuted any significant relationship between police board structure and police independence, and offered a generally positive outlook on the current state of police governance in Canada. However, the results also suggested a persistence of political interference and pressure in policing revealing serious blind spots in police governance. The research findings presented in this major paper were contextualized through a comprehensive review of relevant literature and offer a timely contribution to the paucity of knowledge surrounding police governance in Canada today.