Kathleen M. O’Toole recently completed a six-year term as Chief Inspector of the Garda Síochána Inspectorate, an oversight body responsible for bringing reform, best practice and accountability to the Irish national police service. While in law school in 1979, Kathleen began her career as a patrol officer in the Boston Police Department and quickly rose through the ranks of local and state policing in Massachusetts. During her police career, Kathleen was assigned to numerous patrol, investigative, undercover, supervisory and management positions. Prior to her appointment to the Irish position, she served as Boston Police Commissioner and as Massachusetts Secretary of Public Safety. Kathleen has worked on many high-profile projects. She served as a consultant to the United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division on one of the first police profiling cases. She was a member of the Independent Commission on Policing in Northern Ireland (The Patten Commission). The Commission created a new framework for policing and security as part of the Peace Process. She chaired the Boston Fire Department Review Commission. She was also a member of a panel that created recommendations for reforming the Northern Ireland Prison Service. Currently, she is a member of the Independent Commission on Policing in England and Wales. She is recognized internationally for her principled leadership and reform strategies. Kathleen has been successful in the private sector as well. In 1999, she founded O’Toole Associates LLC, an international consulting firm with offices in Dublin, Ireland and Boston, Massachusetts. The firm provides a wide range of services to government and industry clients. Kathleen earned a BA from Boston College, a JD from New England School of Law and was admitted to the bar as a practicing attorney in 1982. She is now enrolled in the PhD program at the Business School of Trinity College, Dublin. She lectures regularly at many colleges and universities. She is a member of the Board of Boston College Ireland and a Life Trustee at the University of Limerick. She is also a member of the Police Executive Research Forum and a life member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.
