time to lower the BAC limit - New Zealand Police Association

The Voice of PoliceVOLUME 43 • NUMBER 5 • june 2010NZ’s drink driving problem- time to lower the BAC limitn Cabinet to decide on lowering blood alcohol limitn What you should know about your leave entitlementsn The 10 key features of organised crime

New Zealand Police Association“Notwithstanding that some aspects of the pursuitdid breach policy, the criticism of the officersfor ‘beginning’ the pursuit of a speeding driver,in the first place, is the sort of thing that leavesfrontliners shaking their heads.”Getting to Mr BigI recently watched an excellent AmericanPolice drama called ‘The Wire’.It’s set in the US city of Baltimore and isabout a group of cops who want to goafter some bigger criminals than usualin order to dent the local drug andmurder crime rates.They are hampered by politics,bureaucracy and a system requiringstatistics be delivered in the requiredcategories. Anything they achieve is verymuch in spite of the administrators, notbecause of them.Many cop and latterly hospital showshave a similar theme. I often wonderwhat administrators and bureaucratsthink when they see themselves parodiedin such roles, and their reaction to howthe policies and demands they make aremet with cynicism by those trying to getthe job done.A very good example is a recentIndependent Police Conduct Authority(IPCA) report criticising two policeofficers for ‘instigating’ a pursuit of whatturned out to be a stolen car, whichthen crashed and injured an innocentperson.Notwithstanding that some aspectsof the pursuit did breach policy, thecriticism of the officers for ‘beginning’the pursuit of a speeding driver, in thefirst place, is the sort of thing that leavesfrontliners shaking their heads.So we only police honest drivers whostop when requested?Obviously, there are always high-leveldecisions to be made by those with aglobal view, and with experience andinformation not available to those closerto the action.The advice I give to those makingimportant decisions, which will clearlyimpact on operational policing, is toimagine they were watching themselveson screen making and justifying whatthey were doing. Call it another layer ofaudit perhaps!Okay, it’s only a TV show and everyadministrator I know does his or herbest.However, imagining a camera andmicrophone transmitting to thesergeant’s or detective sergeant’s office,while some high level discussions aretaking place in and out of Police, mightjust help everyone focus.In a parallel with the plot of the show Iam referring to, I wonder if just beinghappy arresting the offenders for thelarge number of gang and drug relatedhomicides we are having, without astrategy to disrupt the top players inboth areas, means nothingwill improve in thenear future.Six officers receive Honours from Governor-General• Six current or former police officers were honoured at a Queen’s Honours ceremony attended by Commissioner Howard Broad and AssistantCommissioner Jon White recently. Pictured from left were: Sergeant David Stone QSM, Waikanae; Senior Sergeant Gaylene Rogers QSM,Auckland; Assistant Commissioner Jon White; James McDonough QSM, Upper Hutt; Lady Susan Satyanand; Senior Constable Robert FilbeeQSM, Palmerston North; Governor-General, Hon Sir Anand Satyanand; Commissioner Howard Broad; Detective Superintendent MichaelPannett MNZM, Wellington; and Detective Senior Sergeant Grant Coward QSM, New Plymouth.June 2010115

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceAttacks highlight the need for added protectionBy Deb Stringer, Communications AssistantA recent attack on two police officers in Mangere continues tohighlight the need for added protection for police.Sergeant Vernon Woolf was one of the officers called to thescene where two constables were set upon by a pack of up to15 youths armed with large pieces of wood.The highly intoxicated youths were seeking revenge on thetwo officers after being told to leave a park.No regard for the lawConstable Andrew Warne said the incident had begun afterhe and Constable Sesilani Osa had come across the youthsin Rushmore Reserve. After discovering the youths wereintoxicated, the two officers identified themselves as policeofficers and asked them to leave the park.“We were in plainclothes but we made sure we identifiedourselves, so they definitely knew who we were,” Mr Warnesaid.“The group were definitely not happyabout leaving, however, did eventuallyleave the park.”After the incident, Mr Warne calledMr Woolf and his partner to the scene,as a precautionary step.Round twoMinutes after Mr Woolf and hispartner were called to the scene, thepack of youths started rushing towards the officers with piecesof wood, which had nails protruding from them.“We didn’t have any time to think, we just had to act. Luckily,none of us were seriously injured, considering there were fourof us and about15 of them, ” Mr Warne said.“We managed to restrain a couple of them but it wasn’t thepepper spray that managed to subdue them, as it took quite awhile for this to take effect,” he said. It was only the officers’own efforts that allowed an arrest to be effected.“It’s times like these when you really could do with access to aTaser or firearm, as you really don’t know how the situation isgoing to go,” he added.No respectMr Woolf said part of the problem these days was that peoplejust did not show the same respect for Police as they once did.“Back in the day, the uniform used to be enough of a deterrent,but these days that’s just not the case,” he said.Mr Warne said that there was a propensity for offenders tolaunch into attacks on police officers in order to show theirpeers that they were unafraid of the law.“Sadly for some it seems like it is something to aspire to,” hesaid.More commonplaceIn recent months, Mr Warne and Mr Woolf have both foundthemselves attending more incidents where this attitude wasprevalent.“We didn’t have any time to think,we just had to act. Luckily, noneof us were seriously injured,considering there were four of usand about 15 of them.”“It’s becoming more and more common, so a move towardsmaking Tasers and firearms more accessible is definitelysomething which I support,” Mr Warne said.“Having that extra protection there when we need it wouldprovide us with a welcome element of safety, especially as Ican’t see these types of incidents simmering down anytimesoon,” Mr Woolf said.Tough workMr Woolf and Mr Warne both work on Section 4 in Otahuhu,a division that has seen its fair share of casualties within thepast few months. Police News understands that several Section4 officers have been injured in incidents in the last six months.The worst incident came when Constable Jeremy Snow wasextremely lucky to survive after being shot four times whenon a routine patrol late last year.Mr Snow is understood to still be receiving medical treatmentfor the serious injuries he sustained. Despite his keenness toreturn to duty on Section 4 it is notknown when he will be able to do so.However, assaults on police are notconfined to Otahuhu as is evidencedby the fact that last month, threeyoung, unarmed constables bravelydisarmed an Auckland bar patron,who appeared to be affected by drugs,during a routine licensing check. Theman, who had brandished a pistol,was allegedly found with $10,000and a large amount of P after beingsubdued by the officers in an ensuing struggle.- Constable Andrew Warne.Big increasesThe number of assaults on police has jumped more than25% in the last 10 years. The number of serious assaults hasincreased from 216 in 1999 to 412 last year – a jump of 90.7%.These latest incidents follow a spate of attacks on police, oneof which left a constable unconscious after being viciouslyattacked while attending a domestic incident in Ngaruawahia.The officer attended the incident alone because two colleaguesfrom Huntly were attending a domestic incident in Te Kauwhata.The officer was waiting for a dog handler to arrive when hewas set upon after going to the aid of a woman who was beingattacked. He struck his head on the kerb and was left bleedingand unconscious after being knocked to the ground. A womanin the group then called police on the officer’s patrol car radio.Growing trendPolice Association President Greg O’Connor said theseincidents highlighted a growing trend amongst offenders whohad “no fear of the consequences in confronting police”.“Now we’ve got a generation of youths growing up that thinkthe police can’t touch them. We’re seeing more and morepeople refusing to stop when driving when requested to doso and it’s that same attitude that is seeing people attackingpolice officers,” he said.Cabinet is soon to consider a proposal by Justice MinisterSimon Power to increase the penalties for serious attacks onpolice.116June 2010

New Zealand Police AssociationEnsuring respect for the lawMr O’Connor said that there needed to beconsideration for extending the penaltiesto the lower end of the spectrum too -for offences like threatening or abusingofficers. “In this way people will learnabout respect for the law and that theyface consequences if they choose toignore it,” Mr O’Connor said.He said the Ngaruawahia incident“highlighted the realities of officerspolicing alone where a reliance onspecialist backup to ‘sort it out’ was notan option and an immediate responsewas required from the officer.”Mr O’Connor said that the incidentsrecently were a reflection of not onlythe officers’ individual bravery but alsowhat the public expected from theirpolice. “But it is unreasonable to expectpolice to continue to do so without aneffective means of defending themselvesand others,” Mr O’Connor said. “Inthese latest incidents luck was on ourside but we all know that there are timeswhen that may not be the case and itis an imperative that we do as muchas possible to give police officers theright tools to do their job effectively,”he added.Norwegian lockbox model favoured“The Police Association has lookedextensively all around the world forfirearm accessibility models suitablefor the New Zealand environment. Webelieve the Norwegian model, whereevery patrol car has a pistol in a lockboxin the centre console, is clearly themost appropriate. Had the officer inNgaruawahia been able to draw a firearmor Taser and arm himself before exitingthe vehicle and confronting the offender,it is extremely unlikely he would havebeen assaulted and injured as he went tothe aid of the victim. Most importantly,the offender would almost certainly haveacted differently – a fact often forgottenin the arming debate.“Once upon a time, the blue uniformitself would provide a layer of relativesafety. As these incidents show, thosedays are gone. It is frankly naïve tocling to a belief that violent offenderswill simply drop their fists, or anotherweapon, and defer to authority.“Assaults on police are assaults on thecoercive arm of the law and thereforesociety itself,” Mr O’Connor added.Police Commissioner Howard Broad hasindicated that he is looking at making iteasier for officers to access firearms.Child witness reportwelcomed byJustice MinisterJustice Minister Simon Power haswelcomed the report ‘Child Witnessesin the New Zealand Criminal Courts’,launched recently by Auckland Universityof Technology’s Institute of Public Policy.Mr Power said he would be “seriouslyconsidering” the report’s findings.The report examines the treatment ofchild witnesses in criminal courts and howpolice and court processes may impact onthe quality of children’s evidence.Mr Power said Ministry of Justice officialswould work with other governmentagencies to develop best-practiceguidelines that ensure children receivethe best possible care. They will also lookat ways of increasing participation in theCourt Education for Young Witnessesprogramme.Mr Power said he was keen to seehow overseas jurisdictions treat childwitnesses, particularly during questioning,forensic interviewing, and pre-recordedvideotaping of evidence.June July AugustPAIHIA............................................ 7-10,27-30....................................................1,18-22,29-31.........................................................1-6,8-12,15-31STANMORE BAY.............................. 7-11,16-18,20-30..........................................1-2,12,15,17-31......................................................1-31AUCKLAND..................................... 14-16,27........................................................1,18-19,23,27..........................................................1,3,8,15,18,26WAIHEKE ISLAND........................... 14-16,21-24,28-30........................................1,4,19-22,25-26......................................................1-5,7-12,15-19,22-26,29-31WHANGAMATA............................... 7-10,13,16-17,20-24,27-30..........................1-2,18-31................................................................1-27,29-31MT MAUNGANUI............................. 7-10,16-17,20-24,27-30...............................1,19-22,25-29.........................................................1-5,15-19,22-26,29-31OHOPE........................................... 7-17,20-25,27-30..........................................1,4,17-31.................................................................1-5,8-28ROTORUA....................................... 8,13-17,21-24,27-28,30................................2,18,22-23,25-28....................................................1-5,8-12,15-19,22-24,29-31TAUPO............................................ 6-9,19,27.......................................................2,8,19-21,25-28......................................................2-5,8-12,15-19,23-26,30-31TURANGI........................................ 12,16-17,20-21,27........................................Winter ballot.............................................................Winter ballotNAPIER........................................... 7,9,13-18,20-21,24,27-30.............................1-2,7,18-22,25-29...................................................2-5,7-12,15-19,22-26,29-31PARAPARAUMU.............................. 11,13-17,20-23,28-30...................................1,16-22,26-29.........................................................1,8-12,16-19GREYTOWN.................................... 7-8,10,13-17,20-24,28-30............................1,7-8,18-23,25-29...................................................1-5,8-12,16-19,22-26,29-31WELLINGTON................................. 7-8,14-17,20-24............................................5,21,23,26-29..........................................................2-5,9-12,15-17,22-26,29-30NELSON......................................... 7-10,13-16,20-30..........................................1,6-7,14-21,25-27...................................................2-7,9-11,13-27HANMER SPRINGS.......................... 29-30.............................................................Fully booked.............................................................3-4,22CHRISTCHURCH............................. 6-8,16,21-22,28............................................4-7,10,13,15,17-21,26,28.......................................1-2,4,8,15-17,23-27,31AKAROA......................................... 9-10,13-16,20-23,29-30...............................1,4,19-20,22,25,29..................................................1-5,8-12,15-19,22-26,29-31TEKAPO.......................................... 7-8.................................................................Winter ballot.............................................................Winter ballotWANAKA........................................ 8,10,13-19,26-30..........................................1-2...........................................................................Winter ballotCROMWELL.................................... 7-10,13-16,21-24..........................................4-9...........................................................................2,5-6,13-15,19-31QUEENSTOWN................................ 14-15,17........................................................Winter ballot.............................................................Winter ballotTE ANAU......................................... 6-18,20-27,30...............................................1-2,8,11,13-31........................................................1-31DUNEDIN........................................ 7-10,13-14,21-24,29-30...............................1-2,18-22,26...........................................................1-5,8-12,15-19,22-27,29June 2010117

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceIla and Turk share the honours at NationalPolice Patrol Dog ChampionshipsBy Steve Plowman, Editor, Police NewsThe National Police Patrol Dog Championship has, for the firsttime its 43-year history, resulted in a tie between defendingchampion Ila and Turk and their respective handlers SeniorConstable Jason Todd (Wellington) and Constable LoganMarsh (Tauranga). They share the Frank Riley ChampionshipCup.Turk and Constable Marsh were first time entrants.Eleven Police patrol teams from around the country qualifiedat regional competitions for the three-day competition. Fivenarcotic dog teams from Police, Customs and Corrections, andfive explosives dog teams from Police, Customs and AviationSecurity joined them.High quality of competitionInspector Brendon Gibson, national co-ordinator of policedogs, said very little separated the top dog teams across alldisciplines and all categories.“It’s always difficult to predict who wins on the day butconsistency and teamwork are essential,” he said.Senior Constable Todd said he was very pleased with Ila’scomeback effort. There had been some doubt as to whethershe would be able to compete after being slashed across thenose with a knife in an operational incident just three weeksbefore the champs.“It’s great to bounce back like this and for her to perform tothe level I know she’s capable of,” he said. Senior ConstableTodd said he had been feeling the pressure of being defendingchampions leading into the event and that it was “great thatwe’ve pulled this off.”Breeding programmeFive-year-old Ila and four-year-old Turk are both products ofthe national police dog breeding programme, which is run outof the New Zealand Police Training Centre at Trentham.Constable Marsh said he was “blown away by the win”,especially since it was their first time at the nationals. “Iam absolutely stoked,” he told Police News. He said Turkhad been really sick with a chronic neuromuscular diseasecalled myasthenia gravis, which renders the muscles useless.Constable Marsh has had to inject Turk several times a dayto keep the dog alive at various times over the last year. “Athis worst he was not able to walk for more than 20 secondswithout collapsing on the ground, coming very close to deathtwice,” he said.Turk had only been back working properly about eight weeks.“So this is just the icing on the cake. He’s still not a 100%cured but all the hard work seems bloody worthwhile now,”he added.The nationals turned out to be a bit of a family affair forTurk. His brother Tank and his father Reiker competed aswell. “Maybe it was the family support that got him through,”Constable Marsh joked.Constable Marsh and Turk had a second win at the champs118June 2010• BATTLE SCARS: Stitches were evident on the bridge of the nose ofreigning Police patrol dog national champion, Ila, as she was putthrough her paces by her handler Senior Constable Jason Todd atthis year’s championships. Ila and Jason deadheated with Turk andConstable Logan Marsh to share the title.Photo courtesy of Kevin Stent/The Sunday Star-Times.• MIRACLE DOG: Turk, co-winner of the National Police PatrolDog Championship, with his handler, Constable Logan Marsh ofTauranga. Turk’s performance was extraordinary in that he cameback from a serious muscular disease to share the honours.- Photo courtesy of the Bay of Plenty Police Forensic Photography.

