After months-long delay, Gene Bowers named Winnipeg's new police chief

Gene Bowers, a deputy chief with the Winnipeg Police Service, has been named the police force's new chief, taking over from Danny Smyth, who stepped down from the role last September.

Bowers, who has been with the police service for 36 years, will begin his new role on Monday, the city said Friday — more than two months after the chair of the city's police board said a candidate had been selected.

"Being selected as chief of police is not something you achieve on your own — I have been supported and lifted up by those around me," Bowers said during a meeting of the Winnipeg Police Board.

Bowers said he intends to focus on tackling violent crime, building relationships in the community and boosting officer morale during his tenure as chief.

The announcement was long-awaited.

Last December, St. Norbert-Seine River Coun. Markus Chambers, who chairs the Winnipeg Police Board, said a candidate had been chosen and would be announced before the end of 2024.

In January, he said the city had sought legal advice about how to proceed with the process of hiring the new chief, saying the board had received new information in December.

"We took that time to make sure that, you know, our decision was the correct decision. And sure enough, it was," Chambers told reporters.

No further explanation was given on Friday for the delay, but Chambers stressed the board had no concerns about the board's chosen candidate.

"I don't want to dwell on that," Chambers said.

"The fact is that we have a candidate here that is an excellent candidate, that is willing to work very collaboratively with the board and with community stakeholders to make that transformational change that the board is looking for."

Mayor Scott Gillingham, who also serves on the police board, also expressed confidence in the new chief.

"I'm asking all of Winnipeg to rally around and support our new chief. Our council will do that. The police service will do that. And let's work in partnership and make sure that … Chief Bowers is successful."

Bowers was asked whether he was frustrated by the delay.

"I don't know if it's frustration," he told reporters.

"There's a process and I have to respect the process. Was it easy? No, but I respected the process. And you know, today the results of the process did what it was supposed to do. And I'm here today as the new chief, and I'm excited to move ahead."

Bowers says one of his priorities is dealing with violent crime.

A study by the Fraser Institute published last month found Winnipeg had the highest violent crime rate of any city in Canada, with 675 incidents per 100,000 people, more than double the national average.