Larry Campbell
|
The Honourable Larry Campbell |
|
|---|---|
| Senator from British Columbia | |
|
Assumed office August 2, 2005 |
|
| Nominated by | Paul Martin |
| Appointed by | Adrienne Clarkson |
| 37th Mayor of Vancouver | |
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In office 2002–2005 |
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| Preceded by | Philip Owen |
| Succeeded by | Sam Sullivan |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Larry W. Campbell February 28, 1948 Brantford, Ontario |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Political party | Independent Senators Group |
| Other political affiliations |
COPE (2002–2005) Liberal (2005-2014) |
| Occupation | Politician, RCMP, BC Coroner's Service |
Larry W. Campbell (born February 28, 1948) was the 37th mayor of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently a member of the Canadian Senate. On April 6, 2016 he left the Senate Liberal caucus to sit as an Independent.
Before he was mayor, Campbell worked for the RCMP, and in 1969, was transferred to the Vancouver detachment. From 1973, he served as a member of the force's drug squad. Starting in 1981 Campbell worked for the Vancouver District Coroner's office and in 1996 he was appointed BC Chief Coroner, a post that he served in until 2000.
Originally from Ontario and of Scottish descent, after high school Campbell's grandfather found him a job digging ditches for coaxial cable. Later he was a steel worker as a hand riveter in a boxcar plant in Hamilton. He joined the RCMP on a bet with a Hamilton municipal police officer. He spent about three years in uniform, but did not like to issue traffic tickets. He was transferred to the drug squad in Vancouver where he worked in street enforcement mainly regarding heroin, including undercover work. He started a drug squad in Langley. Throughout his RCMP tenure, he never laid a single marijuana charge.
After serving in the RCMP for 12 years, the provincial chief coroner told him that the new Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms would negatively impact his drug enforcement efforts and convinced him to become Vancouver's coroner. During the emerging AIDS pandemic, he became a strong advocate for progressive harm reduction policies, quipping that needle exchanges causing drug addiction "is like flies causing garbage." He served for 20 years, retiring as chief coroner for the province.
Campbell was elected in 2002 under the banner of the left-wing Coalition of Progressive Electors party. He was the city's first mayor to be elected from the party.
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