Stewart Ian KERLIN

Queensland Police Force

Regd. # ?

Rank:  Detective Sergeant

Stations:  ?

Service:  From  ?  to  ?

Awards:  National Medal – granted 5 May 2000

Born:  ?

Died on:  11 November 2006

Cause:  Motor vehicle accident

Event location:  Pacific Hwy, Woolgoolga, NSW about 10am

Age:  42

Funeral date:  ?

Funeral location:  ?

Buried at:  ?

[alert_green]STEWART IS mentioned on the Police Wall of Remembrance[/alert_green]

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Grave location:  ?

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Const Wilson was the second police officer killed on the state’s ( NSW ) roads yesterday, with a Queensland detective dying after a multi-vehicle crash south of Coffs Harbour on the NSW mid-north coast.

Detective Sergeant Stewart Kerlin, 42, was killed when two cars and a truck collided near Woolgoolga about 10am (AEDT).

Fellow officer 43-year-old Detective Senior Constable Paul Meese, who was in the same car, was injured and a 60-year-old woman passenger in the second car also was hurt.

Both were taken to Coffs Harbour Hospital, where they are in stable condition.

The two police officers were travelling in an unmarked car to a number of locations around NSW as part of a Queensland Police investigation.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/police-officer-killed-on-duty/story-e6frg6n6-1111112509264?nk=73412c0e9f8bd4a2da893de353e172e7

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Anthony William George TAMPLIN

aka  Tony

New South Wales Police Force

Regd. # 18183

Rank:  Senior Constable

Stations:  Chatswood ( 1978 ) , Waratah Police Stn for 29 years as Media Liasion Officer

Service:  From  ? ? 1978  to  ? = 35 years Service

Awards:  National Medal – granted 7 May 1994

Born:  ? ? 1958

Died on:  Monday  29 April 2013 – On Duty

Cause:  Heart attack

Age:  54

Funeral date:  Thursday  2 May 2013

Funeral location:  Newcastle City Hall

Buried at:  ?

Memorial: NSW Police force Service Memorial Wall, Sydney Police Centre, Surry Hills, C21 ( right wall )

 [alert_red]TONY is NOT mentioned on the Police Wall of Remembrance[/alert_red]  * BUT SHOULD BE

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 Location of incident: 

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LAST week I celebrated 35 years as a member of the NSW Police Force.

I don’t mention it to brag or to solicit further return complimentary comments.

I mention this because I was humbled by the people who have gone out of their way to express gratitude to me.

It is because of this tremendous current of support that I love this city.

We are a community, we still recognise one another as people, not as house or unit numbers lost in a concrete maze.

When Mother Nature bares her teeth, a resident falls on hard times, a person falls victim to an illness, or when crime threatens our community, we pitch in.

We are lucky enough to live in a city that is still just a big country town and recently you, once again, reinforced that to me with your comments of support.

Friends, people I haven’t seen for a long time and people I don’t even know personally took time to comment on Facebook or other media and I am truly humbled and thankful.

We are proud because we still interact as a community.

William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, once said: “I expect to pass through life but once. If, therefore, there be any kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do to any fellow human being, let me do it now, for I shall not pass this way again.”

Thank you for showing kindness as we pass one another.

35 years on the beat

– By Dan Proudman

HE has been the jovial face of the police force across the Hunter for decades.

But a surprise celebration for Senior Constable Tony Tamplin reaching 35 years on the thin blue line last week prompted an emotional time for reflection for the Northern Region’s media liaison officer.

With his wife, parents and six of his seven children around him, Senior Constable Tamplin spoke of the wider family of the police, which made him continue getting up and going to work.

‘‘The job itself is an intriguing, wonderful, hard, emotional job but the reason you keep coming back every day is the people you work with,’’ he said.

‘‘I keep getting up every day, not thinking I have got to go to work as a copper but thinking I am going to go and see my mates.

‘‘There are 16,000 people in my club.’’

Senior Constable Tamplin started at Chatswood in 1978 but an accident in 1984 put him on restricted duties. His gift of the gab and eye for good stories quickly found him looking after the Hunter’s media for the next 29 years.

But he’s not yet ready for retirement.

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National Police Remembrance Day to honour brave officers

CONSTABLE Henry Rucker was just seven months into his job when he found himself with a group of police searching for some robbers who had held up the James Williams jewellery store in Hunter Street earlier in the day.

The year is 1863 as Constable Rucker, a 31-year-old most probably stationed at Newcastle, takes off towards Lake Macquarie on horseback.

It’s getting late. But the officers continue to hunt the 19th century bandits as they cross a tributary into the lake.

Constable Rucker digs his heels into his stead but things go awry. His mount rolls and he is thrown into the water and drowns.

Within 18 months of the NSW Police Force being created, Constable Rucker becomes the second police officer to die in the Hunter.

Three months earlier Constable Michael Farralley had also drowned in a creek.

More than 150 years on, and the Hunter has had at least 30 police officers die while on duty. They have been shot, bashed, electrocuted, involved in road accidents and suffered medical problems.

Today, they will be remembered.

September 29, the special day for Saint Michael the Archangel, patron saint of police, has become National Police Remembrance Day.

The most recent officer to be lost on duty was the immensely popular Senior Constable Tony Tamplin, who suffered a heart attack at Waratah police station last year.

Half of the police on the Hunter’s roll of honour have been killed in motor vehicle accidents, which included eight riding police motorcycles. Four of those riders were killed in a shocking decade from 1957 to 1967.

Three Hunter officers have been shot dead, including Constable William King, who was killed after answering the door to his East Gresford police residence one night in 1971 as his children were inside.

Senior Constable Doug Eaton was shot when he and another officer were ambushed after stopping a break-in at the Toronto Country Club at Kilaben Bay in 1977.

Three days after Senior Constable Eaton’s death, Cessnock officers Alan Thompson and Ray Scorer were killed in a car accident as they returned from their colleague’s funeral.

Sergeant Keith Haydon was shot dead, targeted by a man also wanted for murdering two men at Bondi.

Acting Newcastle City local area commander, acting Superintendent Michael Gorman, said the day was one of the most important on the police calendar.

“National Police Remembrance Day is a solemn day in which officers pause to honour our departed colleagues, and reflect upon the sacrifice they have made for the community,” he said.

“Each day officers confront danger as they perform their duties. National Police Remembrance Day reminds us that a safe community often comes at a high price for officers and their families.”

There have been 252 officers killed on duty cross NSW since 1962.

The Newcastle service will be held at Christ Church Cathedral at 10.30am.

http://www.theherald.com.au/story/2590308/roll-call-for-brave-officers/?cs=305

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EDITORIAL: Think of police heroes

GALLERY: Thousands farewell Tony Tamplin

Marvellous. Senior Constable Tony Tamplin would have been chuffed as thousands of mourners packed Newcastle Town Hall this morning to celebrate the life of a man who had touched so many.

Brilliant and heartfelt tributes from his grieving wife, Sonia, their children and his brother, Denis, were complimented by moving words from NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione and representatives from the media and charities.

Senior Constable Tamplin died suddenly on Monday, aged 54 and after 35 years service in the police force, more than a decade helping his favourite charity Variety – the Childrens Charity and seven years as a popular celebrant.

Mr Scipione also announced that Senior Constable Tamplin would be honoured posthumously with the National Police Service Medal, recognising his ethical and diligent service in protecting the community.

‘When we gather at a funeral to farewell a colleague, a friend, a loved one, it is understandable, perhaps inevitable, that the mood is sombre,’’ Mr Scipione said.

‘‘There is always great sadness at the loss.

‘‘But somehow that is not quite fitting for Tony. He wouldn’t have wanted it – he wouldn’t have allowed it.

‘‘Life was a joy. And simply put, Tony was a wonderful bloke – optimistic and big-hearted.

‘‘In fact, everything about Tony Tamplin was big – larger than life almost.

‘‘Large of frame, large of personality, and always a large contributor.’’

And so the mood of the service, which packed four rooms of the town hall with thousands of people, became a celebration of a brilliant life.

Wife, Sonia, and their six children – the Tamplin Tribe – wore his bright shirts as they spoke from their broken hearts.

A friend from Variety threw on a statue of David apron, made famous by the big fellow on their annual pilgrimages on the Variety bash to raise money for children who most needed it.

Brother Denis, NBN journalist Paul Lobb and entertainer John Paul Young also turned tears of grief into laughter as they told their own tales of what Senior Constable Tamplin meant to them.

A police helicopter and motorcycles led the procession through a 150-metre long guard of honour along King Street as Senior Constable Tamplin made one final appearance in front of an adoring public.

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VIDEO: Emotions flow at Tony Tamplin’s funeral

FATHER, husband, son, brother, mate, copper, charity fund-raiser, celebrant, snooker player, mentor, joke teller.

He was definitely ‘‘one of the good guys’’, but possibly Tony Tamplin’s greatest gift was that he could be someone different to so many people.

Many of the thousands who packed Newcastle City Hall on Thursday would have their own stories about the ‘‘larger than life’’ bloke who had ‘‘the heart the size of a pumpkin’’.

Grieving widow Sonia defied her own fears of public speaking to talk about the man she had married 27 years ago and had six children with.

She joked the ‘‘big fella upstairs’’ had probably grown bored with his current company and wanted her husband – the Happy Buddha – to make him laugh.

‘‘He was always in the limelight and I was more than happy to be in the background,’’ she told the mourners.

‘‘Anyone who knew Tony knew he had a heart of gold, but anyone that knew him really well also knew that he could be such a stubborn bastard.

‘‘He was a very humble man who, for never one minute, thought he was special.’’

Their children spoke of learning life’s lessons from their father.

Eldest son, Tony jnr, said he had been moulded by his father in ‘‘every way, shape and form’’ and vowed to continue to honour his legacy.

‘‘One thing I hadn’t considered, was the not-so-secret life of Tony Tamplin,’’ Tony jnr said.

‘‘To myself, my siblings, my mother, and all my family, Tony was a man who worked hard because he loved his work.

‘‘He worked hard for his family because he loved his family.

‘‘Until the past few days, I thought that was the only people who knew.’’

But now they know.

Eldest daughter Natusha said her dad was never a fan of  ‘‘all this soppy stuff’’.

‘‘I think it is pretty obvious to you all that we thought our dad was the best,’’ she said.

‘‘But I can now see that you all thought he was amazing too.

‘‘Dad taught me life lessons by setting an example.

‘‘He didn’t stress about things he couldn’t change, he appreciated what he had, and he was happy,’’ she said.