New Zealand Police Associationwhen they captured the Williams RoseBowl for criminal work and buildingsearch disciplines.Butch takes thirdThird place went to Senior ConstableGrant Egan and his dog Butch(Whangarei); fourth and winner of theCommissioner’s Cup for obedience workwere Senior Constable Mike Warrenand Zyger (Hawke’s Bay); fifth placeand winner of the Monaghan Trophy forheelwork were Constable Gary Meikleand Maverick (Wellington); sixth placeand winner of the Colin Guppy Trophyfor tracking were Senior Constable JulianLewis and Saegar (Nelson), and seventhplace and winner of the Monaghan Cup forthe ‘send away’ discipline were ConstableBlair Benson and Kane (Hawke’s Bay).Category winnersChampionship winners in the othercategories were:• Explosive Detection National Championand winner of the AviationSecurity Shield went to AviationSecurity Officer Craig Bishop and Fyfefrom Wellington. Fyfe is a curly coatedretriever and this was their first win.• Narcotic Detection Champion andwinner of the Alan Symes Cup and theMaidstone Auto Point Cup was SeniorCustoms Officer Kevin Hatrill andCass from Christchurch. They retainedtheir national title. Cass is a labrador.Police Commissioner Howard Broadawarded the various prizes. Representativesfrom the other agencies also attended.Association’s Turangi holidayhome badly damaged by fireThe Police Association has lost one of itsholiday homes at Turangi to fire.Unit one was extensively damaged byfire in mid-May and the repairs arelikely to take several months.The incident occurred after a groupof people, who had just completed aspring clean of the units, placed someitems in a drier, set the timer to turn offand left the house.Later that evening the alarm companyinformed Turangi Police that both thefire and flood alarms (monitored alarms)had been activated at the property.A patrol car attended and found theunit severely damaged.Substantial replacements neededThe fire gutted the laundry, hallway,bedroom and roof space. Many ofthe trusses in the roof were severelydamaged and will need to be replaced,as will all the bedroom furniture, lightfittings and the heat pump, which wasin the kitchen and dining area.Insurers have been informed andWelfare Fund Manager Pete Hayessaid the Association is committed torepairing or replacing the home to itsprevious standard.“As far as I am aware, this is the firstmajor fire in our holiday homes and weare very glad that no one was injured asa result of the fire,” he said.The Association will soon contactmembers who planned to stay in theunit over the coming months.Obviously, all bookings will becancelled and full refunds will be givento affected members.10.75% paA Police and Families Credit Unionpersonal loan can help you achievethe things you want sooner.Whether it’s a car, holiday, homeimprovements or consolidatingyour credit cards into one payment:Police Credit Union is here to help.• Unit 1 of the two Turangi holiday homes was extensively damaged by fire last month.June 2010119

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceA day in the life of aN e w z e a l a n d p o l i c ephysical education officerBy Deb Stringer, Communications AssistantPolice work is often physically demanding so keeping fitness levelshigh is an important part of the job.Police Physical Education Officers (PEO) areon hand to offer practical help, advice andsupport to officers and recruits with theirfitness goals to maintain a level of fitness,which enables them to complete their dutiesproficiently.To achieve this, PEOs provide health andfitness testing, programming and remedial/rehabilitation exercise prescription.Nationwide, there are 10 PEOs and they doa crucial job in keeping the force up to themark with its fitness.Main dutiesA big part of a PEO’s job is managingthe Physical Competency Test (PCT) andthe Physical Appraisal Test (PAT) for newrecruits and serving police officers.New recruits must pass both tests beforebeing accepted into the Police. Servingofficers are subject to a PCT test every twoyears.However, the PCT is not compulsory forofficers above the rank of inspector. Officerscan apply for an exemption on medicalgrounds or because of injury.Wellington-based, Graham Wallwork, whohas been working as a PEO for 24 and a halfyears said he felt “great satisfaction” fromseeing people pass the test.PEOs are also involved in co-ordinatinghealth analysis tests (Cardiac Risk Profiling)for all staff, specialist squad testing andrelated pre-selection, remedial programmes,team building and exercise rehabilitation.Skills setA comprehensive knowledge of physicalhealth, health education and sports scienceis needed to do the job effectively. Goodcommunication skills, time management and120June 2010working independently as your own boss arealso important.“You are expected to write a lot of healthprogrammes and these can range fromrehabilitation programmes to more in-depthprogrammes for specialist squads,” MrWallwork told Police News.“You have to able to work on your own,as you are expected to come up with yourown ideas in relation to your own healthpromotions.”“A comprehensiveknowledge of physicalhealth, health education andsports science is needed todo the job effectively. Goodcommunication skills, timemanagement and workingindependently as your ownboss are also important.”Keeping yourself fit and healthy is anothermust, according to Peter Wells, MrWallwork’s colleague at Wellington Central.“You really need to practice what youpreach, as there is no point telling peopleone thing while you are doing somethingelse.“This is why I try and eat healthy andmaintain a healthy exercise regime,” MrWells said.Hours of workPEOs work standard working hours 0800–1630 Monday to Friday. However, hours canchange depending on what is needed, sothere is some flexibility required.“Weekend work is sometimes required –however this only happens around six timesa year,” Mr Wallwork said.Mr Wallwork said the best part of the jobwas helping people reach their goals.“Nothing beats seeing their sense ofaccomplishment once they get to where theyare wanting to go and this can range fromsomeone completing their rehabilitation toreaching the highest level of their sportinggoals.”He also said motivating people to adopt ahealthier lifestyle was a highlight.Mr Wells said it was great when peopleblitzed their remedial programmes.“It a great feeling for me as well as themwhen they come up to scratch and pass,”he said.Challenging conditionsOne aspect of the job Mr Wallwork foundchallenging was a lack of recognition fromsome quarters of the Police hierarchy of theimportance of the health and fitness modelsthat PEOs deliver every day.“I feel frustrated with how long some thingstake to get done because I believe we coulddo so much more with the right technologyand backing.Mr Wells said it was frustrating when peopledidn’t follow advice. Many sports coacheswould be able to relate.“It’s difficult when you set out a programmefor someone and then they don’t followthrough. It’s disappointing because youknow if they just put a bit of effort in, theywould be able to get it,” Mr Wells said.Changing timesMr Wallwork said a lot of things hadchanged since the PCT was first introduced.“Back then, all we had was the PCT. Nowwe have the PAT, the health analysistest, and more recently rehabilitation

New Zealand Police Associationprogramming and specialist squad testingwhich we have added over the years.”Mr Wallwork said that exercise regimenshad changed for people over the years too.In recent years there has been a movetowards more whole body full functionalmovements whereas previously trainingrevolved largely around more isolatingmovements. “It’s now about adopting amore holisview to exercise and we are reallyseeing the benefits of this change,” he said.Future initiativesMr Wells said Police were waiting on areview, which was looking into whether thePCT was relevant to policing today.“Once we get these results back we can workout where we want to take the things fromthere,” he said.Other projects included looking into the typesof injuries officers suffer even while wearingstab proof vests and the effect of theseinjuries on the body.“From this we can then incorporateprogrammes, which can alleviate theseproblems,” he added.Try our 5 minute quizOkay, morning or afternoon tea breakhas arrived. You have your cuppa inhand and you and your colleaguescould do with a quick brain workout. Soappoint your quizmaster and have a go atthese questions. The answers are underthe quiz (upside down, no peeking!).1. Which year was the deathsentence for murder abolished inNZ?2. Which animal communicates bytouch, smell and dance?3. What is the sixth planet from thesun in the solar system?4. The shape of DNA is known as?• Police Physical Education Officer Graham Wallwork looks on as new recruit Alice Wiggindrags a 75kg dummy 10 metres during her PCT (Physical Competence Test).5. What is the world’s mostcommon first name?6. Who invented the scissors?7. In which city would you findMichelangelo’s statue of David?8. What is the primary ingredient inGnocchi?9. What is Mancala?10. Where in Europe, is Leonardo daVinci Fiumicino Airport?Scoring: 0-2 – Hmmn, room forsignificant improvement (perhaps nextmonth). 3-5 Not bad, better luck nexttime. 6-7 – Good effort. 8 – Very good.9 – Excellent. 10 – Wipe your nose,take a bow and go to the top of the classEinstein.• Pete Wells, a Wellington Police Physical Education officer, demonstrating just one of thetechniques used for making it over the dreaded wall.Answers: 1. 1961 2. Bees . 3. Saturn.4. A double helix . 5 Muhammad. 6.Leonardo da Vinci 7. Florence 8. Potato9. A board game 10. RomeJune 2010121

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceWhat you should know about your leave entitlementsBy Tracy White, Association Industrial OfficerOnce again the pressure is going onmembers around the country to takeleave before 30 June.Please read the information belowto ensure that you understand yourentitlements, and what you need to do tomanage your leave.The Association supports andencourages the regular taking of leavein line with the Collective Agreements.We have also supported Police inencouraging members to focus onusing their leave in a timely fashion,especially those with high balances.There are, however, a number ofinaccuracies being communicated to ourmembership, including:• Arbitrary leave balance limits (40days, 35 days, and in some cases 20days);• That the two days additional leaverequested by the Commissioner is adirective and must be followed; and• That individual leave balances will bemeasured as at 30 June.There are several key things all membersmust remember when it comes to leavemanagement:1. Your leave year is the 12 months fromyour anniversary date;2. You must plan for and take yourannual entitlement every year;3. You must be below the 18-monthlimit at your anniversary date, andif you anticipate that you will beabove this, you must adjust your planaccordingly; and4. You cannot be directed to take leavewithout a fair and transparent leavemanagement process.Your entitlementAs per the Collective Agreements(Constabulary Section 5, PoliceEmployees Section 4), you are entitledto hold up to 18 months worth of leave(across all leave types, excluding LongService Leave) on your balances at anyone time. This is not a target. This limitrecognises that even when you plan yourleave, the nature of policing is such thatat times you may not take all plannedleave, or you may accrue leave in excessof your plan. Police may not implementa formal leave management plan untilyou exceed this balance.Your ‘leave year’Members must plan their leave for the12 months from their anniversary date.This is your ‘leave year’. The 30th ofJune is the end of the financial year forPolice and, as such, this is an importantdate from their perspective. However,Police must bear in mind that memberscannot be directed to manage their leaveon the basis of a 30 June date. This is anarbitrary date in regard to leave.What you must doYou should plan to take your annualentitlement every year. This will differfrom member to member.At your anniversary date you must bebelow the 18-month limit.Where a member is above the 18-monthlimit, Police will put the member’s leavemanagement under closer scrutiny. Thiswill involve the supervisor and memberhaving a discussion about why the plandidn’t work and putting in place a newplan for the upcoming year.If, despite leave management, themember still has a balance higherthan the 18-month limit at their nextanniversary date, Police may direct themember to take leave. This should be ata time suitable to both parties, but wherePolice and the member cannot agree onLeave type (days) Annual Statutory Commissioner’s Shiftworker’s PCTleave holidays days leave leaveEmployee TypeConstabulary, 5yr service 25 11 1-5 3Police employee 5yr service 25 11Police employee: Shiftwork 5yr 25 11 1-5If your balance is at or over the18-month accrual, you must plan to takeyour annual entitlement PLUS enoughadditional leave to ensure that at yournext anniversary date you are below the18-month limit.In the current financial year theCommissioner asked that every membertake his or her annual entitlement plusat least two additional days to help theorganisation out financially. The PoliceAssociation has been encouragingmembers to co-operate with thisrequest. However, the real target is notthe members who have actively managedtheir leave. It is those with excessive leavebalances. Where you have taken yourannual entitlement, and your balance iswithin the 18-month limit, the taking oftwo additional days is not a requirementthat must be complied with.What should a leave managementprocess look like?Ideally, leave management shouldhappen throughout the year. Membersmust submit a leave plan every year, andthroughout the year adjust it as required.a suitable time, Police may direct themember to take leave at a specified date.As you can see, leave management is anongoing process.“Mystical powers”escape so Policeface lawsuitIdaho man Craig Shaw, 49, hasfiled a lawsuit against the US statefor compensation following hisarrest for drink driving.Shaw said the cops opened hisprized medicine bag, allowing“mystical powers” inside toescape.He said the bag was blessed by a“medicine woman” in 1995 andhad been unopened since then,presumably in order to prevent themystical powers from escaping!122June 2010

