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Interesting Articles

 

This section features interesting articles written by former colleagues on a wide range of subjects related to the Bermuda Police Service or recounting personal experiences.   We are delighted to receive articles from anyone who wishes to put pen to paper, and will assist with editing where necessary.

 

 

   

Bermuda ex-Police Officers’ Association
Minutes of AGM held on 12th April 2012
at the Police Recreation Club in Devonshire

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of the association held at the Police Recreation Club, Prospect, Devonshire on Thursday 12 April 2012 commencing at 5-30 p.m.

Present:            President                        Roger Sherratt

                        V/President                     Reese Bartley

                        Secretary                        David Cook

                        Treasurer                        Eddie Davies

  1. The President opened the meeting at 5:37pm declaring there was a quorum present [19]. 

Apologies were received from the following members:

John Dale, Mike Lohan, Brenda Meade, John Barnett, Keith Cassidy, Maurice Pett, Bill Black, Ray Bell, Gerry Ardis, Keith Lovell, Fred Bean, Peter Edney, Tony Saunders, John Van De Weg.


  1. Minutes of the 2011 AGM

The minutes of the 2011 Annual General Meeting were agreed. Steve Taylor proposed they be accepted & Phil Taylor seconded. All in favour.

  1. Matters arising

There were none.

 

  1. Audited accounts.

The accounts were presented later in the meeting due to the Treasurer, Eddie Davies being unavoidably detained. He gave an explanation of the accounts as audited by David Goodwin. The grand total held in the two accounts stood at $7602.83. Gerry Lyons proposed, Rex Osborne seconded the report be approved. All in favour.


  1. Presidents Report.

The President presented his annual report. [copy attached]  (see below)

 

  1. Election of officers and committee.

As the executive were willing to stay in office Norman Wilson proposed & Gerry Lyons seconded that this committee be nominated en block.

 

  1. Office                                    Nominee                        Proposer                        Seconder

President                        Roger Sherratt                        Norman Wilson                        Gerry Lyons                       

Vice President                 Reese Bartley                                    “                                       “                       

Secretary                        David Cook                                        “                                       “

Treasurer                       Edward Davies                                   “                                       “

Elected as proposed, all in favour.

 

  1. The President read out the names of the general committee who were all willing to stay in office. Proposed by Norman Wilson seconded by Mike Shaw the current committee be nominated en block. They are Eddie Foggo, Cory Cross, Brian Robinson, Coralie Trott, Larry Fox, and Alan Kennedy.

 

  1. The above committee members were elected all in favour.

 

  1. Amendment to Sections 6 [b] & 15.

Eddie Davies explained that it made sense to change the financial year to run from Jan 1 to December 31 and hold the AGM as soon as possible after the financial year-end. If a member has paid dues already no further payments will be required until January 2013. Proposed by Eddie Davies seconded by Phil Taylor. All in favour.

 

  1. The treasurer felt that those age 70 & over should pay something towards the running costs, after discussion it was agreed that the those in the category be charged 50% of the annual dues. This was proposed by Steve Taylor & seconded by John Skinner. All in favour.

 

  1. Roger read a letter from retired Police Sergeant Russell Matthews outlining his concern over the fact that retirees had no representation on the Bermuda Police Association [BPA] particularly when pay negotiations were ongoing which could affect retiree’s benefits. It would be an advantage to have a voice on negotiations in the future. Phil Taylor was concerned we were making a mountain out of a molehill he suggested we should consider having a representative on the board of pensions. Kevin Reeves said it would only affect short-term retirees & to have someone ex officio could be considered as a solution. Roger said it was possible future benefits could be affected so it was beneficial to have liaison with the BPA. Sergeant Kevin Christopher [Chairman of the BPA] was keen for us to have a representative but this would require changes in the Police Act. This matter was brought up at a subsequent BPA seminar held on Tuesday 17th April by Roger who appraised those present about these concerns.

 

13.      Any other business.

  1. a)  John Skinner made a suggestion ”that the membership committee review creating a class of membership for Bermuda Residents who are former Police Officers from other jurisdictions and who left their Police Service under honourable circumstances”. This matter will be discussed in committee.
  2. b)  David Cook asked if anyone would be keen to see a reunion organized in Bermuda. Various responses were made, one was to hold this during Police Week in October, possibly in 2013. It was agreed the committee would review this suggestion.
  3. c)  Roger read a letter from the family of Milton Murray Marsh, thanking the association for assisting in the funeral arrangements.
  4. d)  The question was raised if a member rejoined the service after retiring how did it affect his Expo membership. It was agreed he/she could rejoin without any problems.