Brother Denis Tamplin said his family had been overwhelmed by the support of the police and the ‘‘beautiful outpourings of heartfelt emotion’’ from the general public since his brother’s death.

He said his brother was engaging and genuinely interested in people, fiercely loyal and he had had an impact on all of his family’s lives.

Entertainer John Paul Young told how Senior Constable Tamplin had become a mentor to many since joining Variety – the Children’s Charity in 2000 and ‘‘did it all with a love and a smile’’.

But he also had that mischievous humour, like the time they were enjoying a meal on the Variety Big Bash.

‘‘I had some gravy dribbling down my chin and I was looking for a napkin,’’  Young said.

‘‘He said, ‘What’s wrong?’ and so I told him and he said: ‘You just relax, you just enjoy yourself. I will lick your face clean when you’re finished’.’’

NBN journalist Paul Lobb recalled Senior Constable Tamplin’s unique office at Newcastle police station, which he had fitted out with stuffed toys, souped-up wanted posters, cartoons and other paraphernalia.

‘‘Certainly not police standard-issue,’’ Lobb said.

‘‘And there were the kettles and other broken down electrical equipment.

‘‘They hung from the ceiling emblazoned with the date that they had broken and how many years of service they had given, making Tony’s famous early morning bucket-sized coffee.’’

Lobb also joked about Senior Constable Tamplin’s way with words when describing crime scenes and criminals.

‘‘If the description of the offender was that he was wearing stripy tracksuit pants, pink joggers, a lime green hoodie, Tony would say ‘Mate, crooks these days just have no dress sense’.’’

He later added: ‘‘It was more like ringing a mate than ringing a police media liaison officer.

‘‘Tone was one of the good guys.

‘‘And I am sure if we rang now for one final rounds check, he would probably tell a joke about some badly dressed crim trying to steal the pearly gates in a ram raid.

‘‘He would lean back in his chair and take a swig of his brew and he would say ‘Squire, don’t worry, I’m living the dream’.

‘‘We just wish he could have lived it a bit longer here with us.’’

While many spoke about the differences Senior Constable Tamplin made to the life of the community, his family reminded the crowd of his most important job.

They told of how he would yell out ‘‘Papa’’ as he walked through the front door and spoke of their simple wish to have one last big bear hug from their dad.

Tony jnr summed it up best when he said: ‘‘The hole that he has left in the community is too big to be filled by one person.’’

http://www.theherald.com.au/story/1474904/video-emotions-flow-at-tony-tamplins-funeral/

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Parliament of New South Wales                     Legislative Assembly                    2 May 2013

Mr TIM OWEN (Newcastle) [10.04 a.m.]: I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that the Northern Region Police Media Liaison Officer, Senior Constable Tony Tamplin, passed away at Waratah police station on 29 April 2013;

(2) notes that Tony Tamplin served in the NSW Police Force for 35 years, with 29 years in his media liaison role; and

(3) expresses its sincere condolences to the family, friends and workmates of Tony Tamplin for their loss.

My colleagues and I from the Hunter stand united today in honouring the memory of Senior Constable Tony Tamplin, who sadly passed away on 29 April 2013 aged just 54. Since Monday there has been an outpouring of public grief in the Hunter as the community mourns a true character who touched many lives. Anthony William George Tamplin was a man of many layers. He was a family man deeply loved by his wife, Sonia, their six children—Natusha, Anthony, Yelena, Annika, Alexander and Kalina—and his parents, Tony senior and Anne. He was a tireless aid worker who donated much of his spare time to assisting local charities. He was also a jovial and hugely popular marriage celebrant. Above all, he was a stalwart of the NSW Police Force who recently celebrated 35 years in uniform. Over the course of his distinguished career, Senior Constable Tamplin became the face of the New South Wales police across the Hunter. He provided a valuable link between the police and the wider public in his role as police media liaison officer. Tens of thousands of people grew up with Tony—and I was one of them. He was part of our daily lives; we watched him on NBN television, read his candid lines in the Newcastle Herald and his amusing but informative column in the Star or admired his quick wit on local radio. However, it was not only his work with the media that led to Tony Tamplin becoming a much-loved community figure. Tony was a man of great compassion who was often seen at community events, such as the Variety Bash in support of children’s charities, and he always left a great impression. It is probably fair to say Tony Tamplin was one of the most loved coppers in the history of the NSW Police Force. I was at the Waratah police station when news first broke of Tony’s sudden passing and it was not long before floral tributes were placed on the steps and social media message boards were flooded with words of gratitude and condolences. As the elected representative of Newcastle, their voice in Parliament, I thought it appropriate that I share some of those poignant messages. David Gardiner wrote:

Tony was one of the most professional, helpful, down to earth people I have ever had the pleasure of dealing with as a news journalist. He had the rare skill of being able to convey information, often sensitive, into easy to understand language. Tony’s compassion and his strong sense of humour, as well as his involvement in charity events such as the Variety Bash, will be forever remembered.

Heather Buckley wrote:

I only knew Tony Tamplin through his piece in the STAR newspaper and listening to him on KOfm. I was amazed at his passion for the community and for the young kids of Newcastle and Suburbs! He will be sadly missed and my heart goes out to his wife and family and also his colleagues.

Tony McKenzie wrote:

I have known Tony through the Police for probably most of his 35 Yrs. Mate you did us all proud. Newcastle has lost a great man and an even greater COPPER. You wrote the book on Police and Media relations.

In my role as a member of Parliament I have come to respect and admire the great work the NSW Police Force does in the community. As Robyne Slade said in her tribute, “police men and women play a major role in making our communities safe”. I have come to know many members of the local command and I could think of no finer representative of the force than Senior Constable Tony Tamplin. We are conducting this debate this morning while his funeral service is being held in Newcastle.

The police officer’s role is not an easy one. Living under a strict disciplinary code and sworn to uphold the law of the land, police officers relations with the public are sometimes difficult, especially in enforcing laws that are not popular with certain social groups. Despite this, Tony was always warmly received by the public. Behind the scenes the life of police officers is not easy—they comfort lost children, lend a shoulder to cry on when the elderly lady experiences a break-in at her home or counsel families after delivering the worst news imaginable about a loved one. It is a job that can be so emotionally confronting that few outside the force can ever really understand just how hard some days can be. Yet Tony was always a pleasure to be around, was courteous and a true gentlemen to everyone he met.

On behalf of the Newcastle community, I pay tribute to the countless hours of work that Senior Constable Tamplin donated to assist others, in particular, his work with charitable foundations. Tony is a man who will be sorely missed; a man who in the past few days has been fittingly described by many as “a larger than life persona”, “a man with a big heart”, “one of Newcastle’s finest”, “a massive community figure” and “a man with a wicked sense of humour”. Tony wrote a column for the 24 April 2013 edition of the Star in which he reflected on his 35 years of service in the NSW Police Force. He quoted William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania:

I expect to pass through life but once. If, therefore, there be any kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do to any fellow human being, let me do it now, for I shall not pass this way again.

I believe Tony attempted to live his life by the principle of doing good for others, and in doing so he has challenged all of us to show kindness to those around us. There will never be another Tony; he was unique, a champion of his community who will forever be remembered with great fondness. On behalf of the Newcastle constituency and the Hunter region I conclude by saying that our thoughts are with Senior Constable Tamplin’s family, friends and the entire NSW Police Force during this difficult time. I commend his life’s work to the House.

Mr GREG PIPER (Lake Macquarie) [10.10 a.m.]: I acknowledge the fine contribution of the member for Newcastle and join my colleagues in paying tribute to Senior Constable Tony Tamplin. It is hard to believe that I will not be seeing Tony at community and charity events, so ubiquitous a presence and so dominant a personality was he in the Hunter region. Tony was indeed the everywhere man. As the member for Newcastle noted, and as I am sure other members will note, Tony was the face of the NSW Police Force in the Hunter and he had been for 29 years, but his public profile went much deeper than that.

Tony was attached to numerous charities, among them the children’s charity Variety, cancer fundraising groups, the Blood Bank and Hunter Life Education. His picture was constantly in the local newspapers or on the news on television in connection with the promotion or support of events for charities such as these, with photographs inevitably showing him hamming it up for the camera or flashing that wide trademark grin that even his equally characteristic bushy beard could not hide. I am sure that members can conjure up a picture of Tony Tamplin at a Variety bash with his good mate Super Hubert, that marvellous magician in the Hunter.

Mr Andrew Cornwell: The world’s skinniest magician.

Mr GREG PIPER: The world’s skinniest magician and one of the Hunter’s biggest cops. When we talk about Tony Tamplin we should not forget such wonderful imagery. I first met Tony Tamplin in the 1990s when I was a councillor on Lake Macquarie City Council. In subsequent years I had cause to share a stage or to mingle with him at many events in my capacity as a councillor and later as mayor of Lake Macquarie and State member. A few years ago we officiated together at a ceremony to mark the beginning of the first stage of the children’s park at Speers Point. Variety, which is a significant partner, helped to create an adventure playground that is accessible to children with disabilities. I know that the member for Swansea would agree with me that Speers Point Park is a wonderful park.

With shovel ready, standing on the top of a double decker bus, I announced to the assembled dignitaries and onlookers that we were there to turn the first sod. I then quipped that I thought that was no way to talk about Tony. He laughed, of course, showing his customary goodwill—as always, happy to be the butt of the joke and more than capable of good naturedly returning the compliment in spades. I cannot imagine how much money Tony’s advocacy of charity causes has helped to bring in for those organisations but I hasten a guess that it would be hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Away from the cameras and that public persona he was generous with his time in other ways as well. In between his official media liaison duties and his charity work he attended countless community functions to speak to people about crime and safety issues. Whether it was addressing a handful of retirees about home security at a midweek morning tea or hundreds of people at a major crime forum, he gave the same enthusiasm to all. Through these grassroots activities and by using his public relations skills to harness the reach of the media, Tony was at the vanguard of proactive and pre-emptive policing. He was forever spearheading public announcements to remind people to be wary to lock up their homes when there was a spate of thefts, to observe speed limits and safe driving guidelines as busy school holiday periods loomed, to alert people to scams doing the rounds, or to warn parents to urge their children to be vigilant about stranger danger.

