City of Torrance Appoints New Police Chief

TORRANCE — The City of Torrance on Dec. 21 announced the appointment of Manhattan Beach Police Chief Eve Irvine as Torrance’s 10th police chief.

Eve Irvine and Mark Matsuda

She was chosen from among 29 applicants to replace former Police Chief Mark Matsuda, who announced his retirement in June and stepped down at the end of July. He joined the Police Department in May 1987 and was appointed chief in April 2014.

Former Deputy Chief Michael Browne came out of retirement to serve as interim chief.

Irvine will be sworn in at the Jan. 9 City Council meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. at City Hall.

Since starting her career as a cadet in 1982 with the Inglewood Police Department, Irvine rose through the ranks of sergeant, lieutenant, and captain and was sworn in as Manhattan Beach police chief in May 2011.

Irvine became a nationally recognized expert in the area of domestic violence and worked assignments in sex crimes/child abuse, assaults and robbery in her work as a detective for the Inglewood Police Department.

According to Torrance City Manager LeRoy Jackson, “We were fortunate to have an outstanding selection of internal and external candidates; Chief Irvine was the most outstanding. Irvine brings a breadth of experience, exemplary training, continued education and excellent interpersonal skills to lead a department that has remained committed to protecting the public’s safety.”

An alumna of the University of Redlands and University of La Verne, Irvine graduated from the FBI National Academy and California’s POST Command College. She currently serves as president of the South Bay Police and Fire Memorial Foundation, and is a board member on the Governor’s Medal of Valor Review Board.

The Torrance Police Department currently employs 227 sworn safety staff and 128 civilian staff.