Surrey’s top cop is out — and it’s surprising news to some B.C. policing experts, while others say there were signs that foreshadowed the police chief’s departure.
The Surrey Police Board announced Tuesday morning that Surrey Police Service (SPS) Chief Const. Norm Lipinski had left the service — offering no reason why.
Shortly after, board chair Harley Chappell published his letter of resignation, sharing his shock and disappointment at what he called the board’s firing of the police chief. Chappell said he was not in attendance at the meeting in which the decision was made and was not told the matter was up for debate.
“This isn’t the way things are done,” said Wally Oppal, a former B.C. attorney general who was tasked by the province to lead the transition from the RCMP to the Surrey Police Service.
Oppal told CBC’s The Early Edition that the fact that the police board chair was not present at the meeting that decided on Lipinski’s future indicates a lack of transparency.
He said Lipinski had been doing “an excellent job” in a challenging role and described the situation as a “constructive dismissal.”
“This was a shock, a surprise to every observer of what’s going on in the Surrey Police Service.”
Lipinski has not responded to CBC News’ requests for comment.
Oppal said Lipinski was working in tough conditions: his budget wasn’t what he wanted and he didn’t have enough personnel due to a shortage of qualified police officers.
Lipinski also had to navigate the challenging political waters of a policing transition, as Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke, elected in 2022, fought against the move from the RCMP to a municipal force.
Kash Heed, former solicitor general of B.C. and former chief of police in West Vancouver, said he wasn’t surprised at Lipinski’s departure because of the “complete chaotic mess” resulting from the policing transition.
“It was not an easy transition process with the chief — it wouldn’t have been easy for anyone,” said Heed, who is also a Richmond city councillor.
Heed said the role was and is challenging due to the amount of “noise” around the transition.
Kash Heed, former B.C. solicitor general, said he isn’t surprised by the leadership change in the Surrey Police Service. (Dillon Hodgin/CBC)
He said he thinks it will be more difficult going forward, particularly as the talent pool for police leadership is very limited.
But Heed added that he’s wondering whether the city will be able to bring in the leadership required to stand up to other authorities, from the police board, to the municipal council to the province.
Heed also noted that a shakeup on the police board earlier this year signalled that change was afoot.
“Clearly the change that they wanted to happen was a new person at the helm.”
Elenore Sturko, MLA for Surrey-Cloverdale and a former Surrey RCMP sergeant, said she was surprised to hear of Lipinski’s departure and added the lack of transparency stands out to her.
She told CBC’s On The Coast she has questions about the cost of Lipinski’s severance.
Sturko said one of the reasons the city decided to transition to a municipal force was to have greater transparency and accountability.
“But it doesn’t feel like we have that.”