 

There being no further business the meeting closed at 6:50pm.

            Dave Cook
            Secretary.

Presidents Report 2011-2012

I was elected President of the Bermuda Ex-Police Officers Association on 13th April last year, along with a slate of Officers and Committee Members, of whom some were new and some had prior experience of working on our Committee.

At the outset I would like to sincerely thank last year’s Committee for their support, and in particular our Secretary, Dave Cook, our Treasurer, Eddie Davies, and our Vice President Reese Bartley , all of whom do an excellent job, and will hopefully be with us for at least another year.

Our major thrust during the past year has been two-fold:-

(a)           To encourage camaraderie amongst our retired and former Bermuda Police officers through the various social activities we organize, and

(b)           The creation of our own website to help to bring us closer together no matter where we are, whether locally or abroad. I will have more to report about the website in a moment.

 

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES

During the past year we held our Annual Summer BBQ at the PRC on 23rd August 2011. We were blessed with “touch and go” good weather, and the BBQ was well attended by some 70 people with several former colleagues visiting from abroad, including, Steve Smedley and his wife, and Rai Harrison who enjoyed sparring with Donville Yard for old times sake!

Our Association was actively involved with Police Week 2011. Dave Cook and I served on the Police Week Committee, and the highlight for us was the annual Memorial Service held at the Police Cemetery at Prospect to remember are departed colleagues, after which we adjourned to the PRC for a BBQ hosted by the BPS specially for our members.

Just a couple of points arising from the Memorial Service; the BPS prepares an Honour Roll of those officers who have died since 1990 while in service with a view to inviting their families to attend the Service. We provide an Honour Roll of former BPS officers who have died in the preceding 12 months, and it was, and is, our intention to also provide an Honour Role of all former and retired BPS officers who are no longer with us.

It is relatively easy to compile a list of our former colleagues who have passed in the last 12 months. Compiling a list of all former BPS officers who are deceased is a another matter!   We managed to compile a list of over 240 names but realized that it was by no means complete, and that there were some glaring omissions. This is a work in progress, and any one wishing to volunteer to assist would be welcomed. We should have a working list by this October.

Getting back to Police Week, there was several other activities, including the revived Annual Police Pedal Cycle Gymkhana which I was personally delighted to see as one of the founder members back in the 1960’s. We provided several articles for insertion in the Police Week magazine. The finale was a Ball at the Pembroke Princess to which the Association was provided with complimentary tickets for one of the tables.

Our Association was also provided with complementary tickets to the Commissioner’s Annual New Year’s Day reception at the PRC, and we had approximately 60 members in attendance. With a good time being had by all.

We held our own Annual New Year Reception on 21st January this year at the Senior Officers Mess very kindly made available to us. We had some 50 people in attendance and managed to bring back some nostalgic memories with a rotating slide show of old Police photos.


EXPOBERMUDA.COM WEBSITE

After two years of behind-the-scenes action our website was finally launched in December 2011, with 3 basic aims:-

 

(a)           To reach out to and maintain positive contact with retired and former police officers both locally and around the world;

(b)           To encourage not only present members of the Association, but all retired and former members of the BPS, to keep in touch with each other, and to share their experiences through photographs and articles; and

(c)           To act as a support group to former police officers and their spouses in times of need.

After just 3 months the website has numerous articles posted, including personal reminiscences from former colleagues in “Then and Now “; tributes to colleagues who are no longer with us in the “Hall of Fame”; a series of “Interesting Articles” covering historical and other topics written by members; a “Keeping in Touch” section providing latest news about colleagues both at home and abroad; and numerous photographs from our extensive collection, many of which have been provided by colleagues featured in the articles.

Since launching the website we have heard from dozens of our colleagues abroad, many of whom had heard about it either on the internet or through friends. The website has recorded some 2,000 ‘hits’ from countries all over the world, and it is certainly proving effective in maintaining positive contact with our members and helping us to keep in touch with old friends.

Dave Cook, Gary Venning and Norman Wilson have volunteered to assist in maintaining the website and we look forward to expanding it as we move forward, including the addition of a Facebook page allowing members to contact each other directly.

