Veteran judge named head of Nova Scotia's police watchdog

Nova Scotia has appointed retired judge Felix Cacchione as director of the province's independent police watchdog agency.

Cacchione will be heading the Serious Incident Response Team after 32 years on the bench, having recently retired from the Nova Scotia Supreme Court.

He replaces interim director John Scott, who was appointed to replace the agency's first director, Ron MacDonald.

The agency started up in 2012.

Cacchione's appointment comes into effect Monday.

The Montreal-born former judge studied law at Dalhousie University and has been a member of the Nova Scotia Barristers' Society since 1975.

He practised criminal law throughout his career, and was appointed a Nova Scotia county court judge in 1986 and a Nova Scotia Supreme Court judge in 1993 when the courts merged.