The call always comes on the worst day of someone’s life. It came last week when two primary school-aged brothers at Faulconbridge were allegedly stabbed to death by their mother.
It came in April, when dozens of shoppers at Bondi Junction were stabbed – five fatally – by itinerant man Joel Cauchi, and in April, when mother Molly Ticehurst was killed in her Forbes home.
On the front line: Detective Senior Constable Chris Abela, Senior Constable Jen McCormack, Detective Inspector Mardi Forsyth and Detective Sergeant Toni Proctor. Credit: Louise Kennerley
For those picking up the call – NSW Police’s 114 family liaison officers – it can mean dropping their regular policing duties or leaving their families for days at a time to respond to a tragedy. They respond not as an investigator but to be a point of contact for victims’ families and begin what can be a years-long relationship.
Developed after recommendations from the Lindt Cafe inquest, the family liaison officers training program began in 2022.
“It’s not a new concept, but what we’re trying to do now is provide the training to police so they can perform that role with more confidence,” NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb told the Herald.
Bondi Junction attack victims Dawn Singleton, 25; Pikria Darchia, 55; Jade Young, 47; Ashlee Good, 38; and Faraz Tahir, 30.
It has since been expanded beyond terror events to include homicides, missing persons and road trauma.
“What we’ve discovered is there is more need than just a counter-terror event. There is a need to grow and expand it because of the success we’ve seen,” Webb said.
Since then, family liaison officers (FLOs) have been deployed to more than 25 incidents across the state.
Senior Constable Jennifer McCormack was the FLO who supported Stacey Gammage after three of her children perished in a western Sydney house fire allegedly set by her partner.
“I initially thought, no, I couldn’t do it. Two of my kids are the same age as the two older ones that survived,” McCormack said.
“Then I thought to myself, that’s the reason I should do it. I could understand if I lost my own children – how that would feel? I wanted to do it so I could do something little – I could get them through this process and might help them.
“They [Gammage’s children] are the most beautiful children – hard upbringing, but the most beautiful children. I sat on the hospital floor for a whole day, just playing with them – that’s all I had to do.”
Detective Senior Constable Chris Abela also spoke of a strong connection with the family of Bondi Junction security guard Faraz Tahir when he was deployed as FLO, a role that involved dealing with the Pakistan embassy, going to the mosque and working with the coroner on the autopsy process.
“I went to the community vigil at Bondi Beach. I was on FaceTime with the family in Pakistan. It was like middle of the night and they were watching from there. We all cried together,” he said.
Along with helping co-ordinate funerals, attending court cases or coronial inquests, one responsibility can include “delivering the death message”, an impersonal-sounding phrase for when they are called on to share some of the most heartbreaking news anyone will have to hear. They have also attended to more intimate tasks, such as removing the wedding ring of a deceased loved one.
NSW Police have 114 family liaison officers and there are plans for a further 80 to be trained by the end of next year.
Family liaison co-ordinator Detective Sergeant Toni Proctor, who oversees the program, said the officers could be deployed to any serious crime.
“That could range from a double fatality crash to homicide to a serious incident involving a fire explosion and could also incorporate missing persons. You’re not limited to only those that have died – it also incorporates those who are seriously injured,” she said.
After being deployed to help the families of the five teenagers killed at Buxton in September 2022, and managing the multiple FLOs at the Hunter Valley bus crash that killed 10, Proctor now co-ordinates the FLO program. The level of commitment required is intense, she said.
“But it’s what the families deserve.”
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.