Northern Territory Police
| Northern Territory Police | |
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Logo of the Northern Territory Police
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Flag of the Northern Territory Police
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| Motto | Working in partnership with the community to ensure a safe and resilient Northern Territory |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 1911 |
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction* | Territory of Northern Territory, Australia |
| Size | 1,349,129 km² |
| Population | 229,700 (2010) |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | NAB Building 71 Smith Street, Darwin, NT 0800 12°27′40″S 130°50′22″E / 12.4612°S 130.8394°ECoordinates: 12°27′40″S 130°50′22″E / 12.4612°S 130.8394°E |
| Sworn officers | 1,381 (June 2011) |
| Elected officer responsible | The Hon Peter Chandler, Minister for Police, Fire and Emergency Services |
| Agency executive | Reece Kershaw, Commissioner |
| Units |
List
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| Service areas |
3
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| Facilities | |
| Stations | 70 |
| Website | |
| www.pfes.nt.gov.au/ | |
| Footnotes | |
| * Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction. | |
The Northern Territory Police is the police body that has legal jurisdiction over the Northern Territory of Australia. This police service has 1302 gazetted police positions (as at 31 July 2011) made up of 55 senior sergeants, 200 sergeants, 741 constables, 159 auxiliaries, and 84 Aboriginal community police officers. The rest of the positions are members of commissioned rank and 10 inoperative positions (as of 31 July 2011). It also has a civilian staff of 297 across 48 stations.
Police in the Northern Territory are part of a Tri-Service: the Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Service with the Commissioner of Police as the CEO of the Tri Service. Sworn police officers can be required to serve anywhere where a police presence is required in the Northern Territory including remote Aboriginal communities in Arnhem Land and outback Northern Territory.
Sworn police can be recruited in two divisions: police constables and police auxiliaries.
The Northern Territory Police traces its roots back to the South Australian Mounted Police from 1870 when Inspector Paul Foelsche and six other police officers arrived in the Territory. A small rural constabulary (part-time force) had existed earlier but was disbanded. The Native Police Corps was formed in 1884. Their role was mostly as a security force to protect the early inhabitants of the Northern Territory than as a police force. The current NTP came into existence in 1911. In 1931, the two Territories Central and Northern became the Northern Territory of Australia and the authority of the Commissioner of Police was established in the Administrator of the Northern Territory, in Darwin.
In December 1869, the governor commissioned Paul Foelsche, a Corporal in the SA Mounted Police stationed at Strathalbyn, to be the first sub-inspector of police at Palmerston. He sailed for Darwin soon afterwards. The police uniform then worn in the Territory was the same as that worn in South Australia. It consisted of a short cut-away blue serge tunic with nine regulation buttons, silver twisted cord shoulder knots, black braid on the sleeves and silver chevrons for non-commissioned officers. The riding breeches were dark blue corkscrew serge with a white stripe.
The first firearms were a Schneider rifle or carbine, calibre .577. These were the first breech loaded rifles used in the British Army, and the original cartridges had a cardboard case. Later Martini-Henry rifles were used, and Webley revolvers were issued. Like their predecessors, the Rural Constabulary at Escape Cliffs, the first detachment of police at Palmerston had as their first responsibility the maintenance of law and order in the community.
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Wikipedia