Mick Palmer (police commissioner)

(Redirected from Michael John Palmer)

Michael John Palmer, AO, APM (b. 1941) is a retired Australian police officer and lawyer who was the Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police.

Mick Palmer
Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police
In office
June 1994 – 2 April 2001
Preceded byPeter McAulay
Succeeded byMick Keelty
Chief Police Officer of ACT Policing
In office
1995–1999
Preceded byPeter Dawson
Succeeded byWilliam Stoll
Commissioner of Northern Territory Police
In office
1988–1994
Preceded byPeter McAulay
Succeeded byBrian Bates
Personal details
Born
Michael John Palmer

1941 (age 82–83)
Coventry, England
ProfessionPolice officer, lawyer

Early life edit

Mick Palmer was born in Coventry, England, in 1941. The Palmer family moved to Australia in 1953 and in 1963 Michael "Mick" Palmer joined the Northern Territory Police.

Policing career edit

Palmer reached the position of inspector in 1975. Between 1979 and 1982 he completed his law degree then practiced at the Queensland bar. In late 1983 he returned to the NT police as chief inspector, taking the top job as police commissioner in January 1988. Palmer became AFP commissioner in June 1994 and officially retired with the swearing-in of his replacement Mick Keelty in April 2001. Mick Palmer conducted the Palmer Inquiry, an inquiry into the unlawful detention of Australian Citizen, Cornelia Rau as an illegal immigrant.[1]

Between 2004 and 2012 he was the Federal Government's Inspector of Transport Security, a position created after the 9/11 and Bali bombing terrorist incidents to review air, sea and land transport and off-shore critical infrastructure and advise government of the efficiency and effectiveness of existing security arrangements.[2]

Recognition edit

Palmer is a recipient of the Australian Police Medal and in 1998 was admitted as an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for his work in "advancing the professionalisation of policing through the introduction of far-reaching anti-corruption processes and management practice reform."[3][4]

In 1999 the Board of Governors of Charles Sturt University conferred Palmer with the award of Doctor of Letters (honoris causa) for his contribution to advancing policing in Australia.[5]

  Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) 26 January 1998, "For service to advancing the professionalisation of policing through the introduction of far-reaching anti-corruption processes and management practice reform."[4]
  Australian Police Medal (APM) 26 January 1988, "For distinguished police service".[3]
  National Medal with Rosette 1988[6] and 1998.[7] For 25–34 years of service.

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Top cop a former barrister". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  2. ^ "Mick Palmer – Harm Reduction Australia". www.harmreductionaustralia.org.au.
  3. ^ a b "It's an Honour – Honours – Search Australian Honours". www.itsanhonour.gov.au.
  4. ^ a b "Officer of the Order of Australia (AO)". Australian Honours Database. 31 March 2017. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
  5. ^ "Citation for conferral of a Doctor of Letters" (PDF). csu.edu.au. 14 May 1999.
  6. ^ "It's an Honour – Honours – Search Australian Honours". www.itsanhonour.gov.au.
  7. ^ "It's an Honour – Honours – Search Australian Honours". www.itsanhonour.gov.au.
Police appointments
Preceded by Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police
1994–2001
Succeeded by
Preceded by
Peter Dawson
Chief Police Officer of ACT Policing
1995–1999
Succeeded by
William Stoll
Preceded by Commissioner of the Northern Territory Police
1988–1994
Succeeded by
Brian Charles Bates