As promised in last year's election, Surrey has hired a director of public safety strategies in hopes of coalescing crime fighting personnel and strategies in this city.
Surrey has hired Dr. Terry Waterhouse, the current Chief Safety Officer at Simon Fraser University.
Waterhouse will work with the OIC of the RCMP, fire chief, bylaws and external agencies with an eye to optimize all crime-fighting resources available to Surrey.
Waterhouse has worked in his capacity at SFU since 2011 and before that was a faculty member of criminology and Criminal Justice Director for safe schools and communities at the University of the Fraser Valley.
From 1986 to 1996, he was a constable with the Vancouver Police Department.
Much of his work after that was preventing kids from getting involved in crime.
He also worked with the United Nations in enhancing service provision for the Sudan Prison Service, and also worked with the police service in Kosovo and helped develop juvenile justice in Ethiopia.
Mayor Linda Hepner said she is pleased to have secured Waterhouse for the job.
“The diverse and lengthy experience that Dr. Waterhouse brings as the new Director Public Safety Strategies for Surrey is unparalleled,” Hepner said. “From his global experience with the most vulnerable, at-risk youth to his knowledge and expertise in the integration of public safety best practices, Dr. Waterhouse’s technical skills, academic background and leadership abilities will serve him well in this critical role for the City.”
Waterhouse will begin his new role effective Dec. 7.