NCJ Number
74324
Journal
Police Life Dated: (December 1979) Pages: 9-14
Date Published
1979
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Significan events faced by the New South Wales police in the 1970's are reviewed in this Australian article.
Abstract
Early in the decade, policewomen started to move from their traditional role in social welfare to the assumption of duties which male officers had performed, and a new emphasis was placed on recruiting and recruit training as a new training academy was established. In 1973, brightly colored police cars began patrolling the highways to reduce the frequency of fatal traffic accidents. Also, the 'Crime Beat' program, which put more policemen back on the street, was introduced as a means of crime prevention. The 1970's saw many conflicts between police and demonstrators, and the police were able to develop considerable expertise in crowd control. By the end of the decade, violence at demonstrations was rare. The Police Air Wing was formed in 1975 and has since used a variety of aircraft for various duties, the most important of which has been transportation. In that year, the Dog Squad was reintroduced to help locate offenders, evidence, people lost in the bush, and illicit drugs. Computer systems were also developed for recording and monitoring crime problems. Police-community relations were improved with the initiation of police-sponsored dances for local youth, for which police volunteers helped provide entertainment. Throughout the decade, armed holdups became more prevalent, and criminals were more ready to use firearms. Crime-related homicides increased as did the number of rapes in victims' homes. Finally, the Special Operations Group was formed to deal with new problems in the area of terrorism. Other events are reviewed, and photographs are included. A reference list is not provided.