Tony Tamplin has been the voice of calm during many a crisis. As Newcastle Herald reporter Dan Proudman so aptly wrote in his obituary in Tuesday’s paper, Tony was “a soft, reassuring hand on the region’s collective shoulder”. He was a soothing presence during the notorious June long weekend storms and floods of 2007, keeping order among the media masses at the site of the Pasha Bulker’s beaching at Nobbys and making sure the critical emergency messages reached their targets. He also had an opportunity to use his liaison and public relations skills while working with the NSW Police Force at the Sydney Olympics—an experience I understand was a career highlight.

While perhaps most fondly remembered for his skylarking and good-natured support of community causes, it is important to acknowledge the absolute professionalism he displayed in all aspects of his job and his innate ability to project the right mood for the circumstances. Much of the work he did managing communications at the interface between the police and the community involved difficult and traumatic events. He always dealt with such matters sensitively and reasonably, respecting the balance between public interest and the privacy of victims and others affected by criminal acts or accidents. I spoke to Superintendent Craig Rae, formerly the local area commander of Lake Macquarie Area Command. Craig wants to pass on his message of respect for Tony Tamplin who did so much to elevate the standing of police in the region.

The balance that Tony Tamplin struck is not always easy to attain, and sometimes relationships between media and police are strained as a result, but Tony earned the utmost respect of those within the Hunter media, as evidenced by the tributes they have made on hearing of his passing. Indeed, there has been a huge public response to his death—one that I would say is unprecedented for a member of the Police Force and a measure of the high regard with which he was held by all in the community. Tony died just two weeks after marking 35 years with the Police Force—he joined as a teenager—and he spent nearly 30 of those years serving in the Hunter region. On the occasion of his thirty-fifth anniversary last month he nominated his colleagues as the reason for his enduring enthusiasm for his job. He said:

The job itself is an intriguing, wonderful, hard, emotional job but the reason you keep coming back every day is the people you work with.

I keep getting up every day, not thinking I have got to go to work as a copper but thinking I am going to go and see my mates. This is the biggest club in the world. There are 16,000 people in my club.

Tony was renowned as a family man—a father of six and one of six siblings. He was a popular marriage celebrant, known for his ability to soothe the nerves of brides and grooms with his characteristic humour and terrible dad jokes. Always a good sport, he entered into the spirit of any ceremony—even donning an Elvis Presley wig and cape to preside over the wedding of a couple who had won a radio competition that allowed listeners to decide on aspects of the wedding, including the celebrant’s dress code. One of the last times I saw Tony was at the annual bikers’ toy run at Christmas, another of his favourite community causes. He was in the thick of things as usual, laughing, talking and working the crowd. As I said when I commenced my speech, it is hard to believe I will not see him playing that role again. His death is an indescribable loss to our community and I offer my deepest sympathies to his wife, Sonia, to his children and to all who loved him.

Mr GARRY EDWARDS (Swansea) [10.16 a.m.]: Today we are acknowledging and remembering one of the greatest icons in the Hunter—Senior Constable Anthony William George Tamplin. It is with real sadness that I speak of the sudden and unexpected loss of a dedicated community man and a hardworking and loving family man at the age of just 54. I would have expected to have been speaking about Tony and his many accomplishments at perhaps his retirement in another decade or so. I extend sincere condolences to Senior Constable Tamplin’s family, friends and colleagues. Only a fortnight ago Senior Constable Tony Tamplin celebrated his thirty-fifth year as a member of the NSW Police Force—35 years of passionate dedication, 35 years of caring and integrity not just for the NSW Police Force but also for communities in New South Wales and in Australia.

For many years Senior Constable Tony Tamplin has been seen as the face of the NSW Police Force in the Hunter and a man who, despite the ever-changing world around us, could always be trusted. A generation of young folk in the Hunter have grown up recognising, listening to and believing in Senior Constable Tony Tamplin. As public relations officer for Hunter police since 1984, Senior Constable Tony Tamplin was and still is the face of the region’s police ranks, but his dedication and commitment stretched further than that. Senior Constable Tony Tamplin was a unique and committed community man, well recognised and respected for his ongoing charitable work. Notably he spent more than a decade raising awareness and money for the children’s charity Variety. Senior Constable Tony Tamplin will be remembered by many as a true, real and rare Aussie character. His wicked sense of humour, larger than life personality and ability to take the mickey out of himself endeared him to all who met him.

No-one has done a better job of bringing the police and the wider community closer together in our region—at least not in my time in this place or in the region—than Senior Constable Tony Tamplin. Once again I express deepest condolences to Tony’s wife, Sonia, to his children, Natusha, Anthony, Yelena, Anikka, Alexander and Kalina, to his dad, Tony senior, to his mum, Anne, and to all his siblings on their loss. A statement by Superintendent John Gralton, Commander, Newcastle City Local Area Command, in the

Newcastle Herald

on Tuesday 30 April 2013 sums up Tony’s passing, “The Hunter has lost a piece of its heart.” Vale, Anthony William George Tamplin, husband, dad, police officer, charity worker, civil marriage celebrant, community builder and bloody good Aussie bloke. Tony, your name will survive you as a true son of the Hunter.

Mr TROY GRANT (Dubbo—Parliamentary Secretary) [10.20 a.m.]: I make a short contribution to this condolence motion in memory of my former police colleague and mate Senior Constable Tony Tamplin. I endorse everything that has been said, and will be said, by my parliamentary colleagues from the Hunter about a great man who was larger than life. I have spoken in this Parliament on a number of occasions about child sexual assault issues in the Hunter Valley and those comments are well recorded in Hansard and in the media. But what has that to do with Tony Tamplin? The first two victims in what has now become a plethora of incidents, which have had an unimaginable impact on that wonderful region, went to Tony Tamplin and his staff to seek guidance and advice on how to face the most difficult chapter ever to enfold their lives. To me that pretty much says it all as to the level of regard and respect with which Tony was held. Members will talk about that respect today but I witnessed it firsthand.

Tony played an important role in the media that followed the arrest and investigation of Father Ryan and the subsequent investigations. The contribution he made cannot be understated, particularly in his support of the victims. Two guys, in the infancy of these matters, choose to place their trust in Senior Constable Tony Tamplin to help them work out how they would bring forward the most damaging chapter in their lives. For that those victims and I will be forever grateful. I cannot sufficiently express how deeply remorseful I am and how shocked I was when I learnt of Tony’s passing. I offer my deepest sympathies to his family and colleagues; my condolences and thoughts will be with them for a long time. As the member for Swansea said, Tony loved the cops and his colleagues, and they loved him right back. Vale Tony Tamplin.

Mr CLAYTON BARR (Cessnock) [10.22 a.m.]: Whilst Tony’s influence did not extend to the Cessnock area the people in my electorate still chose to call him with their issues. Some of my constituents told me, “I rang that Tony Tamplin. He is on TV. He seems really nice. I thought he would help me.” Sadly, the heinous crimes that the member for Orange spoke about are occurring right across the region. I commence my contribution by acknowledging how lucky we are today to be talking about Tony Tamplin in this place—not lucky because he died but lucky because we knew him. Many people, for instance, from Sydney, the Illawarra and out west did not get to know him but that is their loss. Tony was an outstanding individual.

Tony started presenting the police news at a time when Brian Bury and Brian Henderson were presenting the evening news, Graham Kennedy was at the top of his game and Paul Hogan was on television. I have grown up with only Tony Tamplin reporting the police news. For 30 years the Hunter region had only one cop on television, radio and in the media reporting police news. That was the person he was to the people of the Hunter. Tony Tamplin was larger than life. Interestingly, his wife, Sonia, noted that 20 years ago he had said to her that when he died he wanted his life to be celebrated and for people to have fun remembering him. I will start by having a bit of fun at his expense. The Newcastle Herald reported that Tony had left behind big shoes to fill. Tony was a big guy and he would have seen the irony in that. He had bloody big shoes to fill, physically and literally.

In preparing my speech I rang a friend who had worked with Tony Tamplin over the past 10 years in Variety to ask him for his thoughts about Tony. My friend, a significant character in his own right, said that Tony was hard to describe. He was just big but he exuded positivity and optimism. People wanted to be around him and he brought them together when they were around him. Tony gelled with people. He had enormous respect and empathy for people. He had a big smile, a hearty laugh and he was humble. My friend will be attending the service that is being held today for Tony at Newcastle Town Hall. Tony Tamplin’s last column for the Star sums up why I love the people of the Hunter and why I enjoy the privilege of representing the people of the Hunter in this Chamber. In that article Tony reflected on the enormous support he had been given in recognition of his 35 years of service as a member of the NSW Police Force. Tony said:

It is because of this tremendous current of support that I love this city. We are a community, we still recognise one another as people, not as house or unit numbers lost in a concrete maze. When Mother Nature bares her teeth, a resident falls on hard times, a person falls victim to an illness, or when crime threatens our community, we all pitch in.

He finished that column by saying:

Thank you for showing kindness as we pass one another.

All members should remember that and we all need to do it. I sometimes wonder whether I am doing the right thing when I look someone in the eye as I pass him or her in the street. I do not know these people—they could be Joe Blow or Jenny Blogs—but I like to show kindness to the people in the street. Tony Tamplin did that. Vale Tony Tamplin.

Mr ANDREW CORNWELL (Charlestown) [10.26 a.m.]: I too make a brief contribution about the life of Senior Constable Tony Tamplin. Tony grew up in a large family and he and his wife, Sonia, raised a large family. But Tony was also a member of a family of 16,000 police colleagues and a family of 500,000 fellow Hunter residents. Tony was loved and adored by all those families. He was the face of policing in the Hunter. In many ways the respect with which our police are held today was reflected in the respect that people had for Tony. Tony never used police lingo in the media; he used language to which the public related. He would never talk about an alleged perpetrator or a group of youths. He would say, “Some idiot has been snapping trees in the main street of Wallsend”, or, “Some dope has gone and done this in Cardiff”. People genuinely warmed to him because the way in which he described things reflected what they felt.

Tony always struck an appropriate note. It was always stern but it was always sincere. It was evident from the way in which he communicated his message to the community that he clearly loved his job. Tony devoted a large amount of his time to charity work. One was more likely to see Tony standing beside Big Dog or Super Hubert, the world’s skinniest magician, than standing beside the Commissioner of Police. Tony and Super Hubert were brothers in arms for the Variety charity. Tony used his profile to assist in raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for Variety. It would be remiss of me if I did not use this opportunity to shamelessly plug Variety as that is what Tony would have done. He would have had a brief opportunity of about 30 seconds to talk about a policing issue and he would then take about five minutes to plug Variety. Charity work was core business to him. Tony was a lover of life. He was generous in both time and spirit, self-effacing and sincere. He was a big bloke; he was bighearted. Vale Tony Tamplin, you will be sorely missed and a great loss to the Hunter community.

