IT was cold, very wet and windy, and the foul conditions did not spare Police Minister Michelle Roberts either at Friday morning’s graduation of 41 new officers at the WA Police Academy at Joondalup.
However, hearts were warmed up inside freezing bodies when one officer dropped to one knee to propose to his girlfriend.
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READ NOWThe weather let up briefly as Police Minister Roberts arrived, but opened up again as she, escorted by Police Commissioner Chris Dawson, inspected the new constables.
As she sat down in the pavilion, Chaplain Geoff Simpson opened his blessing of the parade with ‘thank you, Lord, for the rain . . .’
The new officers included some with unusual backgrounds, among them a former international baseball star, another who played international rugby, a state soccer player, three fluent in languages other than English and 14 who were born overseas.
The average age of the recruits was 29 years. They had undergone six months of intensive training at the academy, which is rated among the world’s best and toughest.
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