San Francisco Assistant Chief Toney Chaplin named Hayward’s 15th Chief of Police

HAYWARD, Calif., July 23, 2019—Toney Chaplin, the San Francisco assistant chief of police, has been selected to lead the Hayward Police Department, City Manager Kelly McAdoo announced today.

“It is with great enthusiasm and excitement that I appoint Toney Chaplin as the next leader of our distinguished Hayward Police Department and to become its 15^th chief of police," McAdoo said.

A veteran San Francisco cop and Hayward resident, Chaplin was chosen to lead HPD’s approximately 200-officer force following a nationwide search and competitive evaluation process that included interviews with panels of community members, other California chiefs of police, HPD officers, other personnel and command staff, and members of the City Manager’s executive team.

“I’m humbled and honored to be chosen, and I’m grateful for all that my San Francisco colleagues have done to help prepare me,” Chaplin said.

Chaplin expressed enthusiasm for leading a department that has earned and maintained CALEA (Commission on the Accreditation of Law Enforcement Agencies) accreditation “with distinction,”  noting that only two percent of departments nationwide achieve this accreditation, which involves review of all of the department’s policies, procedure and training to make sure they reflect the best practices in the industry.

Chaplin, who succeeds retired Hayward Police Chief Mark Koller, will assume command on Tuesday, Sept. 3.  He will bring to the job a leadership style described as “inclusive, optimistic and focused on moving the profession forward into the 21^st century of policing.”

In San Francisco, Chaplin held every departmental rank—from patrol officer to interim chief of police. 

As assistant chief, he led the department’s Operations Division, which is made up of four bureaus with approximately 2,000 officers of all ranks, including four deputy chiefs.

As a deputy chief, Chaplin formed SFPD’s new Bureau of Professional Standards and Principled Policing, and served as direct liaison to and manager of the U.S. Department of Justice Collaborative Reform Initiative for Technical Assistance.

Throughout his career, he worked regularly and enthusiastically with community-based organizations, resident groups and faith leaders, and distinguished himself as a mentor and developer of others for leadership, promotion and career advancement.

As a commander, Chaplin led the SFPD Investigation Bureau, which includes homicide, the Gang Task force, Special Victims Unit, all district station investigative teams and the elite Special Investigations Division.

As a lieutenant, he oversaw the homicide detail, expanded the Cold Case Unit and increased the diversity of the unit to better serve San Francisco’s diverse population.  As a lieutenant and sergeant, Chaplin supervised and managed a complement of junior-ranking police officers and sergeants, managing all aspects of police operations during supervisory/management shifts.

He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Organizational Leadership from Colorado State University, and has served as an SFPD Academy instructor and a guest instructor at City College of San Francisco.  He is a recipient of the Silver Medal of Valor, SFPD’s second highest award.

Chaplin and his wife, Tiffaney, and their daughter have resided in Hayward since 2006.

“Hayward has been a great city to live in, and I fully expect this will be my last job in policing,” he said. “Hayward has an outstanding police department.  With my experience, particularly around community policing, I’m confident we can increase transparency with those we serve, identify service enhancements that will be of value to the community, and make the HPD one of the very best departments in the country.”