New Zealand Police AssociationPolice Association welcomes IPCA child abuse reportThe Police Association welcomed the Independent PoliceConduct Authority’s report into backlogs in the investigationof child abuse files.“This is an area that has been of concern to members workingin the child abuse area for some time. The Police Associationdrew attention to the problem in 2006 and we welcome theIPCA’s focus on it,” Police Association Vice-President StuartMills said.A Police News investigation published in the September2006 issue headed New Zealand’s “Dark Secret” (opposite)highlighted the problem and the concerns overstretchedinvestigators had about it. In the Wairarapa, there was abacklog of over 100 child abuse cases. Two years later, Policelaunched Operation Hope and it quickly became a nationwideinquiry. Police have now apologised for not properlyinvestigating child abuse cases.Police Commissioner Howard Broad said that Police had “letthese people down”.Duty of careIndependent Police Conduct Authority Chair Justice LowellGoddard said Police may have failed in their duty of carebut Commissioner Broad has rejected this assertion. JusticeGoddard said Police needed to focus on having dedicatedchild abuse teams.Mr Mills said: “Clearly sufficient resources were not allocatedto child abuse investigations in the past. There was pressureon to get results in volume crime areas like burglaries andtheft ex-car. Those were strategic targets and performancewas measured against the targets. Resources tended to follow.This meant that in a few areas - but by no means across theboard - CIB staff were left stretched too thin across other typesof crime including child abuse.”Difficult and complex work“We believe this was largely because, historically, some highleveldecision-makers didn’t fully appreciate what’s required todo ‘business as usual’ policing, like child abuse investigations,properly. Child abuse investigations are difficult, complex andtime consuming,” Mr Mills said.• Saliel Aplin and OlympiaJetson• Coral-Anne Burrows• James Whakaruru• Chris and Cru Kahui• Lilybing Karaitiana-Matiaha- photos courtesy of TheDominionPostSuffer the little children…By Steve Plowman, Editor, Police NewsJames Whakaruru, Lilybing Karaitiana-Matiaha, Saliel Jalassa Aplin, OlympiaMarissa Jetson (Saliel’s half-sister), Coral Anne-Burrows, Delcelia Witika,Chris and Cru Kahui – their names and faces make our blood run cold.They are, of course, the victims of New Zealand’sdarkest secret – child abuse. These are some of thechildren who who paid with their lives – their namesand faces constant reminders of New Zealand’sshameful record of violence towards our innocents.A United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) report,places us as the third worst country in terms of childabuse maltreatment deaths of 27 ‘rich’ countries.In 1994 we ranked sixth.Babies under a year old are at much higher risk inNew Zealand than elsewhere, accounting for 30% ofall child deaths from maltreatment here against 24%internationally.Types of abuseThere are four main recognised types of child abuse- physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse andneglect. Emotional abuse can be a component of theother three types but it is not uncommon for all fourtypes of abuse to co-exist.A review of every death for children aged 0–14 years byDr Peter Watson in 1999 found that homicide was oneof the three leading causes of death. This unpublisheddata provides compelling evidence, which suggeststhat New Zealand’s ‘dark secret’ is that a child’s rightto life and security is not being adequately met in NewZealand.New Zealand’s social agencies, along with specialistPolice Child Abuse Teams (CAT), are at the coalface ofdealing with the problem of maltreatment of the mostdefenceless members of our society.Worsening situationThe situation has continued to get worse with a 45%increase (a record 13,017 cases) in established childabuse cases identified by the Department of Child,Youth and Family last year. Suspected child abusenotified to CYF continues to rise – up from 53,000cases last year to 63,800 this year – a 20% increase.During the past four years notifications have risen 86%.The number of children suffering substantiated abuse orneglect was up 62% in the same period. (Source: CYF).Every day 35 New Zealand children suffer from abuseor neglect. Seven of them will be admitted to hospital.Ten children will be killed this year by a supposed‘caregiver’. The problem in identifying ‘at risk’ childrenis extremely difficult. A study in 2004 showed that only20% of families where a child homicide occurred hadpreviously had contact with Child, Youth and Family(CYF).CYF figures show that, during the month of June, therewere 3003 files marked “urgent”, “very urgent” or“critical” which require further action. The criticality of acase is only assigned once the case has been assessedas requiring further action. “Critical” notifications are themost extreme classification and require attention within24 hours.That’s an increase over those three file classifications of75% in three years (1720 files in June 2003).Disproportionate representationWhile child abuse is by no means an ethnic problem – itis more closely linked to poverty than ethnicity – Maorichildren are more at risk and are disproportionatelyrepresented in child abuse statistics.Fifteen percent (15%) of the population are Maori but45% of notifications are for Maori children. Thirty-fivepercent (35%) are for NZ European children, 11% forPacific Island children and a little over 2% are for Asianchildren. Maori children die from maltreatment at arate, which is twice that of NZ European children (1.5per 100,000 for Maori to 0.7 per 100,000). Cautionis needed in disaggregating data by ethnic groups,however, and these figures should be viewed in light ofthe fact that Maori children are more exposed to the riskof fatal child maltreatment associated with having a stepparent, as Maori children are twice as likely as“Let’s not forget also that it was child abuse investigatorsthemselves who brought this issue to light, because of theirconcern that they were not getting the support they needed todeliver the service they wanted to deliver. It has taken a lotof courage to do that, knowing it would invite an enormousamount of scrutiny and potentially criticism, and that speaksvolumes for their commitment to the job and concern for thevictims of this sort of crime.”Mr Mills said he believed that the NZ Police are committedto addressing the problems originally identified by the PoliceAssociation investigation and by the subsequent IPCA report.Pahiatua police officer takes part in hair-raising eventAbout now would be a good time tostart telling Constable Peter Knight ofPahiatua hair-raising stories.Constable Knight recently raised $1,000for the Shave for a Cure campaign.The campaign is the Leukemiaand Blood Foundation’s signaturefundraising event where people canparticipate in shaving off their locks as away to show empathy and solidarity forsuffers of leukemia.It was the second time Mr Knight hadtaken part in the event.“My wife Karyn organised one last yearand we were so pleased with how itwent, we were keen to host another.“It’s such a good cause and the day’sactivities never fail to give people a fewgood laughs,” he said.Mr Knight and his wife had a specialempathy with the campaign – MrKnight’s grandfatherdied of cancer, as didMrs Knight’s father.Thirty people, includingthe Mayor ofthe Tararua District,Maureen Reynolds, • Constable PeterKnight.and several membersof the local volunteer fire brigade, tookpart in the event.June 2010123

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceWairoa cops muck in to restore police gravesA vision, which has seen twopoliceman’s graves restored by a groupof community-minded Wairoa cops,was made possible thanks to a smallgrant from the Police AssociationGroup.Welfare Fund Manager Pete Hayes waspleased the Police Association Groupcould be of assistance, as he said it wasimportant to remember those Policemembers who sacrificed their lives inperforming their duties.“It is good to see police getting togetherand doing these kinds of things,” hesaid.Project’s beginningsThe Wairoa Cemetery project kickedoff late last year when Sergeant AubreyOrmond, Sergeant Matt King, SeniorConstable Jim Simpson, DetectiveConstable Jason Thackeray and WairoaIntel Officer Tracey Hawkins decidedit would be a good idea to restore thegraves of police who had died whilst onduty.Mr Thackeray said the policingcommunity was “one big family”so restoring and keeping up themaintenance of these sites showedrespect for colleagues who had diedwhile serving the Police.Restoration processThe first gravesite to be restoredbelonged to a policeman named GeorgeMcDonnell, who was a sub-InspectorHave you movedrecently?If you have moved or perhaps areabout to, please let us know so wecan update your records. You cando this by:• writing to us at PO Box 12344;• calling us on free phone 0800500 122;• faxing us on (04) 496 6819; or• Emailing us at: membership@policeassn.org.nzYou need to let us know yourmembership number, new addressand if you’re a serving member -your new station.• PUTTING IN THE HARD YARDS: (Left to right): Sergeant Mark King, Detective-ConstableJason Thackeray, Senior Constable Jim Simpson and Sergeant Aubrey Ormond hard at workat the Wairoa Cemetery.for the Armed Constabulary Forcebased in Wairoa.He passed away on October 8, 1872while on duty. He was 38 years of age.It is unknown how Mr McDonnell diedas the Duty and Occurences book fromthat time, which is held at the WairoaMuseum, offers little detail.The historyThe second gravesite to be restored wasthat of Constable Edward Barry.Mr Barry drowned near the Wairoa baron December 31, 1890. He was 32.Mr Barry was coming over the Wairoabar on a punt with a young boy. Thepunt was swamped and Mr Barry savedthe boy’s life by swimming with himand holding him up until they got toshore. He then returned to the waterto retrieve items from the punt but wasswept out to sea. His body was found ashort time later on Wairoa beach.Job well doneMr Thackeray said the restoration processhad gone well.“It is something that we were proud tobe a part of and we now put out thechallenge to other stations to do thesame thing in their communities,” hetold Police News.Mr Thackeray acknowledged thecontributions of Pat Barry and the PoliceAssociation in helping the project cometo fruition.• Edward Barry’s memorial was restored toits original state thanks to the help of alocal signwriter.• George McDonnell’s grave after therestoration process.124June 2010

New Zealand Police AssociationLongest-serving Association staff member,Diann Stephen, leaves in mid-JuneBy Steve Plowman, Editor, Police NewsLong-serving Police Association staff member, Diann Stephen,a membership co-ordinator, will mark her 34th year of servicefor the Association on June 16 – and will be leaving theAssociation’s service two days later.Diann was honoured in 2006 with the inaugural President’sAward at a ceremony to mark the 30th anniversary of hercareer with the organisation.Diann started working for the Police Association on the 16June 1976, as a part-time worker in charge of maintainingmembership records. Diann’s hours gradually increased andby 1978 she was working fulltime.Five years earlier, the Police and Families Credit Union wasfounded after a meeting of eight people at then President AlanMonk’s house.SecondmentDiann was seconded to sort things out and she has beensorting things out in various positions within the Associationever since. During her time with the Association, Diann hasworked in a wide variety of roles, for the Health Plan, CreditUnion, Welfare Fund, Staffpac Insurances and the Associationitself and it is that institutional knowledge, which has madeher a great asset to all.As anyone who has started work early in the Association’sNational Office can tell you – you have to get up early to beatDiann Stephen to work. On many such occasions over the 22years I have known Diann, I’ve also realised that often she hasbeen the last to leave too.Putting things rightShe would have done well working for L V Martin, as theirfamous motto “it’s the putting right that counts” would sit wellwith Diann’s superb work ethic. It was not uncommon forDiann to take work home to sort things out beyond normalbusiness hours.Part of her membership duties entailed working to recoverdebts from defaulters. No easy task and requiring a gooddeal of diplomacy – as well as the ability to be straight withrecalcitrant members. On occasion she has had to call a spadea spade when dealing with discourteous members – but alwayswith a courtesy that sadly some members lack when dealingwith Association staff. Members who have tended to ‘shoot themessenger’ for their own financial misgivings have soon foundthat Diann can stand up for herself. She is nobody’s fool andgood on her for that.ConfidencesAs the voice of the Association, in attempting to reconcilethese debts, she is often privy to details of people’s personallives. She has gained the respect of many through her ability• FITTING HONOUR: Three decades of service to Police Associationmembers were honoured when President Greg O’Connor presentedthe inaugural President’s Award to Diann Stephen in 2006. Diannretires from her Association position on 18 June after 34 yearsservice.to keep a confidence and for the compassionate way in whichshe has dealt with members in often stressful situations.Diann’s focus has always been on helping members. This hasextended beyond her usual working hours to 11 years as aVictim Support counsellor on the Kapiti Coast. Her work inassisting victims of crime and bereaved families, who mayhave lost family members in road accidents or the like, hashelped many hundreds of people. She is greatly respected byKapiti police for her work there.Biggest changeDiann Stephen has been a mine of knowledge for many staff,including five Presidents and five National Secretaries and herinstitutional knowledge of the Association and its subsidiariesis, not surprisingly, second-to-none.Members have greatly benefited from Diann’s 34 years ofservice – as have the various subsidiaries that now make upthe ‘Association’. I have been honoured to call her my friendover more than two decades. She has been a great help tome during that time with various membership queries andchanges, and when things needed ‘sorting out’. I wish her wellin her new endeavours as I feel sure many of her Associationcolleagues and members will too.June 2010125

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceReducing blood alcohol limits part of agreater plan to make our roads saferBy Steve Plowman, Editor, Police NewsFor years now NZ Police have been banging on the door of successive governments with a plea toreduce the allowable blood alcohol level for drivers to 50 mg per 100 ml.As this issue was due to go to press, Cabinetwas due to discuss just such a proposal.Police want a reduction in both the adult andteenage drivers’ legal blood alcohol limits.Since the current New Zealand blood alcoholconcentration (BAC) level of 80mg/100ml or0.08% for adult drivers was set in December1988, a mountain of scientific evidencehas been produced both internationally andlocally, which supports the case for reducingthe level to 50 mg/100ml or 0.05%.The push for a lower BAC limit is just part ofa larger strategy to address New Zealand’sbinge-drinking culture.Tragic statsThe most recent road statistics availableindicate that approximately 25% of driversinvolved in fatal crashes had blood alcohollimits in excess of the current BAC limit. Bloodalcohol tests could be carried out on 81% ofdrivers involved in fatalities in those years.National Road Policing Manager,Superintendent Paula Rose, is keen tosee the limit reduced. So is the PoliceAssociation. The Association has supportedPolice moves to reduce the limits forunder-20 drivers, who do not have a fulldrivers’ licence to zero, and adults (downto 50 mg/100 mls). The Association madesubmissions to this effect to the Justiceand Electoral Committee, which consideredsubmissions on the Sale and Supply ofLiquor Enforcement Bill in April last year.“The detection option has seen theaddition of two super booze buses joinour enforcement fleet and these arebased in Auckland, which has the largestconcentration of motorists in the country.The regularity of ‘catches’ is concerning andcertainly emphasises the need for us to bevigilant in targeting drink drivers. As part ofthis we are mixing up tactics and changingoperating hours,” Ms Rose said.The visibility of booze buses also provides animportant deterrent.In the last year, Police have added a further200 alcohol testing devices to their arsenal– bringing the total on issue to over 2,000.Long processMs Rose said that while there was work stillbeing done on reducing alcohol levels it hadbeen “a long process”. “In the meantime,Police are keeping pace with what ishappening overseas as well as keeping upwith research into how we can do thingsbetter,” she said.The impetus for a reduction in theallowable BAC has come from a varietyof agencies with Police, the AccidentCompensation Corporation (ACC), theAlcohol Advisory Council and the MinistryOverseas experience showslowering the blood-alcohollimit from 80mg to 50mgcould save 14 lives andprevent 260 serious injuriesa year. Statistics show thatpeople who have even thecurrent legal amount ofalcohol in their blood are30 percent more likely to beinvolved in an accident.of Health drug policy team having backed arecommendation for a Ministry of Transportevaluation. The campaign to lower the limitis part of a wider brief to respond to NewZealander’s ‘binge drinking’ culture.Worldwide callThe bulk of the evidence for a reductionin the BAC limit comes from countries,which have implemented lower legal limitsof 50mg or less. It is so compelling that ithas encouraged widespread calls for theestablishment of 50mg adult BAC limits fromvarious worldwide health and road safetyorganisations - including the World MedicalAssociation, Americanand British MedicalAssociations, WorldHealth Organisation,EuropeanCommission,European TransportSafety Council,• Steven Joyce,Royal Society forthe Ministerthe Prevention of of Transport,will take theAccidents, Internationalproposals toTransportation Safety lower the bloodAssociation, Association alcohol limits toCabinet.for the Advancement ofAutomotive Medicine, American College ofEmergency Physicians, and the AustralianTransport Safety Bureau.While successive governments have, overthe years, prevaricated on the call for lowerlimits, the public is in favour of a harder line.A recent UMR Research Ltd survey foundthat 76% of respondents favoured reducingthe legal allowable blood alcohol limit fordriving.Minister of Transport, Steven Joyce had afairly stock standard reply when Police Newsasked him whether the Government was anynearer implementation of the Police proposalto lower the limits. “The Government takesdrink driving very seriously. Our currentfocus in this area is on strong enforcementof the existing laws, and education,” he said.More resolve?Since then the Government’s resolve is likelyto have strengthened on the back of somehorrific crash statistics, which have putearlier road toll reduction targets in jeopardy.Clearly the drink-driving message is slow ingetting through to some New Zealanders.The Easter weekend holiday road toll was21. In the last 12 months (at time of writing)the road toll had increased by 6.83% from366 to 391. The trend is worrying.A Land Transport Safety Authority (now theNZ Transport Agency) study in 2004 foundthat a third of drivers still believe the risk126June 2010

