| Chief Constable & Executive Staff |
Chief Constable Peter Lepine
Raised in the province of Quebec, Chief Constable Lepine joined the West Vancouver Police Department in September of 2009, after a 30 year career as a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. During the first 10 years of his policing career, he served at Surrey Detachment, working in a number of roles including Patrol, School Liaison, Special Projects and the Economic Crime Unit. After returning to the RCMP Training Academy, where he served for three years within the firearms training unit, Chief Lepine returned to British Columbia; serving as a Road Supervisor in Port Alberni, Parksville and again, in Surrey.
In 2000, Chief Lepine was commissioned to the rank of Inspector and transferred to Nova Scotia where he led the Operational Support Division for the Atlantic Region Informatics Program and, for three years, led the Operations Division of Halifax Detachment. In 2005, Chief Lepine once again returned to BC to command the RCMP’s Coquitlam Detachment where he served until taking up his duties as Chief Constable of the WVPD.
Chief Constable Lepine holds a Certificate in Law & Security Administration and a Certificate in Business Administration. He was awarded a Distinguished Long Service Medal and Bronze Clasp by the RCMP, and the Queen’s Jubilee Medal in recognition for his dedication toward domestic violence intervention and his work within a community policing environment. He is married to Lori, who serves as a member of the RCMP in Vancouver. He has a daughter who has recently commenced a career within the field of Criminal Justice.
With the exception of five years, Chief Lepine has spent his entire career within the municipal policing environment, which for him is his passion. Chief Lepine is very excited about the challenges and opportunities that come with leading 103 of the finest employees who have also chosen the West Vancouver Police Department their work family.
When not engaged in his policing duties, Chief Lepine enjoys photography and taking his dog Ruger out for a walk. He does not play hockey, nor does he golf, blaming his poor performance in these sports on the fact that he is left-eye dominant, complicated by being right-handed.
Inspector Jim Almas
He began as a Constable on patrol and served as a dog handler for eight years. He then moved on to become a Detective in the Criminal Investigations section, specializing in sexual assault investigations and serving as a Hostage Negotiator.
Inspector Almas then rose to the rank of Sergeant, initially in charge of Community Policing and also serving as the coordinator to schools in teaching substance abuse education. He subsequently became Staff Sergeant in charge of Support Division where he was responsible for recruitment and training, before taking on the role of Staff Sergeant in charge of the Patrol Division. In 2008, he was selected to serve as Inspector in charge of the Support Division, responsible for First Nations initiatives and serving as the 2010 Olympic Liaison for Urban Domain issues.
On February 23, 2009 Jim Almas was appointed Interim Chief Constable.
Inspector Almas is a familiar face within the community due to his duties as one of the department’s chief external liaisons. He has built comfortable relationships with local residents, businesses and community leaders through his active representation at town halls, public forums, and community group presentations.
For the past six years, Inspector Almas has planned and prepared all special events that occur in West Vancouver. From Community Days to the Celebration of Lights, Inspector Almas is well-known as the point person in ensuring the department’s presence to maintain the safety and security of all residents and participants. His years of experience as a hostage negotiator have also given Inspector Almas the skills and knowledge to prevent delicate and tense situations from becoming major incidents, including acts of civil disobedience and public protests.
One of his most important previous roles in the community was as a key member of the West Vancouver and North Shore Emergency Planning committees. Inspector Almas was engaged in conducting research and emergency planning for the WVPD in the event of a man-made or natural disaster. Cooperation with a number of provincial and federal government agencies is vital in the preparation of an emergency infrastructure, and his work has ensured that the WVPD remains in a leadership role within a coordinated response.
Inspector Almas is invigorated by the new direction provided by the recently developed three-year strategic plan and determined to continue the positive transformation of the West Vancouver Police Department. He is also passionate about reaching out locally to cooperate, collaborate and communicate with residents and businesses towards making West Vancouver the safest community in Canada.
Inspector Sheila Sullivan
Inspector Sullivan joined the Vancouver Police Department in April 1990 and at the conclusion of her training at the JIBC Police Academy, was awarded the Chief Constables Award as the best all around recruit in her class. She began her policing career as a uniform Patrol constable and worked in both the downtown district and the southeast district in Vancouver. Thereafter, Inspector Sullivan began what she considers to be her most valuable contribution to policing - teaching legal studies, first as a recruit instructor at the JIBC Police Academy, and then as the Legal Training Officer in-house at the VPD. Inspector Sullivan's next assignment was at the Missing Women Task Force, where she spent 3 ½ years as part of the search warrant team, an investigative team and as the VPD's media spokes person. Upon her promotion to sergeant, Inspector Sullivan transferred to the Patrol Division as a Patrol Sergeant, supervising a team of 12 constables in the southeast district of Vancouver. Later, she became the sergeant in charge of the Research and Policy Unit, where she supervised a team of 6 working on developing policies and researching issues of relevance to policing. Of note, she authored a research paper recommending the use of closed circuit television in the Downtown Entertainment District.
Inspector Sullivan has done extensive research on many legal topics of interest to police and has taught, and continues to teach, police officers in these areas, including search and seizure, with a focus on search warrants, labour relations, workplace harassment prevention and investigation, risk management and civil liability, and professional standards issues, including the B.C. Police Act processes for citizen complaints and discipline.
Other related experiences include:
In her spare time, Inspector Sullivan enjoys hiking, gardening and cooking. Inspector Wayne Giesbrecht Inspector Giesbrecht began his career with the West Vancouver Police in September 1987. After graduating from the JIBC where he received the Oliver Thompson Memorial award for fitness, he worked his way through the ranks serving in various sections including Patrol, Target Team, Traffic, Training-Recruiting, and Criminal Investigation. In September 2006, he continued his commitment to law enforcement with the Victoria Police Department. In September 2008, he returned to the West Vancouver Police and was appointed to the rank of Inspector and given Command of the Operations Division.Inspector Giesbrecht has worked as an instructor, teaching control tactics and investigation and patrol to recruits at the JIBC. In addition, he has taught control tactics to Federal Fisheries, Provincial Conservation, First Nations, and Translink officers, as well as investigative courses to Bylaw, Coast Guard and BC Forestry enforcement officers. Inspector Giesbrecht is married and has two daughters, and he holds a Bachelor of General Studies degree in Justice and Public Safety Leadership from Simon Fraser University. Seconded ExecutiveThe West Vancouver Police Department also has two Inspectors assigned to the Vancouver 2010 Olympics Integrated Security Unit.
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Inspector Jim Almas has 30 years of experience in law enforcement, 28 of which have been as a member of the West Vancouver Police Department (WVPD). Over his extensive career, Inspector Almas has worked his way up through the ranks, giving him a unique and balanced perspective in leading the department.
Inspector Sullivan joined the West Vancouver Police Department on September 20, 2007 as the Inspector in charge of the new Administration Division after serving 17 ½ years with Vancouver Police Department. She was raised on Vancouver Island and obtained both a Bachelors Degree and a Law Degree from the University of Victoria. She moved to Vancouver in 1986 to pursue her law career, and practiced corporate finance and commercial real estate law for 4 years with the law firm of Shrum, Liddle and Hebenton (now known as McCarthy Tetrault).