Orana Mid-Western Police District's new commander will have a strong focus on working with schools and the region's youth to keep young people on the right side of the law.
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Superintendent Daniel Sullivan took command of the district on Monday, and said helping those who may make a wrong decision would be a major part of his new role.
"A lot of young people make mistakes in their lives and often those mistakes get them in touch with the law," he said.
"What I'm about is making sure those mistakes aren't life-ending and that when young people do make mistakes we get them into programs to make sure they stay outside that criminal justice system."
Supt Sullivan joined the NSW Police Force in 1989 and was initially stationed in Waverly Police Station, before he transferred to legal services. In 1998 he was promoted to sergeant police prosecutor at Newcastle Local Court.
Between 2000 and 2003 Supt Sullivan held various frontline positions throughout commands in the Hunter Region, before attaining the rank of Inspector at the Police Assistance Line in 2003. Here he led a team of over 200 and redesigned the state's triple zero (000) network to improve service to the public.
When the team is strong and embedded in the community we will work together to drive down crime
- Orana Mid-Western Police District Commander, Superintendent Daniel Sullivan
In 2007 he was promoted to Superintendent at Business and Technology Services before his appointment as Commander at Police Radio Operations, leading the largest private radio network in the Southern Hemisphere. In this role he also coordinated police response to crime and emergency management incidents.
He was appointed to Commander of Brisbane Water Local Area Command in 2012 before transferring to Lake Macquarie Police District in 2017 where he his innovative approach to crime prevention, in particular youth crime, were hallmarks of his tenure.
Now his sixth time commanding a police district, Supt Sullivan assures he's ready, willing and able to bring his vast experience into the local community.
He said his main priorities were to ensure police were safe, secure and equipped to do their job to the best of their ability, and that that local police worked with the community.
"I'm extremely humbled by this opportunity," he said.
"Certainly as a community member myself, I am a person who firmly believes in community policing.
"When the team is strong and embedded in the community we will work together to drive down crime."
Supt Sullivan said he was also "humbled" to have been handed the Aboriginal portfolio for the western region.
"I have had a strong relationship with our Aboriginal and First Nations people in this country," he said.
"I used to run our Aboriginal coordination team for the NSW Police Force, which was integral in the development of our strategic direction, which guides all police forces around NSW on how they interact and work with their local Aboriginal communities.
"I'm looking forward to working with all the Aboriginal coordination units around the western region in delivering to our First Nations people."
He said the issues at Wellington were also on his radar, and would ensure police resources were being used to the best of their capabilities.
"I'll be working very closely with the community about a number of issues, but the issues at Wellington are certainly on my radar," he said.
"I have a lot of family and friends who come from the Wellington area, it's an area that's close to my heart and I'll be working with that community to make sure we can do the best for them."
Ultimately he said he was looking forward to engaging and working with local communities within the Orana Mid-Western Police District on starting his new role.
"Certainly I've been very impressed with the results that this command has achieved with its previous command, and I look forward to building on those results and continuing to drive down crime in the region," he said.