New Zealand Police Associationof being caught drink driving is small. In2004, 46% of New Zealand drivers reportedbeing stopped at an alcohol checkpoint,whereas a similar Australian study showed82% reported being stopped (Williams et al2000).Police are committed to detecting anddeterring offenders who breach the currentalcohol limits. Highway Patrol officers, inparticular, are focused on reducing thecarnage on our roads that results from drinkdriving.NZ’s alcohol problemAlcohol is the problem behind the wheel asmuch as it is on the streets of every city andtown on Friday and Saturday nights. Policein many districts have reported that longerlicensing hours have led to disorder andstretched Police resources. Police estimatethat 70% of the incidents they attend arerelated to excessive alcohol consumption– so it is hardly surprising that convertsinto appalling road fatality statistics too.The availability of alcohol has increasedsubstantially in the last three decades.Compulsory breath testingIn 1993 a lower legal breath/blood alcohollimit for drivers aged under 20 years wasintroduced, as was compulsory (random)breath-testing. Five years later an immediate28-day licence suspension for a high breathtest reading was introduced.The most recent attempt to lower the legalBAC for driving to 50 mg/100 ml came inlate 2003 but was not supported by the thenLabour Government. A year earlier TransportMinister Paul Swain sought to halve theamount of alcohol people could consumebefore driving. His proposal apparently fellon deaf ears in Cabinet and the option wasnot taken up.The recently passed Land TransportAmendment Bill includes tougher penaltiesfor serious and recidivist drink-drivers,including lowering the legal BAC limit forroadside licence suspension and also givespolice officers extra powers to detect drugimpaireddrivers.Zero tolerance BAC for young driversNow the Government is looking at a zerotolerance alcohol limit for young drivers.It says that legislation could be passed byyear’s end. It is also looking at raising the• A FAMILY’S MESSAGE: A poignant message left by a grieving family after a drunk driverkilled a family member.- Photo courtesy of Istockphoto.com and cptpoly.legal driving age to 16. This has met withhowls of protest from Federated Farmers,who mooted an exemption for 15-year-oldsin rural areas. The Government has thusfar stood firm against that suggestion eventhough rural New Zealand has been theheartland base for voter support for theNational Party for decades. As any policeofficer worth his or her salt will tell you – thelaw must apply equally to all.The downward trend in alcohol-relateddeaths and crashes experienced during the1990s has plateaued, supporting the call fora 50 mg/100 ml BAC limit for drivers and anear-zero level for young drivers.At 80mg/100 ml for adults (30 mg/100 mlfor under 20 years), New Zealand shareswith the United Kingdom, Ireland, the UnitedStates and Canada one of the highestBAC levels among comparable countries.Australia, Japan and most of Europe have50 mg/100 ml legal limits for adults andsome (for example, Sweden at 20 mg/100ml) have lower levels.Drink driving is largely a male problem. OverJune 2010127

PoliceNewsThe Voice of Police85% of the alcohol-affected drivers in fatalcrashes are men.Horrific tollIn the last five years the number of ACCclaims from motor vehicle injuries anddeaths (approximately 5,500 per year now)has risen a staggering 25%. In an estimated25% of those accidents (1,375) alcoholwas a contributing factor. The flow on effectof savings in ACC and to the health sectorgenerally is obvious if the trauma on theroads can be reduced by a change in theBAC limits.Last year, a Health Ministry blueprintrecommended “real and enduring changes”to tackle New Zealand’s drink-drivingproblem.The previous Labour administrationannounced legislation to introduce a zeroalcohollimit for drivers under-20 years ofage who do not have a full licence. Statisticsshow that men aged 20 to 24 pose the mostat risk behind the wheel.Thirty-eight drivers in the 20-24 age bracketdied in crashes between 2005-2007,compared with 33 in the previous two years.By comparison, 20 drivers in both the 15-to-19 and 25-to-29 age groups were killed inthe 2005-2007 period.A 2008 Massey University study confirmedthat alcohol-related crashes involving driversaged 18-19 have jumped since the legaldrinking age was lowered to 18.Percentage of drivers in fatal crashes who were affected by alcohol, by licencestatus (2003–2005)Licence statusFullRestrictedNever LicensedLearnerDisqualified0 20 40 60 80Percent affected by alcohol• The above graph indicates the licence status of alcohol-affected drivers at the time they wereinvolved in a fatal crash in a study conducted between 2003-2005.Relative risk of fatal crash by blood alcohol level2001801601401201008060402000 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150Percent affected by alcoholIncrease in riskAge 15–19 Age 20–29 Age 30+• The graph above shows the increase (in percentage) in terms of risk from a NZ study ofdrivers involved in alcohol related fatal crashes at night. There is a clear increase in risk asblood alcohol levels increase. The effect is more pronounced for young drivers, but still verysignificant for older drivers. Source: ALAC (Alcohol Advisory Council).• Rain, hail or shine – police are out at checkpoints trying to reduce the road carnage delivered by drunk drivers.128June 2010

New Zealand Police AssociationDeclineThe study showed by year 2000 thatalcohol-related crashes declined steadilyfrom almost 300 per 100,000 drivers in thatage bracket in 1990 to below 100. The fallhas been attributed to the success of thenational campaign against drink driving.However, the alcohol-related crash ratebounced back after the drinking age waslowered to 18 in December 1999 - from 93in 2000 up to 144 by 2003.Researcher Taisia Huckle, who led thestudy, concluded that it was “likely that thelowering of the purchase age for alcoholhas contributed to increases in harmfuloutcomes for young people in New Zealand,including more serious outcomes such astraffic crashes”.The study investigated prosecutions fordrink-driving and disorder offences as wellas alcohol-related crash rates. Prosecutionsof 18 and 19-year-olds for driving withexcess alcohol were steady at around 2,000for every 100,000 people in the age groupin every year up to 1999, but then jumpedfrom the year 2000 onwards to about 2,300in 2003.Lives savedOverseas experience shows lowering theblood-alcohol limit from 80mg to 50mgcould save 14 lives and prevent 260 seriousinjuries a year. Furthermore, people whohave even the current legal amount ofalcohol in their blood are 30 percent morelikely to be involved in an accident.The conclusion is obvious – even if a driveris not over the limit, he or she is still a risk tohimself/herself and other road users.Police and alcohol watchdogs are reluctantto say exactly how much drivers couldconsume to stay within the proposed lowerlimits because of individual variables such asbody mass and the amount of food a driverhas consumed.The ban on cell phone use while driving,lowering of the blood alcohol limits and theraising the minimum driving age are keyinitiatives in the Road Safety Strategy 2010.Part of that strategy will involve furthereducation on the risk associated with drinkdriving, follow-up enforcement and movesto prevent impaired (drugs or alcohol) ordistracted driving (using cell phones and amyriad other distractions that drivers engagein from reading the paper to changing theCD or the channel on the stereo).Additional measures mootedAnother study (Mann et al 2001) suggestedthat additional measures such as trainingbar and restaurant staff to recogniseintoxication among patrons and theavailability of alternatives to driving, suchas courtesy/free taxi services, would furtherthe road safety cause and provide effectivemeasures for harm reduction on our roads.The great work of Police and other agenciesin reducing the road toll by 19% between2004 (435 fatalities) and last year (366fatalities) is showing signs of faltering, andthe BAC limit reduction that the Governmentlooks almost certain to rubber stamp will bea step in the right direction to stemming theappalling alcohol-related carnage on NewZealand’s roads.Sources: NZ Police, NZ Transport Agency, TheNZ Ministry of Transport, The NZ Health Ministry,Massey University study of 2008, NZ Land TransportSafety Authority study of 2004, The AccidentCompensation Corporation, the Alcohol AdvisoryCouncil and The Liquor Licensing Authority.Majority of police officers favourlowering blood alcohol limitsNielsen Research conducted a surveyof Police Association members inNovember 2008 to determine their viewson lowering the permissible (adult) bloodalcohol concentration limit for driving,from the current 80 mg per 100 ml ofblood, to 50 mg per 100 ml (or its breathalcohol equivalent, which would see areduction from the current 400 mcg perlitre of breath to 250 mcg per litre ofbreath).Sixty-two percent (62%) of memberssupported the lowering of the limit while28% opposed it and 10% were notsure. Again, those members who wewould expect to deal most directly andoften with the consequences of alcoholimpaired driving were more in favourof the proposal: 64% of constabulary staff(compared to 55% of non-constabularyemployees) were in favour. Particularlystrong support came from road policing staff(82%) and Commercial Vehicle InvestigationUnit staff (81%).InexperienceYoung people under the age of 20 arerelatively inexperienced both as drinkers, andas drivers, and are likely to be poorer judgesboth of their own alcohol tolerance and drivingcompetence. Teenagers are also widelyacknowledged to be more inclined towardsrisk-taking because of the under-developmentof their brains. The Sale and Supply of Liquorand Liquor Enforcement Bill proposes to set azero-alcohol limit for such drivers if they areon a graduated driver’s licence.Tragic consequencesFrontline officers, especially those onroad patrols, often witness the tragicconsequences of mixing speed, youth,lack of driving ability/experience, andalcohol. For that reason, there is alsoconsiderable anecdotal support forthe blood/alcohol limit to be loweredto zero across the board for under20-year-olds (i.e., not only for thoseon graduated licences).The Police Association feels this wouldeliminate any room for confusion,standardise expectations of behaviourswithin under-20 peer groups, andsimplify the social marketing exerciseneeded to back up a change.June 2010129

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceLifting the lid on organised crime:Understanding organised crime: Last year, followingmounting concern amongst members about theunchecked rise of organised crime in New Zealand,the Police Association undertook an in-depthinvestigation to build a better understandingof the problem. In last month’s magazine,Police News began exploring 10 keyfeatures of organised crime. This monthwe continue our series by looking at howorganised crime conducts its businessthrough networks of front companies andprofessional advisers, in its quest for profit.Photo courtesy of Istockphoto.com and Hidesey.10 key features of organised crimeThe Police Association’s work, drawing on overseas studiessuch as that conducted by Victoria Police and the AustralianNational University, identified 10 key features of organisedcrime:1. Organised crime does not begin; it evolves.2. Organised crime is not gangs.3. Organised crime is criminal enterprise.4. Organised crime is networked.5. Organised crime is profit motivated.6. Organised crime is opportunistic and adaptable.7. Organised crime seeks to hide and legitimise wealth.8. Organised crime seeks to corrupt.9. Organised crime networks are resilient.10. Traditional policing is not enough.Last month’s article covered the first three features.4. Organised crime is networked.Modern organised crime is made up of a network of individuals andgroups. It is not a closed, hierarchical organisation.That means combating organised crime is not simply a matterof catching ‘Mr Big’. Networks are complex, with highly fluidconnections, and power is widely distributed. It’s not a case of findingthe top of the pyramid, or finding the linchpin, which will bring thewhole lot tumbling down.130June 2010As noted by the Australian Crime Commission in 2007:Organised crime groups have … tended to be highlystructured and hierarchical but this has started to changerecently as they adopt more flexible structures, operating innetworks to progress joint ‘business ventures’. These networksbring together groups and individuals who play complementaryroles and may involve criminals of different ethnicities, skillsand criminal interests. Some networks are formed for shortperiods while others may last for years. 1The Criminal Intelligence Service Canada similarly observed:Almost all organised crime groups network or collaboratewith other groups to facilitate criminality. For instance, crimegroups may collaborate by combining funds to finance a largeimportation or production operation. It is also common for moresophisticated groups to regularly use smaller, less capablegroups to distribute contraband. Few groups operate with nocontact or collaboration with others. 2As a specific example, with reference to Royal Canadian MountedPolice (RCMP) intelligence on the Canadian heroin trade:It is not uncommon for a member of one triad to team up withanother triad member and work for the leader of a heroinsmuggling group who is not a member of any triad at all. Thesituation is viewed as a private business transaction. Still, triadmembership can be essential for purposes of networking andthe development of criminal relationships based on trust. 31 Organised Crime In Australia, Australian Crime Commission, 2007 Edition.2 Organised Crime in Canada, Criminal Intelligence Service Canada, Annual Report 20073 Asian organised crime and terrorist activity in Canada 1999-2002, Library of Congress, July 2003

New Zealand Police AssociationAn understanding of the networked, rather than strictly hierarchicaland delineated nature of organised crime, is critical to ensuring policyresponses and law enforcement activities are strategically targeted tocause the maximum possible network disruption.The big picture‘Traditional’ policing is focused on prosecuting individual crimes andcriminals, with little emphasis on first understanding how the specificindividuals, organisations, relationships or transactions fit in to the bigpicture.Effective law enforcement activity must be mandated, resourced,and empowered to conduct long-term intelligence, surveillance, andinvestigation of organised crime from a ‘blue skies’ perspective,aimed at building a thorough understanding of the wide network andits complex web of links.Police Association investigations indicate a comprehensive networkmap of New Zealand organised crime would link together a vastarray of groups, individuals, lawful and unlawful entities, both on andoffshore, including examples of the following:OMCGs (Organised Motorcycle Gangs) (Head Hunters; HellsAngels; affiliated gangs)Ethnic gangs (Mongrel Mob; Black Power; affiliated gangs)Russian and Eastern European groupsAsian Organised Crime groupsFront companies and businessesShelf and holding companiesBank accounts and other deposit/withdrawal and paymentprocessing facilitiesFinance companiesRemittance agentsTrustsBanking consultantsTax consultantsFinancial advisorsApparently legitimate businessmenBusiness consultantsProfessional trusteesLawyersInvestorsProfessional directorsBrokers of introductions, influence, transactionsConsumersWholesalersTraffickersDealersMulesEnforcersCorrupt/compromised officialsApparently legitimate major assetsTypically, interactions between participants revolve aroundtradable commodity flows (including intangible commodities suchas protection and influence) or provision of professional services(whether lawful or unlawful). Relationships may be transaction-based,or based on historical/personal or family links. Transactions may beexchanges of goods and services, or cash and kind.Legal-illegal crossoverNot all of the transactions are illegal, nor are all the participantsnecessarily ‘criminals’ or aware of the true nature of their businesspartners or clients. Organised crime business deliberately weaves inand out of lawful society, to disguise its activity and wealth.The types of business conducted across organised crime networksare limited only by the creativity of the participants in identifyingopportunities to further their interests, and their collective capacity toundertake a venture.Types of business conducted by New Zealand organised crimeinclude dealing in goods and services including:DrugsFirearmsVehiclesReal estateOther propertyProtectionMarket opportunityTradable natural resourcesincluding paua, crayfish, highvalue flora and faunainfluencePowerviolence/’muscle’informationexpertiseaccessfacilitationIntroductionSpecialisation and sale of expertiseMature organised crime networks are characterised by certaingroups and individuals developing marketable expertise in certaintypes of activities. They then become the market providers of thosespecialisations for other criminals.Overseas investigations have established, for example, that creditcard skimming groups tend to simply gather card details, and thenon-sell those details to other groups who manufacture fraudulentcards using the stolen details. 4 The distribution of these cardsto groups who systematically engage in their fraudulent use maybe outsourced again to highly organised specialist groups, withoperatives in many different countries, who by acting in a coordinatedway in multiple locations can extract the maximum wealthfrom a set of cards within a few hours, before the fraud is detected.In a further example of specialisation, with respect to China-basedorganised crime groups, a US Library of Congress Report published in2003 states:The major Chinese crime groups do not seek monopolies ondrug trafficking activities or illicit financial transactions. Rather,members, especially those located in mainland China, playtheir most important role in brokering deals and facilitatingthe shipment of illegal contraband through Hong Kong todestinations abroad. 54 Ibid.5 Ibid.June 2010131