Ms SONIA HORNERY (Wallsend) [10.28 a.m.], by leave: In this motion of condolence we are talking about the distinguished career of a wonderful police officer from the Hunter. I agree with the comments of the member for Newcastle about Tony’s quick wit. Tony was definitely a much-loved community figure and probably one of the most popular coppers in the NSW Police Force. I agree with the comments of the member for Lake Macquarie that Tony would have been instrumental in helping him, as mayor of Lake Macquarie, to open the children’s park and get on with it. I love the way the member for Cessnock described Tony Tamplin as “indescribable”, because he certainly was.

As the member for Charlestown said, Tony was much loved and adored by the population of the Hunter. In my contribution I will refer to two particular encounters with Tony that were quite memorable. The first encounter was when I asked Tony to speak at a seniors forum on advocating for home security. I liked Tony’s frank and fair discussions with the seniors of the Wallsend community—he did not muck around about ensuring that they were aware they had to take responsibility for their own home security. That is what I liked about Tony: When it came to the nitty-gritty Tony knew how to explain to people that as members of the community they had to take responsibility for their own safety. That is important.

The second opportunity I had to meet with Tony and his wife, Sonia, was about another important issue: disadvantaged children. By the way, Tony’s wife, Sonia, is a lovely woman and their children are wonderful. I am sure this is a sad time for Sonia and the family and on behalf of the House I pass on my condolences to them. Tony, Sonia and I talked about disadvantaged children in a particular school. They were concerned about ensuring that we had teachers’ aides for the students with disabilities. Tony did everything right. He was a model constituent; he is the kind of constituent a member wants when there is a problem. They ring the office and make an appointment. They write a letter explaining the problem; they are courteous. They wait for an agreeable time to meet and then they discuss the problem.

Tony wrote to me about the fact that some disadvantaged students in a local school were about to lose their teacher’s aide, who was sorely needed in that classroom. He thought that the students would not be able to learn without the teacher’s aide. So we wrote to the school and the department, and we were successful in retaining the teacher’s aide for those disadvantaged students. We did it all right and everyone was happy. In conclusion, Tony was a man of diplomacy and he did not muck around. He was much admired not only by the Wallsend community but also by the Hunter community, and it was well deserved. I am worried about Sonia; I hope she is okay. I imagine it is tough to have six children and to be without a dad. No-one wants to hear about that. I simply pass on my condolences, and I hope the family is okay. Tony will be sorely missed in the community.

Mr CRAIG BAUMANN (Port Stephens—Parliamentary Secretary) [10.32 a.m.], by leave: I add my humble contribution to the worthy tributes to Senior Constable Tony Tamplin. Words at a time like this are so often inadequate—there are only so many ways that we can describe someone who has left an indelible mark on our community and will be missed so very dearly by so many. The fact that my Hunter colleagues on both sides of the House are united today as one, speaking in unison on this motion, is a testament to the deep loss felt in all our communities. This is one thing that the eight of us agree on, and unfortunately we are united by grief.

As we speak, the Minister for Police and Emergency Services, and Minister for the Hunter, the Hon. Michael Gallacher, is representing the Government, the Parliament and, more personally, the Hunter members—Liberal, Labor and Independent—at Tony’s funeral. The Minister for the Environment, and Minister for Heritage, and member for Maitland, the Hon. Robyn Parker, is representing the Government outside Parliament this morning but I know her thoughts are with us as we speak and with Tony as he is laid to rest.

Along with the Newcastle Knights and the Jets, Tony Tamplin was another vital piece of fabric in the fascinating patchwork that makes up the Hunter. The community’s outpouring of sadness at Tony’s passing is evident in the stories still running in the media and the many social media sites being inundated with tributes. A true servant of the public for 35 years, Tony Tamplin has left his mark on our community. Tragically taken at what I consider a young age, his legacy has left our community with a fine example of the blue uniform—a worthy citizen who gave so much to so many.

Through his day-to-day work, Tony personally touched thousands of people. Through his work in the media, he touched countless more. So many people feel they knew Tony Tamplin personally—he was in our living rooms at night and on our radios in the car during the day, giving us the latest information. He was the always reliable, dependably soothing voice of the police, whether it be warning us about a new scam by criminals, delivering the bad news about a tragedy or appealing to the public for assistance in a missing person’s case. His dulcet tones were the balm we needed when there was a local crisis.

The well-known beard became familiar to us all, his soothing voice one we all came to trust when we heard it on the radio. He was a popular celebrant who married hundreds of Hunter couples; he was renowned for sharing in the couple’s joyous day as if it was the first ceremony he had ever officiated. He was a champion of charities, in particular the Variety Club and autism research. I heard the member for Charlestown mention Super Hubert. That is the second time Super Hubert has been mentioned in Hansard. But Tony Tamplin was so much more than the fundraiser, the popular celebrant or the jovial face of police in the Hunter. We must not forget that he was a much-loved husband and father, a cherished son and brother. The House extends its sincere sympathy to Tony’s wife, Sonia, and his family. I hope they are in some small way comforted by the incredible outpouring of grief by people they will likely never meet, such was the respect and admiration for Tony. Vale Tony Tamplin.

Mr DAVID ELLIOTT (Baulkham Hills) [10.36 a.m.], by leave: As most members from the Hunter Valley know, I try to write myself into the Hunter Valley script, given that my family has lived there since the 1860s. But that is not the reason I make this contribution. I knew Tony professionally, as did the member for Dubbo. It was 20 years ago, in 1993, that as a university graduate I decided to make an honest career in the NSW Police Force media unit. That is when I met Tony, who was the media liaison officer based in Newcastle. Tony was, as members have described him, larger than life. I remember as a 23-year-old working in the police media unit with those tough, seasoned coppers, particularly in the Hunter Valley. Tony was a reassuring figure who would be happy to put his arm around me and give me some sage advice, particularly when I was under the pump.

I was always in awe of how much the media in the Hunter Valley, and particularly Newcastle, respected Tony. I do not think there was an incident in Newcastle that Tony did not control. And if he was not in control of it, particularly so far as police operations were concerned and the broader emergency services portfolio, he used to hide it well. There were always unwritten rules in police media relationships—nods and winks and the like. I suspect that Tony perfected that early in his career because neither the police commanders nor the media ever seemed to give him a hard time. I am conscious of Tony’s charitable work. I am conscious that he had been in the job for 35 years, but the media embraced him as one of their own. When one works in public relations one knows that the greatest way to free oneself of spin or the accusation of spin is to be written into the script and to be seen as one of the media, and Tony certainly did that.

Whether it was floods and storm emergencies, or indeed serious crime, Tony put a human face to the NSW Police Force. At the time I started working with the NSW Police Force media unit my wife, Nicole, also started in the unit. Although we were young, single people, Tony, Nicole and I would often attend police events. Tony would tell me that it was a scandal that I was going out with the superintendent’s daughter, and not long after we got married Tony said it was a scandal I had married the superintendent’s daughter. Tony was that way inclined. He could talk to people from all levels of society. I conclude by touching on something the member for Wallsend said. If I know Tony well, I know that he would be horrified to think we would leave his wife and kids without support, love, prayers and indeed encouragement.

Tony was a father to so many people and now I think the people of the Hunter and the police family need to take a leaf out of his book and we need to be family to his children and to his wife. We sit here today depressed, sad and mourning over the fact that we have lost a great stalwart of the community and wondering who is going to pick up the slack. But there is a family now with six kids that has been left with an even bigger hole. So I join the member for Wallsend in making sure that Tony’s family is aware that this Parliament is conscious of the fact that they are in mourning and without a father. If there is anything we can do to encourage the police and the people of the Hunter Valley to support them we will do it. Vale Tony Tamplin.

Mr NATHAN REES (Toongabbie) [10.41 a.m.], by leave: Today I make a brief contribution regarding the passing of Tony Tamplin. Most of the material about the integrity, decency and courage of this gentleman has already been covered by the fine contributions of the previous speakers. I take this opportunity to extend my condolences to his wife, his extended family, his loved ones and friends, and also to the 16,000-plus men and women of the NSW Police Force, who are part of his broader family. I had a couple of dealings with Tony, first as Minister for Emergency Services when the Newcastle storms hit in June 2007 and again as Premier. Tony was not just a fine policeman; he was a fine Australian and, as the member for Baulkham Hills said, a man who was decent, upright, straight up and down, and who had the respect of the media—and that is no small feat.

Tony had the quality of being irresistibly likeable—and those of us who work in politics know how valuable that is. Many of us try every day to narrow the awful gap between Tony and us. He was a gentleman, a father figure to many, a mentor to hundreds and a man extraordinarily well regarded in his community. The fact that so many people in this place have paid tribute to Tony this morning and that his funeral today is so well attended demonstrates the impact that he has had on his community. Tony was a man who was larger than life and who had a positive impact on everything he went near. The community and the country were very lucky to have him. Vale Tony.

Mr TIM OWEN (Newcastle) [10.42 a.m.], in reply: I thank members representing the electorates of Lake Macquarie, Swansea, Cessnock, Charlestown, Wallsend, Port Stephens, Dubbo, Baulkham Hills and Toongabbie for their warm and heartfelt contributions to this motion. There is not too much more to say. The police Minister is at the funeral this morning and I know that he will pass on the warm regards of the Parliament to the family of Tony Tamplin. As members have said this morning, it is a sad day for the city and for the Hunter Valley region. It is, of course, an extremely sad day for Sonia and the family.

Tony will be remembered as a great police officer, a great community man, a great family man and a man of great charity. But as the member for Cessnock said, we should all celebrate a life of extraordinary colour and commitment. Tony was a man whom I knew very well. In fact, I was due to ride on the Variety Bash with him in a couple of weeks. I know that he will be sorely missed. It is a sad day but we should remember Tony with great joy and celebration, and be grateful that the community of New South Wales had the privilege of having him with us for the past 54 years. On behalf of all members I say: Rest in peace, Tony—an extraordinary life that will be well remembered.

Question—That the motion be agreed to—put and resolved in the affirmative.

Motion agreed to.

Members and officers of the House stood in their places as a mark of respect.

http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/hansart.nsf/V3Key/LA20130502003

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Michael John ROYAN

aka  Curly

Mick was the nephew of NSW Policeman James Clement Joseph ROYAN, NSWPF # 5896

Mick was the father of Andrew ROYAN, NSWPF # 24208 & Jane ROYAN, NSWPF # 32853

New South Wales Police Force

Redfern Police Academy Class # 089

Regd. # 10241

Rank:  Commenced Training at Redfern Police Academy on Monday ? ? ?