I would like to thank the Police Association for their generous donation towards the cost of the website, and should note that so far we have not exceeded our budget.    

On the subject of the Police Association, we continue to have an excellent relationship with the BPA and have been invited to send two representatives to a BPA Executive Retreat being held on April 17th at the Ace Building where the theme is “Preparing for the Future”. This is a timely invitation as it coincides with a matter brought to our attention by retired Sergeant Russell Matthews relating to last year’s pay deal and issues surrounding the “Comall” portion of the pay agreement.   You will see that this issue in on today’s agenda and we have invited Russell to discuss his concerns with us.

It would be remiss of me not to also mention the close liaison we enjoy with Commissioner Michael DeSilva and his senior staff. In addition to our open invitation to attend the Officers Mess whenever they hold their monthly Friday afternoon get-togethers, the Commissioner has expressed his support for our Association and is always looking for ways to enhance our relationship with the BPS.

One other item on today’s agenda is the issue of our annual dues. Until 2 years ago we charged the same dues for both local and overseas members but because of difficulties in handling payments from overseas and the fact that we were not providing any services to overseas members it was decided not to charge them annual dues. We also have a policy of waiving dues to members who live on Island after they reach the age of 70. We are now finding that quite a high percentage of our local members are 70 or over, and our income had fallen quite substantially.   One suggestion has been to charge half the cost ($20 per annum) for resident members over 70. Our Treasurer, Eddie Davies will be addressing this issue later in the meeting.

In closing I would bring to your attention the third aim of having our website, which is, “To act as a support group to former police officers and their spouses in times of need.” This is one area that I believe we should be addressing, particularly in light of the current economic situation. If anyone has any ideas in this regard perhaps we can discuss them under Any Other Business.

Roger J. Sherratt 
President

 

The irrepressible Davie Kerr
 

While assisting us to identify some of the spectators in several of the Boxing Night photos, Davie Kerr kindly provided us with the following information about his Bermuda boxing career:-

Here’s a little trivia about my personal career in the boxing ring:-

I fought in the first five events at the PRC, then retired. I was hauled back by Vic Richmond to fight in the Centennial event held at the Southampton Princess. I fought in that one and the next two, then retired again.

I then had my two epic punch-ups with Massachussetts State Trooper, Paul "Bad Dog" Driscoll, the first at the old Prospect Gym on Gymnasium Road and the second at BAA. We were all set to have a third and deciding bout when I got my skull fractured by Bruce Montgomery Tucker in November 1983 and retired again, this time permanently!

My record was:-

  • Spring 1969, lost on points to John Balsdon, but we got “Fight of the Night”;
John Balsdon and Davie Kerr battling it out
under the watchful eye of referee Bryn Jones
Davie Kerr and John Balsdon win the first ever "Fight of the Night" Award
behind them are John Mulholland, Curtis DeGraffe, Tom Barnes and Willie McCracken
 
  • Fall 1969, lost on TKO to Eddie Bailey because I'd come back too soon after breaking my right arm in a 10-57*, and it broke again first time I hit him!
  • 1971 (can't remember the month), beat Eddie Bailey who had allegedly previously claimed that he'd have beaten me anyway! Referee stopped fight in Round 2 and I won the PW trophy for the Fastest Knockout;
  • 1972, beat Steve Taylor on points: the crowd didn't like it, but Arthur Wallington said I was a clear winner. Editors note  -  Although the crowd didn't agree with this verdict they were delighted when Davie and Steve were awarded "Fight of the Night."
Davie Kerr beats Steve Taylor on points
 according to referee Arthur Wallington!
 
  • 1973, beat Angus Brown by KO at the end of Round 3.
  • 1979, lost to Bill Butterworth whom I fought because nobody else would!. Referee stopped the fight in Round 2 as I kept getting knocked down and getting back up again!
  • 1980, beat Richard Flood by KO: he wore himself out in Round 1 by hitting me on the head (which, as everybody knows, is the LAST place to hit me if you want to cause any damage!), and my trusty left hook got him in Round 2.
  • 1981, beat Dick Parker by KO at the very end of Round 3. According to the local press, our bout was worth all the previous ones that night put together! We stood toe to toe for 2 3/4 rounds beating the sh*t out of each other, and I managed to deck him with about 15 seconds to go. Unanimous choice for Fight of the Night.
  • September 1982, beat "Bad Dog" on a cut eye decision in Round 2.
  • October 83, lost on points to "Bad Dog" but we got ‘Fight of the Night’ in an absolute cracker of a fight. Although I lost fair & square, in my defence I took that fight at 2 weeks' notice, and he'd been training for the previous 6 months!

