Police-Encounters-With-People-In-Crisis

Chapter 13. Implementation
I. Introduction
1. This Review represents only one phase—the shortest and least demanding
phase—in the process of focused self-improvement initiated by the Toronto Police
Service in August 2013 relating to police encounters with people in crisis. The Review
has identified and recommended improvements in a number of areas. The
recommendations are simply a foundation.
2. While the creation of this Review was itself a watershed moment for the TPS, the
greatest challenge for the TPS will be implementation. For this Review to be truly
meaningful, implementation is essential. Too often reports such as this one are prepared
at great effort and expense, only to lay dormant, waiting in vain for someone to put the
recommendations into practice. It is for this reason that I have prepared this last set of
recommendations—arguably the most important recommendations—dealing with
implementation.
3. In recommending implementation, I am aware of the inherent limitations of my
own perspective on the issues addressed in this Report. I do not suggest that every
recommendation must be implemented in precisely the manner in which I have
articulated it, or even at all if there are good reasons for not doing so, in order for the
TPS to have met the challenge of implementation. As I have noted throughout the
Report, there are many areas where the specialized expertise of the TPS or other
stakeholders must be brought to bear in order to determine how best to address a
particular issue. The same is true at the implementation stage. As explained below, part
of the process of implementation involves bringing a multi-disciplinary perspective to
the issues to evaluate how each recommendation can and will be implemented.
4. Although the challenges of implementation are complex, it would be a mistake to
assume that improvement is not achievable. The TPS has seen change and progress in
many forms over the past decades, and there is no question in my mind, based on my
many interviews with TPS members and others, that the members of the TPS genuinely
do wish to do their best and to serve the citizens of Toronto as well as they possibly can.
Continuous self-improvement is part of doing one’s best.
5. In many respects, the TPS is already a leader among police organizations, and I
encourage the Service to embrace this leadership role in the area of police encounters
with people in crisis. Being a leader requires determination and initiative, but it will pay
dividends not only for the TPS and the people it serves, but also for police across the
country and in other jurisdictions who can learn and be inspired.
II. Requirements for Implementation
6. In my view, the following eight elements are required in order for
implementation of the recommendations in this Report to be effective.
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