Probationary Constable – appointed 26 February 1962

Constable – appointed ? ? ?

Constable 1st Class – appointed 1 April 1967

Senior Constable – appointed 1 April 1971

Sergeant 3rd Class – appointed ? ? ?

Sergeant 2nd Class – appointed 16 November 1984

Sergeant 1st Class ( Senior Sergeant ) – appointed 1 September 1986

Final Rank: Senior Sergeant – retired

Stations:  ?, Western District ( 1968 ), Adelong ( Lock Up Keeper 1970’s ), Berkeley, Warilla, Pt Kembla

Service:  From  26 January 1962  to  5 January 1997 = 34+ years Service

Awards:  National Medal – granted 6 November 1980

1st Clasp to National Medal – granted 2 November 1988

Born: Monday  5 January 1942

Died on:  Wednesday 1 August 2007

Cause:  Cancer

Age:  65 years, 6 months, 27 days

Funeral date:  ?

Funeral location:  ?

Buried at:  ?

MICK is NOT mentioned on the Police Wall of Remembrance * NOT JOB RELATED

Mick was the nephew of NSW Policeman James Clement Joseph ROYAN

• Greg Callander.   Andrew Royds Royan

  August 1, 2014 at 10:34am · Like · 1
• Mitch Clarke I always think of Mick, as we often go through Adelong

  August 1, 2014 at 10:50am · Like · 1

   

• Joy Brown Lovely man remembered with fondness. RIP Mick

  August 1, 2014 at 11:07am · Like

   

• Jeffrey Little hard exterior – soft underbelly

  August 1, 2014 at 11:56am · Like · 4
• Linda Pill Love that rascal!

  August 1, 2014 at 12:07pm · Like · 1
• Stephen Baumann Gave a great clip across the ears to I know. Rip.

  August 1, 2014 at 12:07pm · Like · 1
• Andrew Royds Royan Yes indeed. And a quality kick up the arse for good measure!
  Sadly missed.
  Thanks for posting cal

  August 1, 2014 at 12:17pm · Unlike · 5
• Lee Wiggins RIP Mick.

  August 1, 2014 at 1:11pm · Like · 1
• Chris Hines Was a great bloke and great Sgt, firm but fair, can remember vividly him picking up a charge book and slapping probationary constables with it who had inadvertently written with the wrong coloured ink. RIP

  August 1, 2014 at 1:51pm · Like · 3
• Gary Thompson I remember our Wollongong cricket trips to Belconnen, Canberra with fond memories. RIP Curly and Frank.

  August 1, 2014 at 2:10pm · Like · 3
• Steve Hodder Two tough characters there, highly respected. RIP Curly and Frank.

  August 1, 2014 at 3:01pm · Like · 5
• Nigel Stretton Ditto Jeff Little and Shags

  August 1, 2014 at 5:39pm · Edited · Like · 2
• Mick-Chelle Pearce Like Nigel ( Junior) stated, good men RIP Curly and Frank ……

  August 1, 2014 at 8:45pm · Like · 1
• Kylie Bowden RIP Sgt. Royan.

  August 2, 2014 at 8:18am · Like · 1
• Steven Davies Cal I remember Sgt Royan (couldn’t bring myself to call him Curly) tearing me a new one about an exhibit and saying he was going to “spiflicate” me. Had to look it up and never heard it used by anybody else. Where on earth did he find those words ….RIP.

  August 2, 2014 at 12:19pm · Unlike · 4
• Andrew Royds Royan Having been on the end of many a “spifflication” I can tell you it’s not pretty!

  August 2, 2014 at 12:44pm · Like · 3
• Lance Milton Two great men in this photo Mick and Frank may they both RIP.

  August 3, 2014 at 3:45pm · Like
• Tony Chaplin Worked the Berkeley weekend car many times with Curly- John Dryburgh and Bob Payton ( R I P ) early 80′ s. Curly got PCA one night, charged him, Curl said he was Inpixicated with Toss Curls version of intoxicated w piss ???

  August 3, 2014 at 6:13pm · Like · 3

William James HARRIS

Queensland Police Force

Regd. # ?

Rank:  Constable

Stations:  ?

Service:  From  ?  to  ?

Awards:  ?

Born:  ?

Died on:  24 August 1915

Cause:  Injuries received riding a Police horse

Age:  28

Funeral date:  Friday  27 August 1915

Funeral location:  Rockhampton Cemetery, Qld

Buried at: Rockhampton Cemetery, Qld

RC    Section 15X   Burial # 4002d

[alert_green]WILLIAM IS mentioned on the Police Wall of Remembrance[/alert_green ]

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 Funeral location:

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The Capricornian  ( Rockhampton, Qld )        Saturday  28 August 1915            page 31 of 52

The funeral of Constable James William Harris, who met his death as the result of an accident on the Scrubby Creek Bridge, took place yesterday afternoon. A large body of officers and men of the Rockhampton police force, as well as others from outside stations, assembled at the police barracks, and, in charge of Senior sergeant M J. Carmody, marched in royal blue uniforms and white helmets to the late residence of the deceased in Arnold street and afterwards followed his remains to the Rockhampton cemetery, three marching on either ride of the hearse and the others immediately in the rear. Among those present at the funeral were the Police Magistrate, Mr. H. L Archdall, and the Clerk of Petty Sessions, Mr. W. G. Moran. The Rev. Father T. Grogan officiated at the graveside.

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/69402310

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Morning Bulletin ( Rockhampton, Qld )       Friday  3 September 1915                   page 10 of 12

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/53369843

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Morning Bulletin ( Rockhampton, Qld )          Thursday  9 September 1915       page 6 of 12

Scott Andrew BLANCHARD

Previous article called: Unnamed policeman

late of Bayswater, W.A.

Western Australia Police Force

Regd. #  9360

Rank:  Detective Sergeant

Stations:  ?, Gang Crime

Service:  From  ? ? ?  to  24 July 2015 = ? years of Service

Awards: Police Medal – 20 years

No find on It’s An Honour

Born:  ?

Died on:  Friday  24 July 2015  @ p.m. at 6kms south of Kalgoorlie, W.A.

Cause:  PTSD – Suicide – self inflicted gunshot wound – service weapon

Age:  45

Funeral date:  Thursday  6 August 2015 @ 2.30pm

Funeral location:  Karrakatta Cemetery, W.A.

Buried at:  Cremated

Memorial location:  ?

[alert_yellow]SCOTT is NOT mentioned on the Police Wall of Remembrance[/alert_yellow]  *NEED MORE INFO

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Policeman dies of gunshot wound on the outskirts of Goldfields city

July 25, 2015 1:13AM

Police confirmed the fatal incident happened on Friday night on the outskirts of the Goldfields city.

The Major Crime Squad is investigating, but the officer’s death is not being treated as suspicious.

“The circumstances of the firearm incident will be investigated on behalf of the Coroner,” police said in a statement.

Police counselling and chaplaincy services will be offered to the officer’s family and colleagues.

The officer’s name, age and rank has not yet been released.

In a statement released on Saturday morning the WA Police Union said it was “deeply saddened by the tragic death”.

“WAPU is providing support to our members during this difficult time and we have representatives on the ground in Kalgoorlie,” the union said.

“We will continue to work with WA Police to ensure the best possible outcome for all involved, given the circumstances.

“We extend our deepest condolences to the member’s family, friends and colleagues.”

http://www.news.com.au/national/policeman-dies-of-gunshot-wound-on-the-outskirts-of-goldfields-city/story-fncynjr2-1227456289601

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Thursday  6 August 2015

WA Police are investigating the death of an officer at a police station in Perth’s southern suburbs.

It is understood First Class Constable Darren Igglesden, 50, died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound at Cockburn Police Station on Monday morning.

In a statement, WA Police said support services were being offered to other officers.

The station has been temporarily closed, and the public has been asked not to attend the station until further notice. They have instead been redirected to nearby Fremantle or Mandurah stations, both of which operate 24 hours a day.

‘Popular member of the force’

Police Commissioner Chris Dawson extended his condolences to the family of Constable Igglesden and colleagues at Cockburn Police Station.

“It appears Darren has drawn his service-issued pistol from the police armoury this morning (Monday), shortly after 6:00am,” he said.

“He was found deceased by colleagues within the Cockburn police building.

“Darren’s death has come as a complete shock to his family, to his friends, and indeed the entire police force.

“At this difficult time I extend my condolences to Darren’s family, his friends, his work colleagues and everyone who knew him.

“A coronial investigation is now underway and so we should let that full investigation be completed, but there does not appear to be any other persons present at the time Darren lost his life.”

Commissioner Dawson said Constable Igglesden was a popular member of the police force.

“Constable Igglesden has been with the WA Police Force for six-and-a-half years, he joined us at about 44 years of age, he has had a varied career in the private sector prior to joining police,” he said.

“Well liked, well respected, a very popular member of the police force.”

Coroner called for more police support

The tragedy comes nearly a month after WA Deputy Coroner Evelyn Vicker released her findings into the suicide of police officer Scott Blanchard, who shot himself while on duty at Kalgoorlie in July 2015.

Ms Vicker found that while Detective Sergeant Blanchard appeared to be coping well with his job as a police officer, he had become “obsessed” that health problems he had were undiagnosable and “consequently took matters into his own hands …”

The inquest into Sergeant Blanchard‘s death heard details of the WA Police Service’s Health and Safety Division, which provides services such as confidential psychological counselling, peer support programs and chaplaincy services to officers and their families, to try to help them manage stress or issues that may arise as a result of their employment.

“At this difficult time I extend my condolences to Darren’s family, his friends, his work colleagues and everyone who knew him.

“A coronial investigation is now underway and so we should let that full investigation be completed, but there does not appear to be any other persons present at the time Darren lost his life.”

Commissioner Dawson said Constable Igglesden was a popular member of the police force.

“Constable Igglesden has been with the WA Police Force for six-and-a-half years, he joined us at about 44 years of age, he has had a varied career in the private sector prior to joining police,” he said.

“Well liked, well respected, a very popular member of the police force.”

Coroner called for more police support

The tragedy comes nearly a month after WA Deputy Coroner Evelyn Vicker released her findings into the suicide of police officer Scott Blanchard, who shot himself while on duty at Kalgoorlie in July 2015.

