Peter Sloly

Peter John Michael Sloly (born 5 August 1966) is a Canadian former police officer who served as the chief of police for the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) from 2019 to 2022. Before joining the OPS, Sloly was a member of the Toronto Police Service (TPS) for 27 years, including as a deputy chief of police from 2009 to 2016.

Prior to his police career, Sloly played soccer professionally, and made an appearance for the Canada men's national team in a 1984 friendly against Egypt.

Early, personal life and education Sloly was born in Kingston, Jamaica and moved to Scarborough at the age of ten. He has a wife and two children, a daughter and son. Sloly also earned a Criminal Justice Certificate from the University of Virginia, an Incident Command System Certification from the Justice Institute of British Columbia, the Major City Chief's Police Executive Development Program, University of Toronto's Rotman Police Executive Leadership Program and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy.

Soccer career He is also a former soccer player who earned one cap for the Canadian national side against Egypt in a friendly match on 2 November 1984. He also played with the Canada men's national under-20 soccer team in the 1985 FIFA World Youth Championship. In 1986, he played in the National Soccer League with Toronto Blizzard. In 1987, he played for North York Rockets in the Canadian Soccer League.

In 2011, he was the recipient of the Canadian Soccer Hall of Fame's Brian Budd Award for leadership on and off the field.

Police career Toronto Police Service After retiring as a soccer player, Sloly joined the Toronto Police Service in 1988, where he served for 27 years.

He was named deputy chief for Divisional Policing Command and Operational Support Command on 22 September 2009. At age 43, he was the youngest deputy chief in the history of the Toronto Police Service.

In 2015, he was a candidate to succeed outgoing police chief Bill Blair, but was passed over in favour of Mark Saunders, who was seen as more popular with members of the service. The head of the Toronto Police Association celebrated Sloly's departure. During his time in Toronto, Sloly developed a reputation as a progressive reformer reluctant to use harsher policing tactics.

Ottawa Police Service In August 2019, it was announced that he would become Chief of the Ottawa Police Service, effective 28 October 2019.

A video emerged of an Ottawa police officer pulling over a Black man and accusing him of having expired plates in September 2020, resulting in public criticism of the Ottawa Police Service. The man filmed the encounter, including when he and the officer went over to the licence plate, revealing that it was in fact valid. The man accused the officer of racism, and both the officer and the Ottawa Police Service apologized. In response, Sloly directed every member of the Ottawa police to complete trainings on conscious and unconscious bias, anti-Black racism and racial profiling.

In 2022, the OPS and Sloly faced criticism for their handling of the Canada convoy protest, where thousands of protestors occupied much of downtown Ottawa, resulting in the desecration of monuments, street and business closures, as well as intimidation and harassment of residents.

Sloly resigned on 15 February 2022, following weeks of criticism for his handling of the protests. His OPS contract was due to end in 2024, and he was paid the remainder of contract in full. Sloly has been described as a scapegoat for the situation, by Ottawa Councillor Catherine McKenney, noting various key city staff that did not offer support during the occupation.

Honours Officer of the Order of Merit of the Police Forces Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal