Biography: Dr. José Luís (Joe) Couto

José Luís (Joe) Couto has 36 years of experience in public policy and communications and is currently in his 21st year as Director of Government Relations and Communications for the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police.

Dr. Couto is a professor (part-time) at the University of Guelph-Humber and Associate Faculty at Royal Roads University. He holds a Doctor of Social Sciences and a Master of Arts in Professional Communications from Royal Roads University and a Bachelor of Arts (Journalism) degree from Toronto Metropolitan University.

Dr. Couto’s academic work includes Covered in Blue: Police Culture and LGBT Police Officers in the Province of Ontario (2014), Gay. Female. Cop. The Intersectionality of Gender and Sexual Orientation in Police Culture (2018), and Born to be Blue? The Constructing of Police Officers’ Identity (2023). He was awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal for his contributions to policing and public safety in Canada.