IIO Chief Civilian Director to Retire at End of Term
By Contributor
Following a 30-year career as a civilian oversight practitioner, the Chief Civilian Director of the IIO will be retiring at the end of his term in January 2017.
Richard Rosenthal has notified the Attorney General of B.C. that he will not be seeking a re-appointment when his current term expires.
Rosenthal will shift his focus to academic pursuits, also in the field of civilian oversight. The notice is intended to provide the Ministry of Justice sufficient time to start the recruitment for the position and to ensure a seamless transition to the next CCD.
“It has been a great honour for me to work towards the establishment of the IIO in British Columbia,” said Mr. Rosenthal. “Despite the predictable challenges we have faced, I am hopeful that the IIO will serve as a model for civilian oversight for other jurisdictions. It is my goal that by the end of my term, we will have built a strong foundation for the future success of the IIO,” Mr. Rosenthal added.
Background
Richard Rosenthal was appointed B.C.’s first Chief Civilian Director of the Independent Investigations Office on January 9, 2012. He has extensive experience in civilian oversight of law enforcement having served for 15 years as a Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney, where he worked in various assignments, including:
- The central trials division, prosecuting felony violations of the law, including homicides.
- The major fraud division, investigating and prosecuting high-profile financial crimes.
- The special investigation division, where he investigated and prosecuted public officials, judges and police officers.
In 2001, Mr. Rosenthal was hired as Portland’s first director of the independent police review division of the city auditor’s office. In that capacity, he created Portland’s first professional police oversight agency.
In 2005, Mr. Rosenthal was hired to be the city and county of Denver’s first Independent Monitor, with jurisdiction over Denver’s police and sheriff departments. He was responsible for monitoring the investigations of all officer-involved shootings and in-custody deaths that occurred in Denver, as well as all internal criminal and administrative investigations of police misconduct. Mr. Rosenthal helped implement key changes to the Denver police and sheriff departments’ disciplinary processes and created a community-police mediation program.
Mr. Rosenthal has held teaching positions at various universities, including Loyola Law School, Portland State University and the University of Colorado at Denver. He served for five years on the board of directors for the National Association of Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement (NACOLE). He was also a member of the committee used to create the National Guidelines for Police Monitors, published by the Police Assessment Resource Center in 2008.
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