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceSimilarly, with respect to human trafficking into Canada:Generally, trafficking networks reportedly are loose alliancesamong various groups that join forces to take advantageof existing opportunities. The success of the business isthe primary motivating factor, and the triads do not holda monopoly on the industry. The trafficking enterprises,however, usually are well structured. Responsibilities such asrecruitment, document forgery, transport, and employment aresubcontracted out. 6With respect to heroin trafficking in Canada around the year 2000,Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) intelligence described thenetworking of various specialised groups as follows:“Heroin trafficking, in particular, involves the co-operation ofvarious groups at different levels to get the product to its finaldestination. For example, street gangs often act as enforcers whoare, in turn, supported by more established and powerful groups.” 7In the New Zealand methamphetamine trade, it is believed large butrelatively unsophisticated gangs such as the Mongrel Mob act asenforcers for more powerful gangs such as the Head Hunters andHells Angels. This enforcement is exercised both in and outside ofprisons.Drug distributionOur information suggests the Mongrel Mob, Black Power, and smallerOMCGs are also understood to specialise in retail drug distributiondue to their widely distributed geographical presence.Mongrel Mob are the ‘go to’ organisation for most general bluntenforcement activity, intimidation, high-risk enterprises (especiallythose involving violence), and manual labour, including illegalharvesting of valuable resources such as paua and timber.Asian organised crime groups specialise in drug and pre-cursorimportation, and export of commodities such as paua. Russianorganised crime groups specialise in illegal firearms importation andexport of stolen luxury vehicles. The Head Hunters and Hells Angelsare believed to specialise in deal initiation, control and brokerage,including linking drug precursors with manufacturers, and drugs withdistributors. The Head Hunters are also thought to be developingexpertise in international money laundering.Smaller players and individuals also have their specialisations.Romanian organised crime groups are represented by New Zealandbasedindividuals who facilitate and co-ordinate other Romaniansand Eastern Europeans to come to New Zealand under the guise oftourism to perpetrate organised credit card fraud, ATM skimming,and similar crime.Other individuals have developed personal expertise in identity fraudand identity theft. These skills are used to enable large-scale frauds,and sold via ‘crime workshop’-style consultancies, often in prisons.5. Organised crime is profit motivated.Like lawful business operating in legitimate markets, organisedcrime, as a whole, will rationally seek to exploit for profit anyopportunity it can. As is the case in lawful markets, the ability of aparticular participant to seize an opportunity will depend on theiraccess to the resources (e.g. connections, expertise, capital) neededto successfully take advantage of the opportunity.6 Ibid.7 Ibid.The opportunities for profitable unlawful enterprise are far broaderthan are the opportunities available to legitimate business. That iswhat attracts criminals to organised crime.Criminal trade in commodities and/or services is, by definition,unregulated in the conventional sense. As a result, opportunitiesexist for arbitrage between markets and for exploitation of monopolypositions, that do not exist in lawful markets. Trading in prohibitedgoods tilts the ‘supply and demand’ balance hugely in favour of thesupplier, and allows vast profit margins to be commanded. Activitiesare also far less exposed to regulatory compliance costs and taxation.Huge profitsThese simple facts mean illegal trade offers huge profit potential tothose who have the right contacts; who are willing to take risks to linksupply with demand; who are willing to use tactics such as violence,intimidation and corruption to secure their market position; and whoare well enough organised to succeed.However, it is important to appreciate that organised crime does notconfine itself to illegal enterprise and illicit markets. As the CriminalIntelligence Service Canada observes:The vast majority of organised crime groups use or exploitthe legitimate economy to some degree. In this way, they areable to insulate their activities, launder proceeds of crime andcommit financial crimes via a legitimate front. Both individualsand businesses are vulnerable to numerous targeted fraudschemes including telemarketing schemes and stock marketmanipulation. As well, legitimate business can unwittinglyfacilitate criminal activity by providing opportunities for theinvestment of proceeds of crime or to disguise illicit activitiesthrough techniques such as mixing counterfeit goods withlegitimate shipments. 8Wealth flows to and from legitimate businesses, motivated both byobjectives of money laundering, and also profit making. Large sumsof capital are available to organised crime, which can be switchedinto ‘boom’ markets such as property (especially where networkconnections provide opportunities to skew or manipulate those‘legitimate’ markets).In the blunt assessment of the Criminal Intelligence ServiceCanada:”Wherever there is profit to be made, organised crime can befound.” 96. Organised crime is opportunistic and adaptable.Overseas experience shows that almost any high-value marketis attractive to organised crime groups. By and large, successfulorganised crime participants are economically rational in theirbusiness decision-making.As a result, organised crime is constantly moving to seize newopportunities. Generally speaking, when a participant judges itsresources (such as people, connections, and capital) can deliverbetter profits through another activity, the participant will tend tochange its activities to chase the profits.The Australian Crime Commission has described the flexibility oforganised crime networks, exploiting market opportunities in thatcountry, as follows:8 Organised Crime in Canada, Criminal Intelligence Service Canada, Annual Report 2007.9 Ibid.132June 2010

New Zealand Police AssociationOrganised crime is diverse and flexible. It pervades all parts ofsociety and the economy, easily adapting to changing threatsand new opportunities…Most organised crime groups are well resourced andinfluential. These groups are able to expand and contract theiroperations quickly, may operate in single or multiple industriesand be involved in single or multiple activities. Some crimegroups plan for their future by sending members to universityor other training courses to acquire the specialist skills neededto support their criminal activity. 10OpportunityIn the mid-1990s, just as organised crime networks were growingmore sophisticated and adaptable, New Zealand Police fraud anddrug squads were closed down in many parts of the country. Thisimmediately became common knowledge in the criminal world, andorganised crime moved deliberately to exploit the new opportunities.individuals linked to Black Power in particular moved heavily intocheque fraud, identity fraud, mortgage fraud, and insurance fraud,largely utilising female associates and partners as fronts. Other gangsintensified their involvement in drug importation, manufacture anddistribution.The diverse range of profit-making business activities, of course,generates considerable wealth for organised crime: more than thecriminals can spend on a lavish lifestyle alone. So what happens tothat wealth? In next month’s issue, Police News continues its seriesby looking at money laundering, corruption, and the challenges facingpolicing of serious organised crime.10 Organised Crime in Australia, Australian Crime Commission, 2007 EditionHeroin: the next big thing?Exactly one year ago, Police News warnedof a resurgence in ‘homebake heroin’ use(June 2009).Our sources were informing us then thatsome users were already looking for analternative to methamphetamine, in thehope of escaping the clutches of theviolence and intimidation that goes alongwith the P trade. At the same time, somein the organised crime controlled drugtrade were looking to diversify by cultivatinga new market for heroin among theirregular P customers. Information passedto us suggests some methamphetaminesuppliers have even offered a ‘free’ dose ofheroin to customers buying three ‘points’,or doses, of P, recommending it as a wayto ‘take the edge off’ the comedown froma P binge.A story in Christchurch newspaper The Presson 29 April seems to confirm this worryingtrend. The newspaper reported that police,health professionals and drug counsellorshave all noticed a rise in the number of youngpeople smoking, or ‘spotting’, liquid heroinfrom tinfoil.More addictsAccording to The Press, Canterbury DistrictHealth Board’s Community Alcohol and DrugService clinical head confirmed more youngpeople were becoming addicted to opiates,saying: “We have seen an upsurge in youngerpeople in their late teens and early 20s whoare smoking opiates. There has been adefinite rise.”For now, most of the available street heroinin New Zealand appears to be homebakemanufactured from diverted prescriptiondrugs.With international heroin prices at historiclows, street product in many parts of theworld is now of reliably high enough purityto smoke or snort, rather than injecting thedrug. This makes it more marketable tousers accustomed to smoking or snortingdrugs like methamphetamine. Otheroverseas trends point towards combineduse of P and heroin as a highly potent ‘methspeedball.’With heroin able to be sourced from thesame offshore markets as New Zealand’simported methamphetamine precursors,organised crime will quickly move to supplyany new market for the drug in this country.That is real cause for alarm.Where do they get the time?You wonder where they get the time but somewhere there must be a room full of people dealing with this sort of stuff – thinking upjokes at the expense of the latest celebrity who has fallen from grace or, as in the instances listed below, the clever bod who hasrearranged the letters of some fairly common words to form anagrams as follows:PRESBYTERIAN:ASTRONOMER:DESPERATION:THE EYES:GEORGE BUSH:THE MORSE CODE:DORMITORY:BEST IN PRAYERMOON STARERA ROPE ENDS ITTHEY SEEHE BUGS GOREHERE COME DOTSDIRTY ROOMSLOT MACHINES:CASH LOST IN MEANIMOSITY:IS NO AMITYELECTION RESULTS: LIES - LET’S RECOUNTSNOOZE ALARMS: ALAS! NO MORE Z ‘SA DECIMAL POINT:I’M A DOT IN PLACETHE EARTHQUAKES: THAT QUEER SHAKEELEVEN PLUS TWO:TWELVE PLUS ONEJune 2010133

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceObituary:John (Jack) Robert Duncan Craig (Life Member)One of the NZ Police Association’s mosthighly respected Life Members, JackCraig, died recently aged 96.It is hard to comprehend how long Jackhas been part of the New Zealand PoliceAssociation. Jack joined the Police inearly 1936 and was posted to Dunedinon the 20th of May the same year.Ironically, that is the same day that thethen Minister of Police, Peter Fraser,said he would “consider favourably” theformation of a Police Association.Shortly after arriving, Jack made hisfirst arrest. Sarah Elizabeth Smith wascharged with being drunk in a publicplace after causing a disturbance. Jackhad to catch a tram to make the arrestand when he arrived, he found Sarahlegless and escorted her back to thestation.CharacterOn one of her many appearances incourt the magistrate, Justice Blundell,no doubt frustrated by the continuedreappearance of Smith in his courtroom,asked her why she was continuallydrunk. “Well, your Honour,” Smithreplied “I knew it was your birthday so Ithought it fitting to celebrate it in style.”While Smith obviously had problemsholding her liquor, Jack recalls herwith some fondness: “She wasn’t anasty drunk, she was a real character, ahappy drunk. Basically, we arrested herfor her own safety. She was never anybother to anyone and was usually finedfive shillings and sent on her way,”Jack said. “She was a kindly soul as sheused to darn all the single men’s clotheswhen she was in the jail,” he added.When Sarah Smith died the Otago DailyTimes gave her a significant obituary.First meetingJack was at the first meeting of theDunedin branch of the Police Associationlater that year when SeniorDetective Bruce Young was electedchairman. Young later served as thePresident of the Police Associationbetween 1938-43, taking over fromDetective Bill Murray, the first President.Jack was involved in Police Associationactivities as a member of the DunedinDistrict Committee from 1947-1974including being secretary from 1969.He served as a National Councillor from1965-1969.He was the fifth recipient of a LifeMembership of the New Zealand PoliceAssociation in 1974 and at the time wassimply described as a “stalwart of theAssociation”. During the 75-year historyof the Police Association only 28 peoplehave been awarded a Life Membership,13 of whom survive Jack.Beat workWhen Jack started in the Police, policeofficers walked the beat every day andwere paid at a daily rate of 11 Shillings($1.10). There was no day off – theyworked seven days a week. They did afortnight of night shifts followed by afortnight of day shifts. It wasn’t untilthe1950s that our members got a dayoff each week.Jack was always highly regarded by hispeers and acted as ”advisor and fatherconfessor” to many police officers.During that time he had shown hisworth as “a balancing factor in alldiscussions”. He was a man who wasregarded by his peers as a person whospoke commonsense when those aroundhim, mostly the Police administration,did not.Jack retired after 38 years service in May1974. He later told Police News in aninterview: “I started work 38 years earlierat 4.30 p.m. and I knocked off exactly38 years later, to the minute, in the sameoffice”. Jack a modest man, did not wantany fuss. He had not wanted a farewellfunction but his colleagues insisted andfortunately won the day.Association workDuring his time as an Associationstalwart, Jack worked extensively withJack Meltzer, a lawyer, who served asNational Secretary from 1940 to 1966.Jack Meltzer, supported by Jack Craig,was instrumental in establishing a deathbenefit scheme for members. The initialpayment was set at £25 ($50) andgradually through the years this wasincreased to £50 pounds ($100). Jack• JACK CRAIG (Life Member and one ofnature’s gentleman): Fondly rememberedfor his commonsense approach and histireless work on behalf of Associationmembers for many years.recalled later that another Dunedin rep,Tommy Thomson, fought tooth and nailto get the death benefit raised and ratherironically, shortly after being successful,his widow was the first one to collectit. “I think Tommy must have known athing or two,” Jack once told me.Current members of Police owe asignificant amount of gratitude to whatJack and others achieved, as the deathbenefit started by Jack and his peers isnow worth up to $180,000 for servingpolice officers.Impetus for a pensionHe was also instrumental in followingthrough with one of the founding aimsof the Police Association – to provide apension for police officers when theyretired at the age of 65. By the time Jackretired at 60, they had been successfulin gaining that pension. Jack continuedto receive this pension for 35 yearsafter his retirement, which is almost aslong as his Police service. It was a justoutcome for a man who had devoted alot of his time for the benefit of othersin the job.Jack told me in 2005 that he didn’tenvy today’s police officers. “Things area lot harder now, and I doubt whetherI’d cut the mustard,” he quipped.134June 2010

New Zealand Police AssociationJack was present to celebrate the 70thanniversary of the Police Association inOctober 2005 and was honoured alongwith other Life Members during thosecelebrations.Had what it tookAnyone who ever met him would havelittle doubt that Jack Craig, Life Memberand stalwart supporter of the NZ PoliceAssociation, former Junior Constableof Dunedin and before that “a countrylad at heart” would have little troublemeasuring up if he could have his timeagain. After such lengthy service onbehalf of the community he served, hiscolleagues and others, there is no doubtthat he had all the qualities it takes inabundance.I met him when he was 91. I wish I’dmet him earlier as he was a mine ofinformation. I went to interview himat a Levin retirement home and I knewimmediately I was in the companyof someone very special – a thoroughgentleman. He reminded me very muchof the late Dave Paterson, anotherLife Member and long-time friend ofmine who also worked tirelessly forAssociation members.Indoor bowlsJack gave me a guided tour of thefacilities at the home and when weentered the room where the indoorbowls were set up he asked if I’d “like aroll up”. He then proceeded to beat mesoundly, as I recall. I couldn’t think ofanyone I’d sooner lose to, as he was agreat sport and very complimentary ofmy beginner’s effort. I went away with asmile on my face and I suspect I wasn’tthe first to leave this wonderful man’spresence like that.Jack’s son, John, followed in hisfather’s footsteps and became a policeofficer. He is now retired. The familypolicing tradition continues, however,through a grandson, Sergeant Michael(John) Craig, who serves at Ohakune.Another grandson, Colin, also served atParaparaumu and is now retired.John, Bev, Ron, Craig, Janette,Colin, Michael, Jacqui and Jack’sgreat grandchildren survive Jack.The Association offers its sincerestcondolences on behalf of our memberspast and present to the Craig family onthe loss of such a wonderful man, whocontributed so much to our membersover such a lengthy period of time. Mayhe rest in peace. - By Steve Plowman.Plaque to honour Len Snee unveiled in NapierBy Deb Stringer, Communications AssistantFamily, friends, colleagues anddignitaries paid homage to SeniorConstable Len Snee one year on fromthe Napier siege, which claimed his life,when a memorial plaque was unveiledat Napier Police Station at a dawnceremony on May 7.Police Minister Judith Collins, DeputyPolice Commissioner Rob Pope, andPolice Association President, GregO’Connor were among those whoattended the ceremony. Ms Collinsspoke about how difficult Mr Snee’sdeath had been to come to terms with.“No words can take away our sorrowor our sense of loss, but we can takethis time to honour the legacy of aman deeply admired for his strength,courage and compassion, a man wholed by example and did not shrink fromhis duty,” she said.Reminder of sacrificeMs Collins said Mr Snee reminded usthat in an uncertain world, there arestill those who are prepared to putthemselves on the line, to stand up forwhat is right and make a difference.“Our lives are made richer forthe precious time we have theseextraordinary people with us,” she said.During the three-day Napier siegein May 2009, gunman Jan Molenaarshot Senior Constable Snee dead andseriously wounded Senior ConstablesBruce Miller and Grant Diver after theyhad issued him with a routine searchwarrant and indicated that they were tosearch his house for drugs. Police laterfound Molenaar dead in his home.The late Senior Constable Len Snee.The plaque to honour Len Snee’s life with floral tributes in the foreground.- Photos courtesy of Graham Morrell (Napier Police Forensic Photography).June 2010135