So, in short, 10 fights, 6 wins, 4 losses, 3 Fight of the Nights and a Fastest Knockout. Not bad for someone who'd never worn boxing gloves until coming to Bermuda. Whatever else my fights were - they were never dull!

Cheers.
Davie Kerr

* Editor’s note - Davie's exploits in the ring were the very essence of the spirit of the Annual Boxing Events.  He gave 100% plus every time he stepped into the ring, and none more so than the night he faced Bill Butterworth in 1979.  However,  we will refrain from mentioning just how many traffic accidents Davie was involved in during his Traffic career!!

  

 

This is the story of “Trusty”, a large alsatian who became the Force mascot and was considered to be an unofficial member of the Bermuda Police Force.

Trusty at the Police Barracks with young Constable L.M. “Nobby” Clark 
Trusty at the Police Barracks with young Constable L.M."Nobby" Clark
 

Article written by Betty Smith (we are not sure of the newspaper)

 
 

An Alsatian named Trusty is perhaps the only canine aristocrat in the Colony who left a happy home to “join” the Bermuda police force. That’s just what Trusty did.

Perhaps he inherited his instinct for living dangerously and adventurously from his grandmother, who was one of the first dogs to land on the Normandy beach with the British troops in the last War (World War Two).

Trusty’s real name in ‘Trusty Night of Normandy’. His childhood was exactly like that of any other well-cared for puppy. He was born at the Dockyard here, and at the age of six weeks went to live with his new owner, Miss Jocelyn Motyer, at “The Willows” in Pembroke.

He was loved, cared for and pampered. Once he went in swimming shortly after he had a distemper shot and he fell ill. He didn’t grow much after that, but he is nevertheless a good size - about 65 lbs.

BEGAN TO WANDER

Time went on. Trusty began to wander from home. Then one day word came back that he had been picked up by the S.P.C.A. He had been missing for two days. He had never before spent a night away from home although he had gradually been staying away more and more during the day.

He was taken home in a taxi but left again 2 hours later. He was never home regularly after that and once, when he was gone for six weeks, it was believed that he went on a cruise on one of the ships of the British Squadron here. Then Trusty “joined” the Police Department.

ON THE ‘BEAT’

Constable L.M.(Nobby) Clark told the story of Trusty’s early days on the Force: “I was on the beat, and he used to follow me around. He used to go to the billets and I’d feed him. Mr. Motyer told me that if I didn’t give him away or have him destroyed I could keep him. He used to stay with me until I got married. I took him home with me to Paget but he wouldn’t stay. He left the house by 10 o’clock at night and by midnight he was on duty at headquarters.”

Constable Clark added that Trusty is strictly a “beat” dog. He doesn’t ride in police cars although sometimes he used to ride in the old police van which had no back door.

Trusty selects one constable at a time and hangs around with him until the constable leaves, or changes duty. He gets along fine with the English dogs brought here. His main time for “work” is at night.

“He’s a lot of company for a fellow on a beat,” said Clark. “He goes up dark alleys alone. You can tell him to go look up a dark alley and he’ll do it.”

Trusty lives in the Police barracks where he sleeps and is fed. He selects one particular room. Once in a while he returns to “The Willows” and prances into the yard barking as though he had never been away.

But he seems to have decided that his real career is with the Police Force.

 -------------------------------------------------------

The following article was published in the Winter 1960 edition of the Bermuda Police Magazine:

 

Death of Force Mascot

“Trusty”, the unofficial member of the Bermuda Police Force, died on the night of September 19, 1960, at the ripe old age of almost 13 years. It had been noticed that for some time he was not his usual self, but as this had happened in the past with no disastrous results, no-one was duly alarmed.

The animal, a large alsatian, was a most unusual one. He was born in March, 1948, of two local pedigreed parents, the female of which had seen service on the Normandy beaches as a war dog during the Allied landings.

