Just moments after his appointment was confirmed on Monday, incoming Victoria Police Chief Jamie Graham was already embroiled in controversy.

Social advocacy group The Pivot Legal Society said it will be asking the Police Complaints Commissioner to reopen an old file and hold a disciplinary hearing for him.

That's because Graham was found guilty of discreditable conduct for failing to cooperate in an RCMP investigation into allegations of police brutality on Vancouver's Downtown Eastside.

But that decision came down after he had already retired from his previous role as chief of the Vancouver Police Department.

When Graham starts his new job in Victoria on January 1, 2009, he will succeed Paul Battershill, who recently quit before being found guilty of discreditable conduct, for allegedly having an elicit affair with a police board lawyer.

Graham comes to the Victoria Police Department after leading the VPD for five years before retiring in August 2007 as one of the most popular chief's in their history, said Sgt. Grant Hamilton, a spokesperson for Victoria Police

In a statement, Graham said there are a number of things he plans to focus on.

"The disorder in some areas of the downtown must end!'' he said. "Every single person who lives here or visits here has the right to walk anywhere in this beautiful city without fear."

Graham said he will make every effort to reduce violent crime and make Victoria streets among the safest in the country and build on the excellent work that is already underway.

"I also promise to make every effort to reduce property crime," he said. "We should all be able to walk away from our homes or vehicles without fear that they will be broken into."

With a report by CTV British Columbia's Lisa Rossington