Ms Vicker found that while Detective Sergeant Blanchard appeared to be coping well with his job as a police officer, he had become “obsessed” that health problems he had were undiagnosable and “consequently took matters into his own hands …”

The inquest into Sergeant Blanchard‘s death heard details of the WA Police Service’s Health and Safety Division, which provides services such as confidential psychological counselling, peer support programs and chaplaincy services to officers and their families, to try to help them manage stress or issues that may arise as a result of their employment.

Police Minister Michelle Roberts said she believed the culture within the organisation was changing.

“I think the police force has changed dramatically over the last 10 years or so, in terms of encouraging officers to come forward and to show some additional care for themselves and their fellow officers,” she said.

“It used to certainly be the case that the attitude was ‘toughen up’ and to show any emotional vulnerability was seen as some kind of weakness. That’s not the attitude that’s been taken by police in recent years.

“We have had some shocking and tragic incidents in recent times where officers have had to turn out to shocking scenes, and sometimes they go to road crashes where they see shocking scenes, so we need to know that they have got the support there.

“And I have certainly received assurances from the Commissioner of Police and others that we have got good supports in place. Sometimes, though, people need to avail themselves of that support.”

Topics: police, suicide, wa, perth-6000

First posted 15 Oct 2018, 6:07pm

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-15/wa-police-officer-dead-from-self-inflicted-gunshot-in-cockburn/10378676

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 Karl Christian HANSON

“Possible” Relation(s) in “The Job”:  A. HANSON, NSWPF # 8358  ?

T.R. HANSON, NSWPF # 18057  ?

New South Wales Police Force

NSW Police Cadet # 1161

Regd. # 8870

Redfern Police Academy Class 0??

Rank:  Commenced Training, as a Cadet, at Redfern Police Academy on Friday18 February 1955 ( aged 16 years, 3 months, 12 days )

Probationary Constable – appointed 6 November 1957 ( aged 19 years, 0 months, 0 days )

Constable – appointed ? ? ?

Constable 1st Class – appointed 6 November 1963

Senior Constable – appointed 1 July 1968

Final Rank:  Senior Constable

Stations:  ?, South District ( 1968 ), ?, VKG2 – Warilla as a S.O.O. ( Senior Operations Officer ) – Retirement

Service:  From  18 February 1955   to  ? = ? years of Service

Age at Retirement: 

Time in Retirement:

Awards:  National Medal – granted 4 November 1992 ( SenCon )

Born:  Sunday 6 November 1938

Died on:  Thursday 12 July 2006

at the David Berry Hospital, Berry

Cause: Brain cancer

Age:  68 years, 8 months, 6 days

Funeral date:  ?

Funeral location:  Cremated ?

Buried at:

Wollongong Memorial Gardens

Berkeley Road, Berkeley.

MEMORIAL GARDENS GARDENS, Garden Rocks, Section 9J Site 7

KARL is NOT mentioned on the Police Wall of Remembrance * NOT JOB RELATED

 Funeral location:

Glen Anthony HUITSON, BM VA

aka  Japalyi

Northern Territory Police Force

Regd. # 1520

Rank:  Brevet Sergeant

Stations:  ?, O.I.C. – Adelaide River Police Stn

Service:  From  ? January 1987 to  3 August 2000 = 13+ years Service

Awards:  National Medal – granted 6 August 1999

Bravery Medal – BM – granted 14 February 2000

Valour Award & bar – VA for act performed in February 1999

Born:  20 November 1961, Bridgetown, W.A.

Died on:  3 August 2000

Cause:  Murdered – shot

Location:  Stuart Hwy & Old Bynoe Rd, Livingstone, N.T.

Age:  37

Funeral date:  Saturday  7 August 1999

Funeral location:  St Mary’s Cathedral, Darwin

Buried at:  Cremated.  Ashes scattered at Daly River Crossing, N.T.

Memorial Service:  Saturday  3 August 2019 ( 20th Anniversary ) 10.30am –

Glen Huitson Memorial, cnr Stuart Hwy & Old Bynoe Rd, Livingstone, N.T.

[alert_green]GLEN IS mentioned on the Police Wall of Remembrance[/alert_green]

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Brevet Sergeant Glen Huitson memorial, 3 August 2015

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???? GLEN HUITSON MEMORIAL ????

TWENTY YEAR REMEMBRANCE SERVICE

Saturday 3rd August 2019 will mark the 20th anniversary of the death of Brevet Sergeant Glen Huitson who was killed in the line of duty in 1999 whilst stationed at Adelaide River.

We will honour Glen with a gathering on Saturday 3rd August 2019 from 10.30am at the Glen Huitson Memorial, located at the corner of the Stuart Highway and Old Bynoe Road, Livingstone, N.T.

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Glen Anthony HUITSON – Inquest document

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Glen HUITSON joined the Northern Territory in January 1987.  He served in both Southern and Northern districts of the Northern Territory.

During his service in the Northern Territory Police, Glen Huitson received a Commendation from the Commissioner of Police on 17 March 1994 when he attended a disturbance at a Community near Alice Springs.  He disarmed a drunken person who was armed with a knife star picket and was threatening another person with a billy of boiling water.

In February of 1999 in Litchfield Park, Glen Huitson disarmed an armed man who was threatening the driver and passengers of a bus.  He received a Valour Award over this incident.

On 3 August 1999 Glen Huitson was on duty at a road block on the Stuart Highway, 60 kms south of Darwin, in bushland.

There were on watch for an armed offender who had already shot and wounded two other persons several kilometres away during the previous night.

The armed offender had managed to come through bush on one side of the road block where he opened fire with a .30/30 calibre rifle.  He fired the first round into the back of a civilian then a second shot at Huitson which struck him and was fatal.

For this incident he received the Australian Bravery Medal and a bar to his Valour Medal.

http://www.npm.org.au/huitson

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Glen Huitson Park

This park was named in memory of the late Sgt. Glen Anthony Huitson BM, VA, Service No. 1520 on 3 August 2000.

Sgt. Huitson was the officer in charge of the Adelaide River Police Station.  He died on 3rd August 1999 as a result of gun shot wounds received in the execution of his duties whilst manning a roadblock on the corner of the Stuart Highway and Old Bynoe Road.

Twice Decorated as a serving Police Officer, Glen Huitson lived his personal life with the same intensity, and was an integral part of community life in Adelaide River.  His untimely death has left a gap in this community which will never be filled.  Glen is survived by his Widow Lisa and children Joey & Ruby.

Citizens of the Coomalie Region joined with serving Members of the Northern Territory Police Force at this site on 3rd August 2001 to dedicate this memorial stone on the occasion of the second anniversary of Sgt. Huitson’s death.

We honour the life and the achievements of a remarkable citizen.

May He Rest In Peace

http://www.gdaustralia.com/july2015photos.html/content/IMG_8914_large.html

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Huitson Shooting

“On 3rd August 1999, at about 10:45 am, there was a shooting incident on the Stuart Highway at the corner of Old Bynoe Road in the Darwin rural district. In the course of the incident, two persons were shot dead. One, Glen Anthony Huitson, was a Sergeant of police on duty at the time he was killed.” (Coroner’s Findings)

Glen was performing duties on a roadblock with his partner in Livingstone at the Old Bynoe Road Turn off on the Stuart Highway, 55 Kilometres south of Darwin. They were stopping traffic entering the police cordon following a shooting incident the previous evening when the offender Rodney Ansell ambushed the roadblock shooting Huitson fataly and wounding a civilian in the back with his 30/30 rifle. For this incident he received the Australia Bravery Medal and a bar to his Valour Medal posthumously.

At about 10.45 am on the 3rd of August 1999 the roadblock at Old Bynoe Road was still in place. A local man had approached the road block to talk to the police members and was leaning on the police vehicle when suddenly he was shot in the pelvis from behind a large water pipe in nearby scrub. Huitson used the shotgun from the police car and O’Brien returned fire with his Glock pistol. Huitson was hit by a 30/30 round and fell to the ground. O’Brien reloaded the shotgun and returned fire. He called on Ansell to put his weapons down but he called back “Your all dead”.

In response to the gun battle two Territory Response Group vehicles raced to the scene. Just prior to the roadblock the first vehicle swerved and braked and was struck by the second vehicle causing it to roll over. As police exited both vehicles and began to take up positions Ansell got up on one knee to position himself to fire at the arriving police members. This left him exposed to fire from O’Brien and the shotgun fire finally stopped him. As the Coroner, Mr Wallace, said “There is little doubt his (O’Brien’s) bravery prevented further loss of life”.

It was later determined that there were seven entry wounds on his body from return fire from Huitson and O’Brien and numerous grazes. His covered position behind the water pipe and a small tree had protected Ansell from more serious injury until he was forced to change position.

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HUITSON, Glen

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ABC News: Aboriginal communities to send reps to police officer’s funeral

Trudy and Rod Bray Fri, 6 Aug 1999 00:26:27 -0700

Fri, 6 Aug 1999 11:41 AEST
Aboriginal communities to send reps to police officer's
funeral.

The Gurindji Aboriginal people, from two communities south-west of Darwin, are sending
representatives to the funeral of a Northern Territory police officer.

Sergeant Glen Huitson was killed by Rodney William Ansell on Tuesday.

The sergeant's partner, Constable Jamie O'Brien, returned the fire, killing Ansell.

A Gurindji representative, Roslyn Frith, says the sergeant was given the skin name, Japalyi,
because of the community's respect and love for him.

She says he will be missed greatly.

"To the community he wasn't just a policeman, he was just another person who belonged to
the community," Ms Frith said.

"He got involved - like if there were ceremonies he'd go down and make sure everything was
alright.

"With the younger generation, he took them out. Like he was with the emergency services out
here, he went out fishing and hunting with them," she said.

� 1999 Australian Broadcasting Corporation

https://www.mail-archive.com/recoznet2@paradigm4.com.au/msg01295.html

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NT: Aborigines planning funeral for Ansell in Arnhem Land

AAP General News (Australia)
08-09-1999
NT: Aborigines planning funeral for Ansell in Arnhem Land

By Catharine Munro

DARWIN, Aug 9 AAP – Rod Ansell, the original Crocodile Dundee who shot dead a policeman last week, is expected be given an Aboriginal funeral in Arnhem Land.

Ansell, 44, was killed in a shootout with police after fatally wounding Sergeant Glen Huitson, 37, about 50km south of Darwin last Tuesday.

The violent deaths followed a 12-hour search for Ansell, who had shot at two houses in the area the previous night.

