Alan Murphy is the interim police chief for Medicine Hat Police Service. (Photo Courtesy Bob Schneider)

By Chris Brown

From Edmonton Police Service

Interim police chief says he’s not just a placeholder

Oct 13, 2022 | 12:19 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – As the Medicine Hat Police Commission continues its search for a police chief a new person has stepped into the role in the interim.

MHPS interim police chief Alan Murphy arrived in our city this week from Edmonton. He says he’ll provide stability to the service and the community for the next two or three months he expects the commission will take to make a permanent hire.

“The business of policing can’t stop in that period and public safety just has to still be maintained. So I’m just here to make sure those things happen,” Murphy says.

“What I’ll also do during my time, I won’t just be a placeholder. I’ll do the things I mentioned but I’ll also speak to all women and men in the organization and see how they’re doing and what they think. And also people in the community so that way when the new chief does get here I can set the table for she or he so they can hit the ground running and won’t have to do those things all on their own at the start.”

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Murphy says he’ll work a lot this weekend, saying he has a lot to learn but already likes what he sees.

“Quickly what I’ve learned here is this organization is in a really good place and it’s really impressive actually,” he says.

Murphy has been with the Edmonton Police Service for 27 years, the past four as a deputy chief, three in community policing and the last one in the corporate service bureau.

He says he’s staying in a house rented for him by the police commission. He plans to stay here most of the time but will go back to Edmonton to see his wife and kids and they’ll come here every now and then.

He was asked by the police commission to come to Medicine Hat to avoid any concerns about a conflict of interest with an internal applicant for the full-time job.

Insp. Joe West had been acting police chief since Mike Worden resigned in May. He was having a consensual sexual relationship with someone outside the police service, which led to allegations of non-workplace misconduct that were brought to the Medicine Hat Police Commission.

The investigation cleared Worden of any wrongdoing but he later decided to step down, citing personal and family reasons.