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceAshes to ashesOne of our big brass was in Norway recently and was busy checkingout the gun boxes in police cars, when a small Icelandic volcano wentballistic over the continent and he had to suffer a few more days ofNorwegian hospitality. Good on him, I say. The research trip was adamn good idea, and I’m not just blowing smoke up his proverbialeither when I say that. We need as much help on the frontline as wecan get, and the more we look at the successes and failures of others,the better our options will be.Commonsense reigns...Gun boxes aren’t going to be much good though if you can’t draw theweapon. For once reason has prevailed, and the powers-that-be haveshelved the proposed three tiered training for firearms known as theDRM (Differential Response Model). What with the PLR (Peak LoadingRoster), it was a match destined to fail. If all the back office mates werelevel three trained (in other words, not at all) there wasn’t much pointin putting them in an armed ‘I’ car. Lordy, the bosses have worked outthat investing in their frontline resources (that’s us of course) gives thebest bang for their buck.Back to the PLR trial though, seems there are just as many jobs beingcancelled in the Garden City as before. Word has it the extra staff arenot being used where old-fashioned beat work might actually makea difference. Maybe if we get them boys and girls out there roundingup the drunken yobbos and sending them home we’d see somenoticeable change in the stats. We sure can’t rely on the commercialalcohol outlets to do it. They just see the money leaving when thatcustomer staggers out the door.True bloodWhat’s all this about vampires up there in the Twilight Zone? No,not the kind that suck the life blood out of the legal aid system, butthe kidnapping-biting-sort. A lot of planning must go into this kind ofassault, the drugs, the moon, the $2 shop cape…not to mention thepoor unsuspecting mortal. Maybe we need to arm our colleagues upthere with crucifixes. Frankly, I’d prefer a Taser. One zap from thatwould be sure to rattle the plastic fangs right off ‘em.Southern stingIt’s coming down to the wire at Super 14 time as I write this and mymighty Crusaders unfortunately had to bow to the rampaging Bulls onhome turf in South Africa and missed the final. Don’t forget though thatmy All Blacks are back, led by one of our own (A good southern man ofcourse), showing the Irish how things will go next year!Take care out there, and look afterya mates.See ya!Police hockey teamseeking playersAny Police personnel wishing to play in the upcoming ServicesHockey tournament in Palmerston North on the 10th, 11thand 12th August for the NZ Police men’s hockey team shouldforward their details including current playing status and anyrelevant previous playing experience toian.pengelly@police.govt.nz1 2 3 4 5 6 7Clues:Across:1. To trap?4. A thousand adages together makeordered costs8. Sonar sets illegal fire9. Incoming passenger10. Total11. To ice down12. Perfect14. Put into15. Appears20. Describes a one person crime wave21. As soon as possible22. Form of transport24. Citadel breaks apart to form a type oflanguage25. Unknown location to some?26. Take over another position for the timebeing27. First and second are two of fourDown:1. Take a handbag illegally?2. Run away3. Periods of time5. An assassin is one6. Judges order form?7. Good form of DNA.9. Amongst13. Search and find stolen property16. Perfects? Prefects or just teachers?17. Used to develop latent prints18. Owed19. Illegally drives over the limit20. No big23. Used to gather DNA?8 911 12101314 15 1617 18 1920 2122 2324 2526 27Down: 1. Snatch 2. Abscond 3. Eons 5. Murderer 6. Gavel 7. Saliva 9. Amid 13.Retrieve 16. Masters 17. Powder 18. Debt 19. Speeds 20. Small 23. SwabAnswers:Across: 1. Snare 4. Damages 8. Arson 9. Arrival 10. Sum 11. Cool 12. Ideal 14. Added15. Seems 20. Spree 21. A.S.A.P 22. Bus 24. Dialect 25. Where 26. Relieve 27. Bases136June 2010

Association hosts Office Holders’ Tool Kit CourseTo ensure Association representativesreceive adequate training and supportin their job, the New Zealand PoliceAssociation recently hosted a newlyupdated Officer Holders’ Tool KitCourse at Capital House in Wellington.The course ran from April 27 to 30with chairpersons, vice-chairpersonsand some secretaries from Associationcommittees around the country inattendance.The four-day course covered moduleson Representing Members, PerformanceManagement, Code of Conduct andLegal Assistance.Participants were also encouraged tointeract, discuss and practice the newskill sets they learned on the course.The two course facilitators were SeniorIndustrial Officer Amanda Craig andHuman Resources Advisor LesleyMcRae.• LEARNING THE ROPES: (Back row): Jared Cuff, Graham Hoskin, Doug Peach, RichardLindsay, Craig Barker, Bill Talbot, Tom Romans, Steve Webber, Emiel Logan. (Front row):John Simes, Damien Graves, Mokai McCarthy, Wayne Hunter, Amanda Craig, Lesley McRae,Fiona Opray, Karen Roberts, Nathan White, and Mike Thomas.The Association’s legal team, as well asWellington and Central District FieldOfficers and Industrial Officers, alsopresented modules throughout thecourse.Ms McRae said the general consensuswas that the course was very worthwhileand extremely valuable.The Association aims to hold the courseannually.Memorial wallOur sympathies to all our members’ families for those who have passed away in recent months…We remember… Who passed away…HEMOPO Tewhanauho Neri retired member 18-Nov-09 PoriruaHUGHES Graeme Neil retired member 20-Apr-10 katikatiTRAPPITT Edward John retired member 3-May-10 ParaparaumuCRAIG John Robert Duncan life Member 4-May-10 levinPATERSON Ian Charles life Member 16-May-10 hamiltonUseful Information & ContactsNew Zealand Police Association:For immediate industrial & legal advice(on matters that cannot be deferred such asPolice shootings, fatal pursuits or deaths incustody) ring 0800 TEN NINE(0800 836 6463)– 24 hour/seven days servicePolice Network 44446 Website www.policeassn.org.nzFreephone 0800 500 122 Police Home Loans 0800 800 808Police Health Plan/Police Fire and General Insurance Police Credit Union 0800 429 000Quotes & information 0800 500 122 or (04) 472 9645or Fax (04) 496 6819 Credit Union www.policecu.org.nzPolice Fire and General Insurance claims 0800 110 088 GSF information 0800 654 731All enquiries (04) 496 6800 PSS information 0800 777 243Vice PresidentsStuart Mills (027) 268 9416Chris Cahill (027) 268 9411Field OfficersAuckland District: stewart Mills (027) 268 9407Waitemata and Northland Districts: Steve Hawkins (027) 268 9406Waikato, BOP and Eastern Districts: Graeme McKay (027) 268 9408Central and Wellington Districts: JJ Taylor (027) 268 9409Tasman and Canterbury Districts: Dave McKirdy (027) 268 9410Southern District dave Steel (027) 268 9427Regional DirectorsRegion One Jug Price Whangaparaoa (027) 268 9419Region Two Dave Pizzini Counties-Manukau (027) 268 9413Region Three Mel Ridley Tauranga (027) 268 9414Region Four Luke Shadbolt Hastings (027) 478 9001Region Five Ron Lek Wellington (027) 268 9417Region Six Craig Prior Sydenham (027) 268 9412Region Seven Brett Roberts Dunedin (027) 268 9418June 2010137

PoliceNewsThe Voice of Police“A ship in the harbour is safe,but that’s not whatships are built for.”William SheddRisk in moderation is not to be feared.Rather it should be embraced as aningredient that is necessary to achievingsomething worthwhile. Whether buildinga relationship, a business or a career, allof these things have an element ofrisk. Investing is the same. The aim isto control or limit the risk by applyingsensible strategies so the outcome hasa greater chance for success.Spicers provide Police Welfare Fund members access to quality financial planning, investmentand superannuation advice at specially negotiated rates. Phone 0800 ON BEAT (0800 66 2328)138A disclosure statement is available on request and free of charge.

New Zealand Police AssociationInvestment pearls of wisdomBy Spicers, providers of Police Financial Planning.One secret to successful investing is to buy low and sell high. While thereare no guarantees when it comes to investing, if you apply the followingprinciples you should do just fine.If it sounds too good to be true, itprobably isIf you ever hear the phrase ‘low risk, highreturn’ then stand back and have a very closelook at what’s on offer. If someone is offeringyou a higher return than what is availableelsewhere in the market, then ‘sure as eggs’there will be additional risk involved. It maynot be apparent in fancy charts showing aseries of historic returns or in the advertisingliterature, but there’ll be risk embedded inthere somewhere. If you don’t feel qualified toanalyse what’s on offer yourself, ask someonewho is and whom you trust.Spread your risk by diversifyingA lack of diversification is a common mistakemade by investors. Don’t put all your eggs inone basket. If you have a mix of investments,such as property, shares, fixed interest andcash, then you are more likely to even outyour investment returns over time, even ifyour investments are affected by short-termvolatility in a particular sector. Perhaps themost important lesson some investors willlearn from the latest financial crisis is that theyshould have been even more diversified thanthey were.Establish a financial planFinancial planning is a must do to becomewell-to-do. Focus first on what will make youhappy and then the wealth side will fall intoplace. What are your wants and needs? Whendo you want to retire? What kind of income doyou need? Once you know these answers, thenyou can make a plan. Research has shown thatpeople who rate themselves as highly satisfiedwith their lives also have a sense of feelingin control of their financial situation – and afinancial plan.Research your optionsInvesting blindly is asking for trouble. Do yourhomework. A lot of investors will spend moretime planning their holiday on the Internetthan researching their investments or workingwith a good financial adviser who can providequalified guidance.Good advice is invaluableWith the seemingly infinite number ofinvestment opportunities available today,selecting an investment that will make themost of your money can be difficult. Whenmaking investment decisions for yourhard-earned cash, enlisting the services of aqualified financial adviser can prove invaluable.Patience is a virtueWhen investing, it’s important to rememberthat patience is a virtue. Investing for thelong-term can give the benefit of long-termmarket appreciation and compounding returns.Patience means sticking to your investmentstrategy and not letting short-term volatilitydeter you from the achievement of your longtermgoals.Just do itWhatever your circumstances, no matter howmuch money you have, take the opportunity toget good advice about how to invest wisely foryour future.Spicers provide Police Welfare Fundmembers access to quality financialplanning, investment and superannuationadvice at specially negotiated rates.Phone 0800 ON BEAT (0800 66 2328).Buying a new home orrefinancing can be an expensiveprocess, even with today’s low interestrates. We aim to make it easier onPolice Welfare Fund members’ pockets.So for a limited time those drawing downa new Police Home Loan will be eligiblefor six months free home insurancethrough the Welfare Fund’s Police Fire &General Insurance*.Members eligible for the free covershould contact our Member ServicesTeam on 0800 500 122. You will need acopy of your loan document fromThe National Bank or ANZ.Police Home Loan PackageWhether you’re refinancing, buying yourfirst home, selling, investing in property,building or looking for ways to manageyour current home loan – a Police HomeLoan through The National Bank or ANZmay be able to help.The Police Welfare Fund Home Loanpackage provides attractive benefits toPolice Welfare Fund members and theirimmediate family, like:• No Home Loan application fee• A contribution of $500 towards legal fees• A small fee of $100 for a top-up on anexisting loanFor borrowing 80% or lower of a property’svalue:• 0.50% pa off the standard National Bankor ANZ Floating and Flexible Home Loaninterest rates• The lowest possible rate on fixed interestrate loans without having to negotiate andregardless of your loan sizeOur Police Welfare Fund Home Loanpackage is highly competitive and flexible.For more information or to apply for the PoliceWelfare Fund Home Loan Package visitwww.policeassn.org.nz“All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better.”- Ralph Waldo Emerson (American essayist and philosopher).“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, not the most intelligent thatsurvives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.”- Charles Darwin (English scientist).“Doubt is a pain too lonely to know that faith is his twin brother.”- Kahlil Gibran (Acclaimed Lebanese poet, artist and writer).The National Bank and ANZ’s lending criteria, terms, conditions and fees apply. Forborrowing over 80% of a property’s value, a low equity premium on a graduatedscale will apply, and a registered valuer’s report will be required. Eligibilty to apply fora Police Home Loan package is at the discretion of the Police Welfare Fund Limitedand applicants must be current members of the Fund. This home loan package is notavailable for low documentation home loans or loans approved through a broker. Fora copy of The National Bank or ANZ Disclosure Statement and full details (includingterms and conditions) contact any branch of The National Bank of New Zealand (partof ANZ Bank Limited) nor the ANZ.*Police Fire & General Insurance will be subject to the standard underwritingterms and conditions and is provided through the Police Welfare Fund not byThe National Bank or ANZ. Members are eligible for one period of six months freePolice Fire & General Home Insurance premium only, per member, regardless of theterm of Police Home Loan taken. Police Fire & General Insurance is underwritten byLumley General Insurance (NZ) Limited.06-2010June 2010139

Police Council of SportTo contact the Police Council of Sport, call Sharon Gold at the RNZPC. Ph: (04) 238-3139 (Ext: 43139)Conder captures fifth cross-country titleThe NZ Police cross-country champs were run at the Kihikihi Domainin Te Awamutu last month and defending men’s champion Rob Conder(Wanganui) collected his fifth title in the last decade when he won the9,000 metres open men’s race in an impressive 34 minutes.Wanganui got the quinella when Jason Page finished second, just 21seconds behind Conder with the game New Plymouth runner TonyBrownrigg home third in 35.08.Amy Robertson (Hastings) took out the women’s open championshipover 6,000 metres in a time of 29.06 with Candice Howe (Hamilton)second in 30.57 and Auckland’s Ilona Walton third in 32.12.Canterbury runners dominateCanterbury runners dominated the Veteran Men’s and Women’s titles.The Veteran Men’s (40-plus) event saw Mike Wilson (Canterbury) goone better than last year in winning the 9,000m event in 38.08 whileWanganui’s Karl Rowe (40.06) was the runner-up, 38 seconds in frontof Hamilton’s Scott Miller.New Brighton’s Sarah Blair won the Veteran Women’s (35-plus) raceover 6,000m in 27.46 while Palmerston North’s Carolyn Martin wassecond in 30.00 with Maria Anderton (Te Awamutu) home third in32.24.The racing attracted 62 competitors across the various divisions. Itwas a fast, flat course with several equestrian jumps thrown in forgood measure. By all accounts, the small hills became ‘mountains’after each 3 km loop.Runaway victoryMichael Morgan (Manukau) scored a runaway win in the Draught Horse(95 kilograms-plus runners) race – running faster than last year in theprocess – to take the event in 26.08 for the 6,000m with Hamilton’sJason Earl second in 29.04 and Bryan Smith (Flaxmere) was third in29.28.Mark (“Chills”) Chillingworth (Wanganui), who has been heavilyinvolved with the organisation of many Police cross-country teams andraces over a long period of time, showed his versatility by switchingfrom running to take out the walkers’ race over 3,000m in a smart23.13 with Ben Tongalea (Auckland) second in 24 minutes even withCathy Ahuriri (North Shore) third in 24.55.• Inspector Paul Carpenter awards Mike Wilson the Veteran’s trophy.• Rob Conder winner of the senior men’s race over 9,000 metres.Visit www.policeassn.org.nz for updated contact details for the Police Council of Sport management committee,District Sports Officers and the latest schedule of events.140 June 2010

