Police governance in Saint John ‘falls short’ of contemporary model in Canada: report

A new report says the Saint John police governance board is falling short.

“Police governance in Saint John today falls short of the contemporary police governance model in Canada,” reads one of the opening lines from a new report.

The 50-page report reviews the current police governance model used by the City of Saint John and finds issues to be addressed.

The Saint John Board of Police Commissioners is responsible for providing an adequate police force, and also to advise common council to ensure the city can allocate proper funding for the force’s operations.

In 2025, Mayor Donna Reardon called a review of the current governance model under the commission to better assess how policing in the city is governed and if changes were needed.

Reardon’s call came after a council meeting in September 2025, when Coun. Gerry Lowe presented a motion to see the police commission dissolved entirely. The motion detailed how the Saint John Police Force would become a city department, with the chief reporting directly to the city’s CAO.

Governedge took on the review on behalf of council, with work beginning on January 15.

“The people of Saint John deserve consistently high-quality policing that is aligned with their needs, values and expectations – even as they change over time,” says Governedge Inc. Principal Fred Kaustinen. “Our review presents a police governance model that will ensure that standard, by design, while optimizing community return-on-investment.”

The review was compiled over the course of three and a half months. Around 30 people, including all city council members, police commissioners, senior police management, senior city staff and police association representatives were interviewed as part of the report.

The report also included reviews of other police governance models in Canada, a study of similar police jurisdictions and their models, an analysis of council options, and recommendations to implement changes.

The review will be presented to City Council on Tuesday.

Report Findings

While Governedge found interviewees had differing opinions on the current situation and how the police board got to its current state, they generally agreed effective police governance needs:

• a clear understanding of the community’s policing needs, values and expectations as they evolve
• well-defined roles and relationships among stakeholders
• cooperation and trust among stakeholders
• unbiased, transparent evidence-informed decisions
• a high degree of transparency and accountability

For a number of reasons, Governedge found the police governance model in Saint John as it currently stands falls short of the models seen across Canada. The model was first introduced in 1985.

According to the report, the current police governance model in Saint John “focusses primarily on the financial and labour aspects of adequate policing, leaving police capacity and operational aspects to the Chief of Police to handle.”

This in turn results in a heavy reliance on the chief to be the link to the community, assess community needs, direct the force, and manage labour relations among other issues.

The reason behind the model’s current structure is pointed at various government guidelines and standards, as well as a lack of directive from council on what the board of commissioners is expected to accomplish.

The report also pointed to a lack of police governance training for board members, no police-governance or communications adviser on staff, and an overall joint failure from the commission, police leadership, and police association to develop an “enduring healthy, productive relationship, not have they asked for assistance to facilitate this development.”

The Saint John Police have been in the news for the wrong reasons in recent months, highlighted by allegations made against Chief Robert Bruce by multiple Saint John police members of harassment and creating a toxic work environment.

“All of these conditions must be addressed, regardless of which model of police governance Council selects for Saint John,” reads the report. “Dissolving the Police Commission will not address these root causes.”

Report Recommendations

The report says police governing authorities exist for one reason: to provide adequate and effective policing in the community.

Some recommendations to see the Board of Police Commissioners achieve this entail regular assessment of the community’s needs, values, and policing expectations. It also outlines providing police leaders, policing-related policy direction, strategic plan, poling assistance agreements, and sufficient resources (budget and labour relations alignment) to enable adequate and effective policing.

Verifying adequate and effective policing is being provided, adjusting as needed, and transparently and fulsomely reporting findings and actions to stakeholders and the overall public is also noted.

Governedge recommends the city should keep with the police governance model in place, but it will need a number of upgrades to bring it to modern standards.

Some of those measures include unbiased and evidence-based decisions, alignment of city and police strategic plans, and a high degree of transparency and accountability among others.

But those are just what the model should feature, according to the report. In order for a successful police governance model to be implemented in the city, the city must “prepare a mandate for the Commission articulating it’s expectations.”

That includes measures related to:

• council’s definition of adequate policing
• roles and duties of the commission
• mandatory commissioner training
• a synchronized city and police strategic planning process
• regular reporting to council on public safety and policing matters

“Regardless of the police governance model selected by Council, full implementation will take three to five years and require an investment in training and support,” the report reads.

An April 27 Committee of the Whole meeting in Saint John recommended the city adopts the suggestions made in the report, and direct the CAO to develop a plan to implement the recommendations for council approval.

Analyst Thoughts

Chris Lewis is a public safety analyst for CTV and is also the former commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police.

He says the review clearly shows the police governance model in Saint John is in need of an upgrade and is “behind the times” when compared to the rest of the country.

“It’s been out of date comparatively,” Lewis says when look at other police governance models in the country. “For example, the police chief being a member of the governance model, which in any other province or city that I’ve seen the police chief reports to the board, not be a member of the board that he or she reports to.”

Lewis also points to the importance of policing officials in Saint John to resolve any issues. He notes how the review lays out how the police union, police chief, and board are not in sync.

“There are issues there that need to be straightened out,” Lewis says. “I’m not saying who’s right or what’s wrong, but without them being in sync is the police service providing adequate and effective service to the community? And is the board providing adequate and effective governance to the police service?”

He also fights back against the report’s timeline of completion recommended over the next three to five years.

While he admits he doesn’t know all the innerworkings of the current governance model, Lewis says the goal should be to get things straighten out and in place over the next six months to a year.

“In the interest of the community they all serve, should it not be done as quickly as possible and all hands on deck to make it happen without impacting the day-to-day operations of the police service and those needs that the community has to have on an immediate basis.”

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