Winnipeg’s police chiefs

A brief look at the 16 police chiefs who have served the city of Winnipeg.

John S. Ingram

1874-1875

Short tenure of Winnipeg's first police chief came to an inglorious end when he was forced to resign after being caught frequenting a brothel.

David. B. Murray

1875-1887

Drew up department's first rules and regulations while overseeing development and expansion in manpower.

John C. McRae

1887-1911

Under his watch, rapidly growing police force moved into a new station on Rupert Avenue and began working out of substations elsewhere in the city.

Donald MacPherson

1911-1919

Faced manpower reductions due to First World War and was eventually dismissed after most members of the newly unionized force refused to sign loyalty pledges during Winnipeg General Strike.

Chris H. Newton

1919-1934

Rebuilt department morale after the strike, but was dismissed during the Great Depression after being charged with assault by another motorist following a traffic accident.

George Smith

1934-1947

Saw the force out of the Depression and through the Second World War; was named to the Order of the British Empire for his service.

Charles McIver

1947-1953

Two biggest challenges were Royal Commission investigating charges of police brutality — in which the department was cleared of wrongdoing — and the flood of 1950.

Robert T. Taft

1953-1965

Saw force grow to more than 400 members; began using Commissionaires for parking enforcement; began hiring police cadets.

George S. Blow

1965-1970

Oversaw move from Rupert Avenue station to the new Public Safety Building and — fittingly, given his surname — the introduction of the breathalyser.

Norman M. Stewart

1970-1981

First chief of the amalgamated City of Winnipeg police, which saw eight separate departments form into a single force, divided into six districts with more than 1,000 staff.

Kenneth Johnston

1981-1984

Promoted from the morality division; short tenure included the conviction of two officers on charges of murder.

Herb B. Stephen

1984-1991

Tenure was marred by public outcry over the 1988 police shooting of J.J. Harper; Aboriginal Justice Inquiry determined excessive force had been used.

Dale Henry

1991-1996

After a long search for a replacement chief, the force went outside its ranks for the first time; a former RMCP officer, Henry worked to bolster the department's image.

David A. Cassels

1996-1998

Another outsider, the former Edmonton deputy chief focused on "community policing" in an effort to bring cops into close contact with particular areas and residents.

Jack Ewatski

1998-2007

On the job for the introduction of photo radar and Tasers; controversies included a pair wrongful-conviction inquiries and an inquest into the murders of two sisters whose 911 calls were repeatedly ignored.

Keith McCaskill

2007-2012

Despite leading the department during a period which saw Winnipeg repeatedly crowned as the murder and violent-crime capital of Canada, McCaskill proved a popular and media-savvy chief; added a helicopter to the police's crime-fighting arsenal.

— Source: Jack Templeman, History of the Winnipeg Police Service; Winnipeg Sun archives