As a pup he was owned by Mr. W.E.P. Motyer’s daughter, Jocelyn, and spent his puppyhood at the Motyer residence, “The Willows” in Pembroke. However, like other dogs, he started to wander abroad in the City of Hamilton and it soon became apparent that he would follow a police uniform anywhere. He was returned to his home on numerous occasions but inevitably turned out again and soon formed a strong attachment for Inspector (then Constable) L.M Clark of Central District.

In 1950, Mr. Motyer, realizing that the dog was very happy roaming around with the Police, gave him to Inspector Clark, and “Trusty” became a familiar sight in the streets of Hamilton following along at the heels of a patrolling constable or lying at the steps of the Central Police Station (then located on Parliament Street where the Government Administration Building is now located). At other times he could be found curled up at the feet of the officer directing traffic at the Heyl’s Corner junction.

Many tales are told of his activities during his years of “service”. Unlike his official colleagues of the Dog Section, “Trusty” had no regular tours of six hour duty. He could be found at all hours of the day and night, and religiously turned up at the Central Station in time to attend the changing of beat patrols so that he could accompany a fresh officer on patrol.

At night he had an uncanny knack of knowing where the conference points were and, should he decide to transfer his attention to another officer, he would occasionally appear at the point at the prescribed time. Needless to say, his presence was much appreciated by night duty patrols as it inevitably broke the monotony of the long night hours!

Anything could, and often did, happen when “Trusty” accompanied an officer on night patrol. Sometimes he would wander off quietly into the darkness and all would be silent. Then a vociferous bark would pierce the stillness of the night air and it became evident he had located one of his lifelong enemies - a cat. The chase would commence and the hapless feline had a tough time getting away without a good fright which must have scared some of the proverbial nine lives out of its body.

Occasionally, however, the crafty feline would have the last word as was witnessed on one occasion. On a bright, moonlit night “Trusty” was contentedly trotting down Queen Street with the officer of his choice when he spotted a large tabby crossing the road. Uttering his usual bloodcurdling howl, he started off in pursuit to the south. The tabby, realizing that he was being overtaken at a rapid rate, headed for the harbours edge - “Trusty”, intent only on his enemy, was oblivious of the danger into which he was heading.

At the last moment the tabby did a sharp ninety degree turn and “Trusty” realizing his error too late, slammed on his brakes and dropped to his haunches to slow down - too late, however, and he plunged into the waters of the harbour. The indignity of being outsmarted by a cat was bad enough, but to take an unnecessary bath (he hated water) nearly broke his heart and he was very subdued for the rest of the night.

Occasionally he became a source of embarrassment to the officer he followed - sometimes a weary bobby would slip into a dark corner and indulge in a crafty smoke, only to have the patrol Sergeant suddenly discover him. The explanation for the Presence was very simple - “Trusty”, having searched in vain for cats, had come back and stretched out on the roadway opposite the “hide” and of course the game was up. However, “Trusty” more than made up for his mistakes and on a number of occasions valiantly assisted the officers in the execution of their duty.

When he was around, the usual price for laying forcible hands on a man in blue was to lose the seat of the trousers or to find oneself lying on the sidewalk with a ferocious animal glaring down with bared fangs.

About two years ago it became apparent that his youth had gone and “Trusty” gradually slowed down his pace and began to spend more time around the Central Station. As time went on and his excursions on the beat became less frequent it was decided to “retire” him to the Police Mess (at Prospect) which is located about a mile from Hamilton. Even then he occasionally made the trip to town, dragging his rear leg which was apparently rheumatic. On arrival at Central Station his spirits picked up when he saw one of his “favourites”, and with tail wagging he would renew his friendship.

Of late, however, he remained around the Mess and spent his last dog days in the company of his favourite officers, accepting their pats and showing his gratitude with a lick of the tongue.

When it was learned that he had died there were many heavy hearts in the Force but it was accepted that it was probably best as he had been suffering in his last days.

“Trusty”, who was the only dog allowed in the Police Mess in accordance with Mess Rules, was buried in the grounds outside.

We are not suggesting that "Trusty" had any undue influence is assisting the career of young P.C. "Nobby" Clark  but, of course,  "Nobby" went on to become Commissioner of Police!

 Commissioner of Police L.M. "Nobby" Clark

More Articles …

  1. Representation for Bermie ExPo on BPA Members
  2. History of the Police Tug o' War Team
  3. The First PRC Boxing Tournament - 1969
  4. The First PRC Mini-Marathon 1968
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