His motives remain a mystery and the case is being investigated by the coroner.

The events shocked Darwin, where Ansell was known as a buffalo hunter and a bushman who had been living on an Aboriginal-owned property in Arnhem Land, about 600km south-east of Darwin.

Ansell’s two sons, Shaun and Callum, are believed to have requested that an Aboriginal community at Mt Catt, near Bulman in central Arnhem Land, allow a funeral to be held on their grounds.

“The two boys said they want to have the funeral at Mt Catt,” said Lorna Martin, who works at the clinic at Bulman.

Ansell spent some time in the area in the 1980s as a buffalo catcher and continued to make frequent visits.

The service will interrupt an important ceremony being held at Mt Catt but arrangements were being made for the proceedings to be halted for one day for the funeral on Thursday, Mrs Martin said.

“Everybody said it’s okay,” she said.

Ansell’s parents, George and Eva, both in their 70s, are understood to have journeyed to the Northern Territory from their home in Murgon, 260km north-west of Brisbane, to say goodbye to their son.

Meanwhile, the widow of the slain policeman, Lisa, said she had just returned from Daly River Crossing, where she had scattered her husband’s ashes.

Mrs Huitson told reporters she had spent three happy years there with Sgt Huitson and they had taken their son, Joseph, two and Ruby, six months, back there to be baptised.

“It was just a special place for us,” Mrs Huitson said.

Sgt Huitson‘s brother Bevan, sister Julie and parents Carole and John attended a press conference to thank the police and the people of the NT for their support.

“We are absolutely amazed at your generosity, the funds raised, the flowers sent and the well wishes and toys for Joseph and Ruby,” Bevan Huitson said.
http://crownfd.blogspot.com.au/2012/03/nt-aborigines-planning-funeral-for.html

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As strong as an ox and as brave as a lion, the blond haired, barefoot bushman survived for more than seven weeks on a small island at the mouth of a crocodile-infested river in the remote Northern Territory, sleeping up a tree with a brown snake at night to avoid the salties lurking below.

His story was the inspiration for the 1986 film Crocodile Dundee. But the film only tells part of the story of Ansell’s wild life.

More than a decade after his tale of survival brought fame and fortune to actor Paul Hogan, the real Crocodile Dundee was shot dead by police after a drug-crazed rampage that saw a police officer killed and three other men wounded.

***

STRONG men in uniform broke down on the side of the Stuart Highway the day Territory police officer Glen Huitson was shot dead in a gun battle with Rod Ansell.

It was like a scene from a cops and robbers movie.

But nobody won.

Sergeant Huitson was gunned down at a roadblock in bushland 60km south of Darwin by Ansell, who had been on the run from police.

Ansell was shot in the chest as Senior Constable James O’Brien returned fire.

“The only verbal communication I had with the gunman was when I was reloading the shotgun for the first time,” the surviving officer, who has never spoken openly about the ordeal, said in a statement almost 15 years ago.

“I called out to him to put his weapons down. He called back, ‘You’re all dead‘.”

Ansell was deranged and wired on speed, more than 20 years after he emerged from the wild, a handsome young hunter armed only with a knife, a gun and a story to tell, his boat having capsized on the remote Victoria River.

His crazed life came to an end on August 3, 1999, but not before he had gunned down a police officer, leaving two young children to grow up without a father.

Northern Territory police say they lost “an all-round good bloke” that day.

Sgt Huitson’s family was robbed of much more.

In 1994, Sgt Huitson had been commended for bravery after arresting a knife-wielding drunk man – who was also armed with a star picket and a billy of boiling water in a bid to harm another person – at a community near Alice Springs.

He received a Valour Award after he talked delusional man Wayne Costan – who had tried to hijack a tourist coach with a sawn-off .22 rifle – into dropping the weapon, before tackling him to the ground at Litchfield Park in February 1999.

Six months later Sgt Huitson was killed, aged 37.

His then-infant daughter, Ruby, and five-year-old son, Joseph, grew up without their dad.

His widow, Lisa, took home her husband’s posthumous Australia Bravery Medal and a broken heart.

Former NT Police assistant commissioner John Daulby was among those who raced out to the double killing.

“Everyone was stunned,” he said. “It was just a tragedy.”

“The grief at the scene is something that sticks with me – grown men in tears.”

Ansell had wounded two men on a shooting spree in Darwin and fled into the bush, raving mad, on the night of August 2, 1999.

He was convinced members of the Freemasons had kidnapped his sons – Callum, then aged 20, and Shawn, 18.

His girlfriend, Cherie Ann Hewson, had told him that as a child she had witnessed the sacrifice of young girls that her family – members of the secret medieval fraternity – “brought out of the woods”. They were bound, raped and slaughtered, she said.

The shared paranoia came to a head when Ms Hewson claimed she spotted three bow hunters, dressed in camouflage with night vision goggles, near their bush camp.

NT Coroner Dick Wallace would later say the “wretched drivel” was at the root of Ansell‘s madness, after the couple visited mates Steven Robinson and his partner, Lee-Anne Musgrave, on a property at Noonamah, about 50km south of Darwin.

Ansell fired six shots at their caravan on Kentish Rd.

Resident David Hobden jumped in his truck, armed with his double-barrel shotty, and went to investigate the shootings. He lost an eye when Ansell put a bullet through the windscreen of his truck.

He ran to alert his neighbour, Brian Williams, who “waxed wrath” at the state of his mate’s face and grabbed a baseball bat.

He charged at Ansell, who was trying to steal Mr Hobden’s truck.

“He was going on about stealing his children, and Freemasons, and being a baby killer … oh, just, he was mad, mate.”

Ansell fired shots at the Williams‘ house.

Then he ran away, his rifle in one hand and Mr Hobden‘s shotgun in the other.

Ms Hewson disappeared before the police shootout. Some feared she had committed suicide.

About 11pm, Territory Response Group sent two troop carriers with six cops in each to set up a command post. They manned the north roadblock.

Adelaide River police station boss Sgt Huitson and his second-in-charge, Sen-Const O’Brien, guarded the south cordon – at the corner of Old Bynoe Rd – with a pistol each, a 12-gauge shotgun and standard police issue .308 rifle.

About 10.30am the next day, a removals worker named Jonathan Anthonysz was leaning on the cop car, chatting to the officers when a bullet blew a hole “the size of a baseball” in his pelvis.

He was flung forward, screaming, on to the ground.

Mr Anthonysz’s colleague – David Hobden‘s brother, Anthony – dragged him out of view as Snr-Const. O’Brien covered them.

The shots were coming from light scrub behind a roadside water pipe.

The cunning fugitive had sneaked through the bush and was hidden by dappled tree shadows.

In his statement, Snr-Const O’Brien said: “I heard Glen shout out, ‘Get on the ground’.

I swung round to look over the boot of the car with my Glock drawn …

“I saw my shots hit the ground close to where (Ansell) was,” he said.

Sgt Huitson called TRG for help and grabbed a 12-gauge shotgun.

He fired a shot through the windows of the police car and two shots over the roof.

But a bullet from Ansell‘s .30-30 lever-action rifle ricocheted off the top of the metal door and struck him in the abdomen.

His bulletproof vest hadn’t been properly fastened. The bullet tore through a velcro strap that should have been covered by a Kevlar panel.

Sgt Huitson fell, landing on top of the shotgun.

Snr-Const O’Brien, who wasn’t wearing a vest, dodged a bullet and rolled his bleeding colleague off the shotgun, reloaded it and returned fire.

“I realised unless TRG arrived I could run out of ammunition, in which case I would have to retreat with the others,” he said.

“I loaded two more rounds, looked up and saw the gunman wriggling forward.

“I heard a sound like a match being struck just past the right side of my head.”

Then the TRG troop carriers came hurtling down the highway.

The first driver hit the brakes and swerved as he heard gun fire – the 4WD rolled when the second car crashed into it, unable to stop in time.

Ansell got up on one knee and began lining up the cops, who were crawling out of the vehicle.

Snr-Const O’Brien got a clear shot.

The autopsy showed 33 bullet wounds and grazes to Ansell‘s body.

Two were fatal. One shot had ripped through his aorta.

He fell face down in the dirt.

Sgt Huitson was declared dead after being rushed to Royal Darwin Hospital.

Snr-Const O’Brien was scrutinised and cleared of any wrongdoing after a rigorous police investigation.

His actions were praised as “simply outstanding” when Magistrate Wallace handed down his coronial findings in September 2000.

“If he felt any fear, it seems to have been submerged by his concern for his wounded colleague and others,” he said. “There can be little doubt his bravery prevented further loss of life.”

Ms Hewson handed herself in to Queensland police four days later.

Evidence that Ansell clung to the back of a road train and escaped the roadblocks fuelled a question that would never be answered – why would a skilled bushman give up his ticket to freedom and return to gun down police when he could have slipped away?

IT was no secret the 44-year-old buffalo hunter and grazier was bitter.

Writer Robert Milliken, who spent time with Ansell while working on projects in the NT, said Ansell never saw a penny for the myth surrounding his tangled life, despite being the inspiration for the main character in Crocodile Dundee, which propelled actor Paul Hogan to fame in 1986.

Ansell blamed his troubles on a Federal Government program to wipe out wild buffalo, his livelihood, to eradicate tuberculosis from the cattle industry. He had told reporters he was living on unemployment benefits and “bush tucker”.

Magistrate Wallace heard Ansell believed police and the government were against him.

He had moved to the Territory aged 15 from the small town of Murgon, 270km north of Brisbane, in country Queensland.

The ordeal that brought him fame happened when he took a fishing trip in a motorboat on the Victoria River in May 1977.

When the boat sank, he jumped in a dinghy and salvaged his two eight-week-old bull terriers, a rifle, a knife, some canned food and bedding. The tinny drifted out to sea, washing up on a small island at the mouth of the Fitzmaurice River.

He slept in the fork of a tree, out of reach of crocodiles, at night, but shared the branches with a brown tree snake.

Ansell never counted on being rescued. He roamed for seven weeks before stumbling on two Aboriginal stockmen and their boss.

But he kept the adventure under his hat – fearing his recklessness would upset his mother – until media got hold of the yarn.

Dubbed the “modern day Robinson Crusoe”, Ansell said: “I think if you come through in one piece, then nothing else really matters.

“It’s like going out to shoot a kangaroo.

“You don’t come back and say you missed by half an inch – you either got him or you didn’t.”

Mr Milliken described Ansell as “strikingly handsome with blond hair, blue eyes and bare feet” when he met him in 1988. It was the year Ansell was named Territorian of the Year for his role in putting the Top End on the map.

