Nelson honours police officer Lyn Fleming
As services commemorating fallen police officers were held across New Zealand, in Nelson the ceremony carried new meaning.
It was the first time Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming, the veteran officer who died in the line of duty on New Year’s Day, was included in the list of the fallen – the first officer from Nelson, and the first female on the Police Roll of Honour.
Hundreds gathered outside Nelson Central Police Station for the service on Monday, and to hear Fleming’s name called 34th on the list.
Services were also held nationwide, including a ceremony at the Royal New Zealand Police College in Wellington.
Police Commissioner Richard Chambers and Police Minister Mark Mitchell joined Nelson-Tasman officers, staff, and community members at the local ceremony, which included the unveiling of a memorial stone and plaque in Fleming’s memory.
The stone, from St Arnaud and placed in a garden outside the station entrance, was blessed by Archdeacon Harvey Ruru, alongside Fleming’s son and daughter.
Her husband and grandson were also present, along with ambulance, fire and hospital staff who responded on the night of her death.
Chambers told the Nelson Mail that Fleming was not only the first policewoman in New Zealand to die in the line of duty, but also the first Nelson officer to lose her life on the front line.
“The [Nelson] team are doing it tough, but the support they provide to each other and the support we provide from afar gives them the courage and the strength to continue with their work,” he said.
The small community had “really wrapped around my colleagues here in Nelson”, which had given them the encouragement to continue.
“It’s pretty tough. Lyn, in particular, was so well known by so many people … She made such a positive difference among so many police careers.”
Chambers said police were continuing to support Fleming’s family.
“Lyn was a daughter. She was a wife and mother, and now she is a grandmother too, and she was really looking forward to her [grandson],” he said.
He described the remembrance as “significant” for a profession where danger is ever-present.
“Policing is tough. It’s not getting any easier. And you know when there’s danger present, we are the ones who go towards that and sadly, sometimes our people make the ultimate sacrifice.”
After a welcome speech by Nelson Bays area commander Inspector Steven Collins, the New Zealand Police flag was lowered to half-mast before the names of the 34 fallen officers were read aloud.
Minister Mitchell told the crowd Fleming’s “police family” would continue to honour her legacy.
“The way that she looked after and guided the young constables that were under her care and her supervision … that means so much to that police family,” he said.
The remembrance concluded with wreaths laid by Mitchell and Chambers, before police and staff filed past the memorial stone, pausing to touch it in tribute.
Fleming, 62, was fatally injured when she and Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay were struck by a vehicle during a routine foot patrol in Buxton Square carpark in Nelson just after 2am on January 1. She later died in Nelson Hospital surrounded by family.
Her death prompted an outpouring of grief both locally and nationally. Hundreds attended a candlelight vigil in Nelson days later, and she was farewelled with full police honours at her funeral.
Fleming began her career as a traffic officer in Auckland in 1986 before joining police in 1992 alongside her husband Bryn. The couple later moved to Nelson, where she worked for more than three decades.
The man accused of causing her death, Hayden Donald Tasker, 32, has pleaded not guilty to charges including murdering Fleming and attempting to murder Ramsay.
He also faces two counts of assault using a vehicle as a weapon, two charges of dangerous driving causing injury, and one of dangerous driving.
As an alternative to the attempted murder charge, Tasker is accused of causing grievous bodily harm with reckless disregard.
He has admitted separate charges of drink driving and driving while disqualified.
By Warren Gamble, Nelson Mail
This Post Has 0 Comments