It is the honor of my career to serve as the 114th president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police. As I begin this year, I do so knowing that we share a common vision for the future of our profession.
We believe in the mandate of our calling: to protect the vulnerable and support the courageous officers serving on the front lines every day. We do not accept that policing is fundamentally broken, devoid of public trust, nor do we believe it has reached its full potential.
Our commitment is clear. We are stronger together, and we must leverage our collective influence to promote human rights and provide the resources, policies, training, and guidance our public servants need. We will use our power to convene, advance research-validated policies, and engage in the legislative process. We will also collaborate with chiefs across the globe because criminal actors exploit gaps in law and professional cooperation. Make no mistake: our adversaries are very good at what they do.
Two Nations, One Purpose
In 1893, police chiefs from the United States and Canada came together in Chicago, Illinois, and asked a simple question: What if we did not have to face our hardest problems alone?
They founded what was then called the National Association of Chiefs of Police of the United States and Canada. From the beginning, leaders from two nations stood shoulder to shoulder to solve shared problems.
They understood something that remains true today: Crime does not respect political boundaries. If criminal enterprises can cross borders, then police cooperation, intelligence, and investigations must do the same.
From its first meeting, this association embraced the powerful premise that transnational crime requires transnational policing relationships.
More than 130 years later, the IACP remains resolute in this commitment.
Every nation represented in the IACP strengthens this association and is essential to our shared mission.
Today, members from across the world bring different experiences and a common commitment to advancing policing. In the year ahead, I want to deepen our global partnerships so we can share what works, learn from one another, and stand together against threats no single agency or nation can confront alone.
