Background
Chu grew up in East Vancouver, the oldest son of four children of immigrants from Shanghai.
朱小荪, 朱小蓀
Chu grew up in East Vancouver, the oldest son of four children of immigrants from Shanghai.
He graduated from Sir Charles Tupper Secondary School, where he played rugby, in 1978. Joining the police department a year after his high-school graduation, he continued his education at the same time, going on to earn a Bachelor of Business Administration from Simon Fraser University, and an Master of Business Administration from the University of British Columbia.
On June 21, 2007, Jim Chu was named as the successor of Chief Constable Jamie Graham, who retired in August. Chu is the first non-white chief constable in Vancouver. Chu"s contract with the Vancouver Police Board is expected to run until August 2017.
On January 23, 2015 it was announced that Chu would take retirement "in the spring" after a 36-year career with Vancouver Police.
Chu officially retired on May 6, 2015, upon the swearing-in of his successor, Adam Palmer. His police training includes the Federal Bureau of Investigation Advanced Special Weapons And Tactics course.
Chu has served in a number of investigative and support roles. As Sergeant in charge of recruiting, he developed the VPD"s applicant guide and the department"s first website in 1996.
In 1997, he became an Inspector, and since then has supervised a number of transitions in the VPD"s electronic communications technology, including the introduction of its current radio system and mobile computing system.
In 2001, he was given command of District 4, which roughly corresponds to the Southwest quarter of Vancouver. Chu became a deputy chief in 2003, in charge of the Support Services division, which handles human resources, information technology, planning and communications. lieutenant also includes the department"s Financial Services Section, and he has earned recognition for his role in dealing with the department"s cost overruns.
In July 2007, he was placed in charge of the Operations Support division, which oversees criminal intelligence, emergency response and the gang and drug squads.
He is the author of a 2001 book, Law Enforcement Information Technology. On June 21, 2007, Chu was named as the successor of Chief Constable Jamie Graham, who was set to retire in August.
Chu assumed command of the department on August 14, the day after police fatally shot Paul Boyd (animator) on Granville Street. Chu admitted that his department had not anticipated the events and was sorry that his department had not been able to respond earlier.