Vincent came to the Department of Security Studies and Criminology in March 2010 after 28 years in the NSW Police Force.

He has trained police who wanted to be Detectives, has been a hostage negotiator for eight years and was seconded as an advisor to the Department of Premier and Cabinet, Police Minister on domestic violence legislation where he worked on policy reform as well as developed state-wide policing strategies to reduce crime in NSW. He has seen it all.

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(1) In a nutshell, my job is to…

Well, surprisingly as a lecturer I see my main job, when in class, as being able to keep the kids awake!

I lecture in Criminology and Crisis Management and Disaster Relief at undergraduate and postgraduate level and at Macquarie Business School. I see myself as the luckiest lecturer in the University, (along with my fellow lecturer and stable mate Fred who is a former US Naval Captain) because I bring 28 years of policing experience to all my lectures. Not many academics can say they have 28 years of practical workplace experience behind them totally outside the world of academia. In the ‘real world’ I was a detective, hostage negotiator, undercover police operative and have done street policing/uniform work at St Marys, Blacktown, Mount Druitt and Penrith.

I have policing experience in every subject I lecture in. Some lessons/units include Transnational Organised Crime in Slavery, Human Trafficking, Drug Trafficking, Police Corruption, Police Culture, Crime Reduction Strategies, Policing of Major Sporting/ Entertainment Events, Policing Private Space, Policing for Border Control, Policing in times of an Emergency/Natural or Human-Induced Disaster, The Role of the Federal and State Government in Emergency/Natural or Human-Induced Disasters, Conflict Resolution and more. 

(2) The question I hear most often in my work is…

I always get the same questions each semester without fail from my wonderful students: As a Police Officer, have you ever been shot? I reply, “No but I’ve been shot at twice.”

Once at a domestic argument by the husband involved – he didn’t like us, obviously. He missed, but it was very scary I must say. And secondly, when I was a hostage negotiator. A baddie shot at me but he also missed, thank God. I think after speaking to him through a loudspeaker for eight hours he must have gotten sick of hearing my voice. Can’t blame him really!!  But I have been stabbed.

Another question I always get from my students is: Why don’t police shoot people in the leg? I tell them, Youtube and TV have a lot to answer for – it’s not reality. The firearms police carry are not target pistols. They are not made for ‘sniper accuracy’ and are a general-purpose firearm so it’s near impossible to shoot someone in the leg. They are simply not made to do that.

The question I hear most often at work from my wonderful HoD is, What are you doing? Have you achieved anything today? (As he amusingly rolls his eyes at me!)

(3) The thing I find most rewarding in my role is…

Two things. Seeing the kids (students) laugh at my ‘previous life’ experiences as a former NSW Police Officer for 28 years. The stories I tell them of the things that I have seen and have done in those 28 years just amazes them. They love it, or so they say!

The other is the life of an academic. Academics are in a tremendous occupation – it’s a great gig.

(4) The bravest thing I’ve done is…

Gee this is a serious question! There are a number of things when I was in the Police which I don’t really like revealing. But, I’m not sure if this is brave – I helped a doctor amputate a man’s leg at 2am one morning at a motor vehicle accident. He was trapped and his leg was crushed, and it was the only way to get him out of the car. He survived.

(5) A place that’s special to me is…

My pillow. I love it when my head crashes onto it!

(6)My guilty pleasure is…

Lollies. I love lollies. Snakes, jelly babies, pineapples, strawberry creams, black cats, chocolate bullets, teeth and musk sticks. This is why I have to run!

(7) I’m scared of…

Two things: (1) Walking along the beach just in case Jaws jumps out of the water and eats me and (2) having to wake my 15-year-old daughter up each morning for school! It must be that age she’s at.

(8) My hidden talent is…

Pretending I’m deaf when one of my four children want something like money! And, being serious when I need to be. The world is serious enough as it is so I like to have a laugh as often as I can.

(9) Something I’ve never done but wanted to try is…

Run the Antarctic Marathon, across the ice cap. Yes, there is such an event. I’ve run 10 marathons so far and just want to do this last one but is SO expensive!

(10) A moment I’ll always remember is…

There are a so many as a former police officer. You see the best of humanity and the worst of humanity.

Three things I remember: the time I was stabbed by a baddie. That was certainly vivid! As was falling off a two-storey building when chasing more baddies – a different incident I should add.  I fractured my leg, head and shoulder. Umm… not much ‘give’ on a concrete driveway from two storeys up!

At the other end of the spectrum, I was working at a particular Western Suburbs Police Station, behind the counter one Sunday morning, when a man came in to report a stealing. I took his details and asked him what had been stolen. He said: “my front lawn”. I looked at him somewhat puzzled. He said, he’d laid turf on his front lawn in the afternoon, gone to bed and when he woke up the next morning he opened his bedroom curtains, looked out onto his front yard and there was no turf! Overnight someone had come, rolled up his new turf and had stolen it! Now that was funny!

If you are interested in hearing about these and other incredibly life-changing events, drop me a line. Also, I’m more than happy to talk to your students about my former life.