New Zealand Police AssociationOrganisers later honoured Mark for his outstanding contributionto Police running when he was given a special Police Associationsponsoredprize. Mark was also the MC on the night.Chillingworth took first place in a quick time of 23.13mins over 3k’sand the team named The Unfits won first place against the CommsSquad in a time of 51.18mins.The team’s event, in which three runners ran one lap of the 3,000mcircuit each, saw The Unfits (51.18) from Hastings triumph overComms Squad (Auckland) in 60.53.Great helpA large contingent of helpers including Maori Wardens, who assistedwith course marshalling, Te Awamutu College students, who assistedother members of the Police with timekeeping and other locals turnedup to lend a hand.Hastings will host the 2011 championships.• Tony Brownrigg of New Plymouth is closely followed by Jason Pageof Wanganui as they traverse one of the jumps.• Mark Chillingworth, winner of the walker’s race.Police softball seeking playersSoftball players are needed for the 2010 Inter-Services, the 2010 Club Nationals Tournament,and the 2012 World Emergency Games.The team is calling for men and women, sworn or non-sworn, who would like to be part of aPolice softball team.If you are interested please contact Constable Calvyn Wilson (calvyn.wilson@vodafone.net.nz) or Constable Scott Dixon (scott.dixon@police.govt.nz).Past tournamentsThese upcoming tournaments follow on from last year’s Inter-Services Softball Tournament,which was held at the Whenuapai Air Force Base in Auckland. The Air Force hosted thetournament.This was the first time since 1995 that Police had a presence at that tournament.The team consisted of Police staff from all over the country including Christchurch, Auckland,Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Taranaki. Detective Sergeant John Love, the current Junior BlackSox coach, coached the team.Playing the gameHaving been out of softball in the Services for 14 years, there was some degree of trepidationas to what the Police team would be able to bring to the tournament.However, despite losing their first game to the Army by a single run the Police team did notdisappoint. Dominant wins over both the Navy and Air Force teams followed, which led to thePolice team being the number one seeds for the championship round. During this round, Policewere pushed hard by the Army and Air Force teams respectively but strong batting and skillfulfielding saw the Police team hold out both their rivals and become the tournament champions.South Island PoliceLawn BowlsTournament 2010The South Island Lawn Bowls Tournamentfor this year will be held at the AshburtonBowling Club, The Domain, Ashburton,on Tuesday 23rd and Wednesday 24thNovember.Teams will consist of four players, twoplayers shall be serving, retired or nonswornmembers of the Police, male orfemale. One of these players must be theSkip for the team.Accommodation arrangements will accompanythe official registration form inconjunction with a Police Council of Sportmembership application form for thosewho are not currently paid-up financialmembers.Players are reminded of their obligations tothe Police Council of Sport.For further information, please contact:Roger Gutberlet, 8 Middle Road, Ashburton.Roger’s Email is: rodedido@xtra.co.nzJune 2010141

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceLife’s a beach for the 6th AnnualPolice Surf ChampionshipsFine weather and consistent clean wavesensured that the 6th Annual Police SurfChampionships were a complete success.The event was held at Omanu Beach,Mount Maunganui. Eighty-eight (88) surferscompeted.The first day’s competition saw surfersenjoy the heats of On Ya Guts, Novice andLongboard divisions in clean two-foot waves.The second day produced a swell, whichproduced tidy left and right banks of clean,faced and excellent shaped three and halffoot waves.A large crowd turned out for the final heatson day three, which featured some overheadsets.Getting resultsStandout performers were Wiremu Rakatau,who went on to win the Men’s Open, andScott Pitkethley, who won both the Longboardand Over 40s divisions.Gina Samson, who won the Women’s Open,and Rob Cameron, who won a close final inthe Over 50s, were other star performers.The prizegiving was held at the Omanu SurfClub, which saw a “Sea of Green” as 200competitors, families, friends and sponsorsenjoyed St Patrick’s night.Special mentionFollowing the presentations to divisionalfinalists, contest organiser Loyd Buckleypresented a special trophy to Grant Cowardfor his continued services to surfing withinthe NZ Police.Grant started it all in 2005 and ran the firsttwo contests in Taranaki.Colin and Jan McKenny, who were assistantorganisers of the event, said that this year’scompetition was the most relaxed andenjoyable surfing contest they had ever beeninvolved with.Next year’s contest will be hosted byNorthland.Results:Open Men: 1. Wiremu Rakatau (Auckland),Todd Hilleard (Tauranga), 3. Geoffrey Pardoe(Gisborne).Over 50s: 1. Rob Cameron (Northland), 2.Loyd Buckley (Tauranga), 3. Mike Gowen(Tauranga).Longboard: 1. Scott Pitkethley (Gisborne),2. Wiremu Rakatau (Auckland), 3. NigelHenstock (Gisborne).• GREAT SERVICE: Grant Coward (middle) receives the hand carved stone trophy for Servicesto Police Surfing from contest organiser Loyd Buckley (right) and stone mason Paul Gautron(left). Paul carved and donated the award.• OPEN FINALISTS: Wiremu Rakatau (1st), Todd Hilleard (2nd), Dane Eccles-Smith andGeoffrey Pardoe (3rd).• AGE NO BARRIER: Over-50s Masters competitors Loyd Buckley (2ND), Grant Coward,Mike Gowen (3rd), Rob Cameron (1ST) and Tim Smith.142June 2010

New Zealand Police AssociationNovice: 1. Whiti TimuTimu (Gisborne), 2. Tina Smallman (Gisborne), 3.Andy Bernsten (Tauranga).Women: 1. Gina Samson (Gisborne), 2. Whiti TimuTimu (Gisborne), 3.Tina Smallman (Gisborne).On Ya Guts: Leanne Wakelin (Gisborne), 2. Dean Barnes (Taupo), 3.Ray Dunbar (Taupo).Over 40s: 1. Scott Pitkethley (Gisborne), 2. Carl Neustroski (Gisborne),3. Bill Dawson (Northland).Best Wave: 1. Loyd Buckley (Tauranga).Services to Police surfing award: Grant Coward (Taranaki).Facing the musicInstead of patrolling the city in their cars, police in the United Statesare trawling Facebook, MySpace and Craigslist to catch criminals,and it’s working, according to a story carried by FoxNews.com.There was the Florida man convicted of murdering his friend: heposted pictures of his victim on MySpace next to the words “rest inpeace” hours before the victim’s death was even reported.A 19-year-old was arrested and charged with burglary after awoman found her home ransacked, her jewellery stolen and theburglar’s Facebook account open on her home computer.Then there was the Los Angeles graffiti vandal who became anInternet sensation after posting videos on YouTube of his handiwork.One fugitive was living abroad - kicking back on the beaches ofCancun, Mexico, by day, partying in the clubs by night - until hestarted posting Facebook updates about how much fun he washaving - and added a former Justice Department official to his listof friends.Footnote: Police News published a story reminding members ofthe dangers of posting personal information and opinions on socialnetworking websites in its January/February issue.• NICE BOARD: Victoria Guseva from Waihi with the High VoltageLongboard spot prize she won.West Australian Police Union of Workers impressedwith Police Association’s holiday home systemBy Deb Stringer, Communications AssistantProfessionalising the way they do things has led the WesternAustralian Police Union of Workers (WAPUW) to the New ZealandPolice Association’s doorstep.WAPUW members recently visited the Police Association to gaininsights into our holiday home and membership systems as they lookto revamp their own systems.The Australian union considers the NZ Police Association the mostadvanced Police union holiday home system in the SouthernHemisphere.WAPUW General Manager Ken See said he had been very impressedwith the Association’s holiday homes and how they were run.“The online booking system is something we are very interested inand it was great to visit your holiday home in Greytown,” he told PoliceNews.“Not only are we looking to grow our portfolio of holiday homes we arealso looking to professionalise the ones we already have. So we will belooking to employ some caretakers in the near future,” he said.NZ Police Association Welfare Fund Manager Pete Hayes said the visithad been a great opportunity to formalise the reciprocal access ofholiday homes the two unions already share.“It’s great because their members can use our holiday homes, whilewe can use theirs and you don’t have to give any more than threemonths’ notice to secure one,” Mr Hayes said.• AUSSIES TAKE A LEAF FROM OUR BOOK: (From left to right):WAPUW General Manager Ken See, WAPUW Director GeorgeTilbury, WAPUW General Treasurer Merv Lockhart and the NZPolice Association’s Welfare Fund Manager Pete Hayes.June 2010143

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceNZ Police Basketball2010 Duncan Taylor Memorial Tournament(please note date change)The 2010 Duncan Taylor Memorial Basketball Tournament is to beheld in Napier on Friday 6th to Saturday 7th August. The tournament isthe sixth since 2005, with each year getting bigger and better. PoliceCouncil of Sport sponsorship ensures accommodation and meals willbe provided for participants from outside Napier. Participants areresponsible for meeting their own travel costs and tournament fee.While there has traditionally been spirited competition for theDuncan Taylor Memorial Trophy, the tournament is principally aboutparticipation, acknowledgement of Duncan’s contribution to basketball,and recognition of his ultimate sacrifice.When: Friday 6th and Saturday 7th August, 2010. (New date)Where: Pettigrew Arena, Napier.Who: All current sworn and non-sworn staff are eligible.This year an invitation has been extended to ex-Police staffto participate by providing a men’s and a women’s team.Teams: Men’s & Women’sFour regions based on existing district boundaries,including Service Centres located therein.Outtrim and Gray take honours atNational Darts TournamentThe 35th Annual NZ Police AssociationNational Darts Tournament was held recentlyat Petone, just north of Wellington.Tournament organiser Donna Hooper said theevent was a wonderful reunion for current andretired members of the NZ Police.“It’s a great way to forge friendships and ofcourse foster a bit of friendly rivalry,” she said.On the first night of competition the NZ Policerepresentative team played a very serious localinvitation team. Unfortunately the Police lost,but some outstanding competitive darts wereplayed. All other registered players played inthe North vs South match, which was won bythe North Island.On the second day of competition the foursand pairs matches were played, while Sundaywas reserved for the prestigious singles event.Results:Men’s singles winner: Olly Outtrim(Palmerston North). Runner-up: Rod Reid(Palmerston North).Ladies’ singles winner: Jude Gray (Kaikoura)Runner-up: Donna Hooper (Lower Hutt).Pairs’ winner: Rod Reid/Stewart Davies(Palmeston North) Runners-up: ShaneGodinet/Alan Eastwood (Glen Innes OB).Fours’ winners: Shane Godinet/Alan Eastwood,Dave Darwin, Dave Gray (GIOB/Kaikoura).Runners-up: Tim Riwaka/John Kench, JudeGray/Matt Lindsay (Christchurch/Kaikoura).Men’s plate singles winner: Tim Riwaka.Runner-up: Alan Eastwood (GIOB).Ladies’ plate singles winner: Gina Atkinson(Palmerston North) Runner-up: Jenny Kearins(Palmerston North).Men’s plate pairs winners: Bruce Harrison/Dave Joyce (Lower Hutt) Runners-up: JudeGray/Matt Lindsay (Kaikoura).Best and Fairest Team:Olly Outtrim/RodReid (Palmerston North). Runners-up: StewartDavies (Palmerston North)/Donna Hooper(Lower Hutt).The NZ Police rep team selected forAwanui, Northland in 2011 is:Olly Outtrim – Palmerston North, Rod Reid –Palmerston North, Stan Hooper – Lower Hutt,Shane Godinet – Glen Innes OB, Tim Riwaka– Christchurch, Alf Filipaina – Auckland,Mark Stevens – Lower Hut, Stewart Davies –Palmerston North, John Kench – Christchurch(Reserve), and Dave Darwin – Glen Innes OB(Reserve).Northern (Northland, Waitemata, Auckland City & CountiesManukau Districts and AMCOS).Waikato/Eastern (Waikato, Bay of Plenty & Eastern Districts).Wellington/Central (Central & Wellington Districts andOoC, RNZPC, PIB).Southern (Tasman, Canterbury & Southern Districts).Past police membersRegions are encouraged to enter more than one team.The organisers are hoping for eight men’s teams and fourwomen’s teams.Contacts: Southern - Gordon Meyer (Sydenham).Wellington/Central – Jason McCarthy (Upper Hutt).Waikato/BoP/Eastern – Nicholas Stark (Hamilton).Northern – John Hughes (AMCOS, Drug Squad).Ex-Police members - Maui Aben (Gisborne)Players should contact their regional representative.For further information about the tournament, please contactMaui Aben (Gisborne) via Email (MAC085@police.govt.nz)Police rugby leagueteam to tourThe New Zealand Police rugby league teamwill be undertaking a three-match NorthIsland tour in August 2010.The side will take on local rep teams inRotorua (Bay of Plenty rep team), Gisborne(East Coast Rep team) and New Plymouth(Taranaki). The New Plymouth match is acharity fundraiser involving Ben Hekenui (wholost both his legs in an industrial accident).Ben is now coach of the Waitara team.Expressions of interest are being called forfrom all players interested in being selectedfor the team and should be forwarded viaLotus Notes to Anne.Power@police.govt.nzDetails should include your full name, dateof birth, current station/district and a contactphone number. Also include any previousplaying experience, what position you play,and at what, if any, level you are currentlyplaying.All players must be registered with Anne tobe considered.Snowboarding nationals at Tekapo in SeptemberThe 2010 NZ Police Association and Council of Sport Snowboarding Nationals will be held atTekapo between 15-18 September 2010.The event will be held at Mt Dobson, Roundhill and Ohau skifields and consists of snowboardcross, giant slalom, slope style and half pipe.All snowboarders are welcome. Please contact the organiser Greg Murton atgregory.murton@police.govt.nz for further details.144June 2010