At the time, he lived with his wife, Joanne van Os, and their two small sons on their buffalo farm at Melaleuca, between Darwin and Kakadu.

“He was charming,” Mr Milliken said.

“He seems never to have worn shoes, even when travelling on aircraft and staying in city hotels at the height of his fame.

“The press went mad over his story and no one seemed to mind if the details grew ever more incredible.

“A hero had been born.”

He said Ansell once told British TV personality Michael Parkinson he preferred to sleep on the floor of his five-star Sydney hotel in his swag rather than in the kingsize bed.

Ansell’s Parkinson interview sparked the interest of Hogan and led to the creation of Mick “Crocodile” Dundee.

But the fame took its toll on Ansell’s personal life. His marriage disintegrated.

In 1992, he was convicted of cattle rustling and assaulting the owner of a cattle station in Arnhem Land.

Police raided Melaleuca. He eventually lost the property.

For more than a year before his death, Ansell had been living with Ms Hewson, a former tour guide, on a billabong at the Aboriginal outstation Urapunga, on the Roper River, about 480km south of Darwin.

He was initiated as a white member of local Aboriginal clan and got on well with the Ngukkur community. But the spiral into a drug-induced psychosis continued as Ansell smoked cannabis and injected amphetamines with vengeance.

“I didn’t know Ansell really well, but I’d met him a few times,” long-time Territorian and former reporter Chips Mackinolty said.

“He was tough as nails, the sort of person that could do what he said he did, and did do it when he was working as a stockman, as a wrangler and that stuff.

“He was an extraordinary person at that level, but it ended up in tears.”

Mr Mackinolty was heading to Katherine and had been allowed through the roadblock earlier on the day the killing happened.

“It was one of those ‘goose steps on your own grave’ sort of feelings – you were very close to what ended up being a very awful thing.

“It’s always sad when the threat of poverty and frustrated ambition get mixed up and send people off the edge, big time,” Mr Mackinolty said.

“I was completely shocked, as were a lot of people who knew him in the earlier years.”

In his coronial ruling, Magistrate Wallace said the contrast between the “original Crocodile Dundee who appeared on television” and the emaciated drug addict – who weighed just 53kg when he opened fire on police – could hardly be more marked.

“His drug abuse rendered his mind so addled he believed fantasies that a child would dismiss with contempt,” he said.

“His pointless and destructive actions caused immediate agony and suffering to the men he wounded.”

The infamous rampage means Ansell is remembered in Darwin not as a knockabout bushman, but as the man who murdered a heroic cop.

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Along the side of the Stuart Highway, heading to Batchelor and points south, there’s a turnoff at Old Bynoe Road. On this corner there’s a simple cross like far too many you see on Australian roads.  This one is the same in that it marks the point where a loved one lost his or her life. The ever-present, neatly-arrayed booze bottles testify to the fact that his friends have not forgotten him.

However this site is also different. It doesn’t mark a road fatality, but rather the death of a police officer on duty, Sergeant Glen Anthony Huitson, killed protecting the community from a man who had gone on an overnight shooting spree.  The further tragedy is that this death, left a young widow and two little children who will never know their father: the risks that police face daily in doing their duty.

By all accounts Glen Huitson was a quietly impressive young man and an excellent policeman who was soon to receive the Police Valour medal, given posthumously to his wife, Lisa. Huitson had worked out bush and was well respected by the communities he’d worked in. Stationed at Adelaide River at the time of the shooting, Huitson is also remembered by a memorial there.

Across the new railway track on the Old Bynoe Road, there’s a different kind of memorial from the simple cross with beer bottles. It’s the official memorial in Glen Huitson Park. It has an impressively large stone brought from a distance and plaques to honour the man and the police officer.

I recognise that another family lost a person they’d loved that day. No doubt as they pass Huitson’s memorial they think of their own loved one. However for me this is about the loss of a man doing his duty. As you go about your routines today, please remember all those police officers who daily risk their lives to protect us.

I leave you with Glen Huitson’s eulogy, testifying to his concern for others and his true community spirit. Rest in Peace, Sergeant Glen Huitson, you did your duty well.

 

4 thoughts on “Sergeant Glen Huitson”

1. What a wonderful tribute …thank you for bringing us this introduction to a man without whom the world is a poorer place.

   • Thanks Chris. It happened a couple of years after we got here and was a great tragedy. I really feel for his family and the loss of a good man.

2. I stumbled across this post today… For some reason Glen came to my mind, and I did a search. Maybe this all came about as I saw a photo of his gorgeous sister and his 2 beautiful children.
   Glen was a friend and I know his family well. He was a great man and it was an extremely sad day the day he left this life.

   • hi Vicki, sorry I hadn’t realised I’d omitted to reply. Thanks for sharing…it was indeed a tragic day for all concerned…we have a connection through the other officer that day though we didn’t know him at the time.

https://troppont.wordpress.com/2012/05/24/sergeant-glen-huitson/

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On August 3, 1999 Brevet Sergeant Glen Anthony Huitson was manning a roadblock on the Stuart Highway at Livingstone when he was shot and killed by “Crocodile Dundee” Rod Ansell.

Ansell was then hit with fatal return fire by Sgt Huitson’s partner, Senior Constable Jamie O’Brien.

He was the first policeman to be murdered on duty in the Territory for 47 years, and to this date he remains the last.

Sgt Huitson’s wife Lisa said the anniversary was always emotional.

“But he’s always with us and it’s good to see his colleagues and friends return,” she said.

“It’s nice to come back.”

The couple’s children Joe and Ruby were just 2 and 10 months old when their father was killed.

Police Commissioner John McRoberts said the memorial was a sobering reminder of the dangers of policing.

“It’s really good to pay our respects to a man who died doing what he loved and wanted to do – which was serve and protect,” he said.

Sgt Huitson joined the NT Police in January 1987. He served in both Southern and Northern districts.

During his service, he received a Commendation from the Commissioner of Police in March 1994 when he attended a disturbance at a community near Alice Springs. He disarmed a drunk armed with a knife and star picket, and was threatening another person with a billy of boiling water.

Then in February of 1999 in Litchfield Park, he disarmed an armed man who was threatening the driver and passengers of a bus. He received a Valour Award over this incident.

For the incident which cost him his life, he was awarded the Australia Bravery Medal, and a bar to his Valour Medal.

http://www.ntnews.com.au/news/northern-territory/family-and-friends-pay-tribute-to-brave-officer/story-fnk0b1zt-1227012766662

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Gregory  Michael JACKSON

( late of Bourke, formerly of Coffs Harbour )

New South Wales Police Force

Regd. # 32516

Goulburn Academy Class:  273 – the last PREP class

Rank:  Constable

Stations:  Cabramatta, Bourke

Service:  From:   14 February 1998 to  15 December 2001 = 3+ years Service

Attested:  Friday  14 August 1998

Awards:  ?

Born:  9 January 1974

Died on:  15 December 2001

Incident date:  24 November 2001

Cause:  Head injuries

Age:  27

Funeral date:  ?

Funeral location:  ?

Buried at:  Coffs Harbour Lawn Cemetery

[alert_blue]GREG is NOT mentioned on the Police Wall of Remembrance[/alert_blue] * NOT JOB RELATED

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Cop’s bar stool death a ‘tragedy’

The State Coroner yesterday found a Bourke policeman who was knocked off a bar stool at a police Christmas party died in a “tragic misadventure”.

An inquest at Dubbo and Sydney heard that Constable Gregory Jackson, 27, died from head injuries three weeks after falling head-first off a bar stool at the Bourke Golf Club.

Mr Jackson and his colleagues were celebrating at their Christmas party on November 24, 2001 when the incident occurred about 3.30am.

Mr Jackson was dancing on a bar stool in the middle of the dance floor but was knocked off balance by a colleague and fell to the floor. He died in Sydney’s Concord Hospital from head injuries three weeks later.

Delivering his findings, Coroner John Abernethy said the police officers still at the club were “happy, moderately-intoxicated and intent on dancing”.

The officer who knocked Mr Jackson from the stool was “affected with alcohol and in exuberant high spirits”, he said.

He said Constable Melanie Butcher made innocent contact with Constable Jackson’s legs, bumping into him either while running towards him with her arms outstretched or trying to climb onto a nearby stool.

But the contact “had the disastrous effect … of causing Constable Jackson to lose his balance and fall to the floor causing him a serious head injury”, Mr Abernethy said.

He also found Constable Jackson’s conduct – dancing on a 64cm tall bar stool – “had an inherent danger to it”.

Mr Abernethy dismissed suggestions the stool had been kicked out from under the officer and said no charges should be laid over the death.

“There is no criminality at all in the incident and I see it as simply a very tragic misadventure,” Mr Abernethy ruled.

However, he criticised police for the three-month delay in investigating Mr Jackson’s death, saying the lapse of time was “both significant and unwarranted”.

Before the first of two official police investigations began in March 2002, “the death of a fellow police officer was being treated … in a somewhat cavalier fashion”, he said.

“On one view it can be said that scant attention was paid to the duty to investigate a coronial death.”

Mr Abernethy was also critical that the first investigation – though sound – was run by a police officer who knew Constable Jackson and other officers involved in the incident.

“The decision ran the risk of a perception of a conflict of interest and lack of transparency,” he said.

He recommended that future NSW police investigations into coronial deaths of police officers be conducted only by an impartial investigator.

http://www.dailyliberal.com.au/story/812849/cops-bar-stool-death-a-tragedy/

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Greg was an avid 4 x 4 driver and is the brother of Brad Jackson.

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Maurice Barrett RICHARDS

New South Wales Police Force

Regd. # 8457

Rank:  Senior Sergeant – retired

Stations:  ?, Lockhart ,Wagga Wagga – OIC of Traffic & HWP

Service:  From  ?  to  ?

Awards:  ?

Born:  29 June 1930

Died on:  Saturday  20 June 2015

Cause:  short battle with Cancer

Age:  84

Funeral date:  24 June 2015

Funeral location:  held graveside

Buried at:  Lockhart Lawn Cemetery

Row D  Plot 65

[alert_blue]MAURICE is NOT mentioned on the Police Wall of Remembrance[/alert_blue] * NOT JOB RELATED

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 Funeral location: 

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Cherished poppy of Ada and Georgie.

Will be sadly missed by all his family and friends.

Aged 84 years.

A private burial was held at the Lockhart Lawn Cemetery as per Maurice’s wishes.