New Zealand Police AssociationA few new labelsby Ricky CollinsI’ve tried a few new wines to the market overthe last few months and here are my thoughtson a handful that caught my eye, and palate.2009 O: Tu Otuwhero EstatesMarlborough Sauvignon Blanc RRP $19There is plenty of cheap, but fairly bland Sauvignon Blanc on themarket at present. Rest assured this Awatere Valley wine is anythingbut bland. It’s a fresh and invigorating drop with a slightly fleshymouthfeel. It shows gooseberry and lime flavours, with a hint oftropical fruit notes as well. All in all, this is a pretty smart example ofthis country’s benchmark wine variety.2009 Montana Living Land Series Waipara Pinot Gris RRP $22Montana has recently released a new range of wines called LivingLand. This Waipara Pinot Gris is sourced from a very low crop thatsurvived a hailstorm that wiped out 60 to 70% of the fruit. Theremaining fruit went through to full ripeness and eventually resultedin a wine with concentrated tropical fruit and spicy pear flavours. It’sa well-balanced wine, full-bodied with a slightly viscous texture. Lookout for introductory reduced pricing that is pretty tempting.2009 Banrock Station Moscato rrP $15Banrock Station recently added a Moscato to their range of winesavailable in New Zealand. If you’re looking for a fresh and juicy lightwine with a low level of alcohol then this might be just the ticket. Thisfresh and slightly effervescent wine has a distinct grapefruit nose,and delivers sweet pineapple and passionfruit flavours. It’s just alovely refreshing wine that’s not too serious, and it’s quite often onspecial at Countdown for well under $10 a bottle.2008 Milcrest Estate Pinot Noir rrP $23I’m picking the Milcrest label will be unfamiliar to most readers. ThisNelson Pinot is the first vintage produced on a newly planted Hopevineyard by ex-sworn member Terry Milton. This first release Pinotdoesn’t disappoint. It has classic, juicy red-berry flavours with a hintof spice, and it’s nicely balanced and shows good length. At $23 abottle, it represents good value for money. Terry is just getting upand running, but look out for his wines in Super Liquor stores soon.Alternatively, check out his website www.milcrestestate.co.nz2008 Conspiracy Hawke’s Bay Merlot rrP $10This wine is only available through on-line supplierwww.bestwinebuys.co.nzThe Conspiracy range is effectively relabeled to conceal the trueidentity of the producer. For $10 you end up with a wine that is worthquite a bit more, and the producer moves the wine at a discount ratewithout damaging the perceived value of the true label. This Merlothas good palate weight, bright fruit forward flavours with a touch ofspice and dry tannins. It’s the best $10 New Zealand red I’ve triedfor a while.• On Anzac Day at Johnsonville PoliceStation near Wellington something ofa rare occurrence took place when fiveofficers who have been the officer-inchargeof the station from 1997 to thepresent day attended the remembranceceremony. From left to right they are:Senior Sergeant Mark Buttar (currentO/C), Inspector Peter McKay (PNHQ),Inspector Marty Parker (Central Comms),Senior Sergeant Doug Rowan (StrategicTraffic Group), and Detective InspectorStephen Vaughan (PNHQ).- Photo courtesy of Mark Gibson.June 2010145

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceWrite it here! Letters to the Editor are welcome.Signed letters are preferred, but in all cases the writer’s name and address must be supplied. Names will be published unless there is a goodreason for anonymity. The editor reserves the right to edit, abridge or decline letters without explanation. Email to: editor@policeassn.org.nz orwrite it to the Editor at PO Box 12344, Wellington. Letters under 400 words are preferred.The reasons for those line-upsI read an article recently in the Police Newsfrom an unidentified Counties-ManukauPolice staff member. The member raised thesubject of the new initiative of weekly lineupsfor frontline staff. The member went onto say that: “This is the Police, not the Army”and continued to talk to a range of issues.For me, this article identified two issues.Firstly, the member did not feel comfortableraising the issue with a supervisor, AreaCommander or myself. Secondly, themember may not appreciate the truepurpose of the line-up.On the first point, I would like all staff tofeel confident in the knowledge that ifthey have an issue, or they disagree withan initiative, that their bosses, includingmyself, are mature enough to acceptconstructive feedback. These situations arisebecause of a lack of our communicatingthe purpose of the initiative or a lack ofour understanding of current frontlineissues. Open communication is the key.My Email address is easy to find, as is yourArea Commander’s. The door to my officeis always open. If you have an issue, an ideaand/or a solution, I am keen to hear it.On the second point, I would like to reaffirmthe purpose of the weekly line-ups,which I anticipate should take no morethan five to 10 minutes of your time, once aweek. A key Police value is professionalism- the first aim of the line-up is to ensurewe are at our presentable best when we goout on the street, and we have the requiredappointments to maintain personal and teamsafety. The second purpose of the line-up isfor your Response and Tactical Managersand Area Commanders to communicatesome key messages to you regularly, sofrontline staff are across some of the morestrategic issues.On a final point, the member refers to alack of resources. I think it is important forme to acknowledge the significant increasein resources afforded to this District overpast months - 300 extra staff, extra vehicles,computers, safety equipment and buildings.I believe the District is in great shape and weare well on the way to achieving our visionfor Counties-Manukau - where people feelsafe and are safe.Mike Bush(District Commander)Motor bike training a great successRecently, the Wellington District RoadPolicing Group ran a day long motorbiketraining course at the Royal New ZealandPolice College (RNZPC).It was open to all Wellington District staffthat owned a motorbike and wanted to upskill themselves in handling, slow speedmanoeuvring, hazard awareness and brakeand escape techniques.The reason for running such a course wasrecognition that there are more motorbikeson NZ roads than ever before and a recentexplosion in bike numbers at WellingtonCentral has emphasised the need to offersome basic (and not so basic) riding safetytips to improve overall rider safety.The response from the bully board messageand poster was very encouraging - so goodin fact that over a dozen people had to beturned away due to limitations on venue sizeand available facilitators.The day kicked off just after 0900hrs witha quick introduction and brief of the day’sintended activities, followed by a very quicklecture on the systems of motorcycle control.Then it was on to the actual riding.The riders were shown some cone layoutson the parade ground and yours truly wasgiven the task of showing them how to do itright. All went well until I did the second lapof the offset cone weave where I promptlyskittled a cone and had to go back and showthem again. Yes, I could hear the laughingover the engine of my own bike (even theexperts have bad days you know). “Yeahright” I hear you say.Activities included 90-degree pull outs,intersection layouts, figure eight, offset conelayout, non-breaking cone weave, leaningin/out and with the bike (full use of thecollege’s skid track was used for this).The day finished with a brake and escapeexercise and the randomiser, which isbasically a whole lot of cones thrown aroundthe place where the rider has an entry andexit point and has to try and negotiate hisbike through without striking any of thecones - fun for all was had on that. The lookon some of the faces was priceless.Feedback has been very positive withthe overall consensus being that this wasan excellent initiative by the WellingtonDistrict administration.Through Police News I would like to takethis opportunity to thank a few peoplewithout whose help this would not havebeen possible - Greg Thomas (motor bikeinstructor RNZPC), whose instructionwas second-to-none; Kevin Guthriefrom Tasman (TAG) and Andrew GilbertWellington (STU); Roy Hitchcock fromNZTA who supplied some CDs to hand out,and Inspector Peter Baird (RPG ManagerWellington), who has supported our effortsand who generously provided funds so wecould have a free lunch at the college.Ride safe out there.Graeme Bergh(Wellington)The dangers posed by U-turnsEnough is enough. For years innumerablemembers have faced legal charges and riskedserious injury whilst executing U-turns toinitiate pursuits after speeding motorists.More importantly, in the last couple of years,one motorcyclist was seriously injured andanother maimed. Now the inevitable deathhas occurred.The Police Department will not ban thispatently unsafe work place practice. It istime for the Police Association to call in theLabour Department to require the PoliceDepartment to instruct staff to stop thisdangerous practice.Once banned by the department, membersshould face the same prosecutionconsequences as any other motorist who isinvolved in a collision whilst executing a U-turn.If the Police choose not to ban the practice,it is the Police Department who should facea Labour Department prosecution when, notif, the next collision happens.Mark Leys(Auckland)Time to get tough on thosewho instigate pursuitsYet again, I read the latest news and see therehave been more pursuit-involved crashesand fatals, this time to innocent parties aswell as those attempting to evade Police.Having been an active follower of Policepolicy and also actively involved in pursuits,it is with continuing frustration that we(the frontline police) are seeing no attemptsby either the Police administration nor146June 2010

New Zealand Police AssociationGovernment to make suitable changes to theoffence of failing to stop for red/blue lights.When is there going to be a realisationby Ministers, the judiciary and our ownheadquarters that crashes from policepursuits frequently commence from aneveryday vehicle stop or checkpoint.The average member of the public stops andthe process takes its natural course.However, the minority of drivers believe,for a variety of reasons that they cannotbe spoken to, whether due to their licencestatus, their alcohol consumption, or theirinvolvement with illegal activity.It is at this point that the mind-shift occursand they drive off and a pursuit is initiated.The police reaction is to either commenceor not commence the pursuit, and ifcommenced, thereby follows an intricate setof directives, guidelines and responsibilitiesfor the officer involved.The offending driver has one concern,responsibility and directive: Do not stop!I believe our legislation around this issue isarchaic.Still we see judges failing to sentencethese offenders meaningfully, as there isinsufficient power to do anything but finethe offender.I believe this offence should be punishableby imprisonment (not a minor threemonths either, but a substantial sentenceof two years, and a mandatory 12 monthsdisqualification period). The sentence needsto be separate to any other offence sentence.This would then send a clear message to theminority – stop for a police officer.How many more innocent lives will be lost,with the police officer concerned wrackedwith guilt over his or her procedural actions,before someone in a position to make changesays: “Enough is enough!”I would have thought that all of the familiesof the innocent would also have been heardwhen they have voiced their concerns, butI guess not.A very clear, forceful message by way oflegislative sentencing change needs tohappen – and sooner rather than later.Tim Rowe(Eastern District)The vexed issue of pursuitsI am writing in response to the letterPursuit decisions send the wrong message from‘Concerned’ of Auckland in the May issue ofPolice News.Pursuits are a really difficult balancing actfor all of us.As police officers, the last thing we wantis for offenders to avoid apprehension. Buton the other hand high-speed pursuits arerisky for us as drivers and passengers, forinnocent members of the public and for theoccupants of offending vehicles.As the letter from ‘Concerned’ clearly shows,we’re damned if we do and we’re damned ifwe don’t.The aim of the pursuit policy is to guidepolice drivers in balancing the risks so theycan make their own abandonment decisionslong before the pursuit controller is requiredto.However, we all know that when the lightsand sirens are on and the absolute focus ison stopping an offending vehicle, it can bedifficult to take the full picture into account.That’s where Comms oversight comes in.It’s very helpful and necessary to have anexperienced independent third party inthe form of a pursuit controller to help ourpolice drivers balance the competing risks.Relaying to the pursuit controllerinformation about the speed, the occupants,the weather, the environment and the trafficconditions helps our drivers to structuretheir thinking in the middle of a complexand pressured situation.When it’s apparent that public safety is atrisk, the pursuit controller steps in anddirects the pursuit to be abandoned - asthey should. The overriding principle is thatpublic and staff safety must take precedenceover the immediate apprehension of theoffender.Our pursuit controllers are required tomanage the risk for the organisation as awhole. They make high-pressure judgementcalls on behalf of us all. They take theirresponsibilities very seriously and I fullysupport them in the decisions they make.Superintendent Andy McGregor(National Manager: Communications Centres)Why the drinking ageshould stay the sameAs a member of the public, I do not believethe Police should support raising thedrinking age to 20. It should be left at 18.Once a person turns 18 they can join thePolice, so raising the drinking age to 20would mean police officers who are 18 yearsof age won’t be able to buy or drink alcohol.It strikes me as a bit weird that a policeofficer could be old enough to arrest people,use a gun, and engage in pursuits but notdeemed old enough to drink alcohol.Eighteen-year-olds can also vote and evenbecome a Member of Parliament.Nine thousand people recently signed anonline petition urging the Police not tosupport raising the driving age to 16 yearsold either because then a person will have toeffectively be 18.5 years old before they havetheir full licence, which means there couldbe some 18-year-old police officers still ontheir restricted licence! This would thenmean an 18-year-old police officer wouldn’tbe able to carry passengers or drive after 10p.m.Callum Smith(Wellington)Thanks for Assn andPolice ‘family’ supportLucy, Tom and I wish to express our heartfeltthanks for the amazing support from PoliceWelfare Manager Pete Hayes and the staff atthe Police Association.We are aware that many people haveworked tirelessly behind the scenes tosupport us through the seven months fromMike’s diagnosis to his death on 3 April. Itis comforting to know that we are part ofthe Police family and this means a great deal.To the many wonderful friends within thePolice family we were humbled by yoursupport and love.To those of you who have sent the manycards and Emails, as we are unable toacknowledge each personally, please knowit means a great deal.Thanks again and warmest regards,Michelle, Lucy and Tom Forrestal(Wellington)Support greatly appreciatedWe wish to thank each and everyoneinvolved during Michael’s illness and funeralthrough Police News.To the many people who have supported ourfamilies during the past six months and toall of those who expressed their condolencesthis is a personal thank you – and a big hug– to each and every one of you.Tom and Angie Forrestal, Cath and Paul Keno,Theresa, Andrew and Scott.IN REPLY: MERV HOTTER (Howick): Youwill be aware that the issues around theDRM (Differential Response Model) offirearms training has been the subject ofmuch discussion between the Police and thePolice Association and this is still ongoingas this issue went to press. TREVORMORLEY (Wellington); Points noted onboth subjects. GEOFF BENGE (Otaki):Whilst your points in general are well made– a read of the entire report concerning thisincident, rather than a news brief, might bein order. – Editor.June 2010147

Do you want good working conditions?Are you paying high rent?Are you interested in lifestyle?…if so – Westport needs you!WESTPORTNew Zealand’s best kept secret!It’s clichéd advertising, but are you tired of traffic jams andthe rat race in general? Fed up with pollution and litter inthe streets? Leave the cities behind and enter one of themost clean and natural environments New Zealand has tooffer. Bask in the magnificent scenery, explore our naturalforest walkways, or set your own path. Visit the wealth ofhistoric sites - plentiful throughout the region.Westport township situated at the mouth of the mightyBuller River was founded 150 years ago on gold, coal andtimber. This historic town is nestled away at the foot of thePaparoa Mountains to the east and the Tasman Sea to thewest. The town population is 6,000, with the Buller Districttotal being 11,000.Westport has a station of one senior sergeant, one sergeant,seven constables and one detective. There is an on-callsituation; an on-call allowance is paid.The Police District contains two one-man stations, at Granity andKaramea. Reefton to the south has a three man station. Westport issituated in the Tasman region with the Headquarters being based inNelson. Local large employers are the Milburn Cement Company andSolid Energy New Zealand Limited.Town amenitiesThe main street has a good range of shops with most tastes cateredfor. Foodstuffs (and wine and beer) can be purchased at either NewWorld or Fresh Choice Supermarkets. We don’t have a KFC, but we dohave eight pubs on the main street, plus a Workingmen’s Club and anRSA. Local restaurants cater for the hungry with whitebait being aspeciality. That’s if you are too lazy to catch your own.There is a good library and a video outlet which takes care of thewinter nights (during the summer you won’t want to stay at home),plus a spectacular new sports complex with three indoor pools, gym,Tauranga Bay is one of seven beaches in the local area.“Westport police staff and their families enjoy some white water rafting - one of the manyoutdoor attractions Westport has to offer.squash courts and a large floodlit outdoor hockey turf. Want to shop abit further a field – then Nelson is only three hours away, Christchurchfour and Greymouth an hour.Medical facilitiesThere are two medical centres with resident doctors. Buller Hospitalhas an acute ward plus a geriatric ward. Greymouth Hospital some90 kilometres away is the base hospital and both elective and acutesurgery is carried out here. The local St Johns is staffed by bothprofessional and volunteer staff.SchoolsWestport is well served with education facilities, which are comprisedof a co-ed high school, three primary schools and a kindergarten.There is also a day care centre and a parents’ centre. All schools arewithin cycling or walking distance.AttractionsSports: Rugby, soccer, hockey, netball, basketball, cricket, bowls(indoor and outdoor), croquet, golf (18 hole all weather course).Recreation: Fishing (salt and fresh), hunting (deer–red and fallow),tramping, climbing, mountain biking, gold prospecting, jet boating,sailing, whitebaiting, skiing, bush walks, squash, tennis, exploring andmore…House values average between $160,000 and $340,000 and rentalproperties average between $210 and $350.If you want further information please contact:O/C Westportarea Commander(03) 788-8310 (03) 768-1600or go to www.bullerdc.govt.nz