Jim Lees

Jim Lees
Jim Lees; QPM
15th Commissioner of the New South Wales Police
	In office; 17 October 1979 – 29 December 1981
Preceded by	Mervyn Wood
Succeeded by	Cecil Abbott
Personal details
Born	18 August 1920; Hornsby, New South Wales
Died	3 September 2004 (aged 84); Waitara, New South Wales
Spouse(s)	Norma
Alma mater	Hurlstone Agricultural High School

James Travers Lees, QPM (18 August 1920 – 3 September 2004) was the Commissioner of the New South Wales Police from 17 October 1979 to 29 December 1981.[1]

Private life

Lees was born in 1920 at Hornsby, New South Wales, and went on to attend the Hurlstone Agricultural High School. He had initially wanted to be a farmer but found that he was not suited for a life on the land. Lees married his wife Norma in October 1944.[2] They went on to have a family with children Sue, John and Peter. Lees also taught a Sunday School and was heavily involved with his church. He also established the Police Christian Fellowship.[2]

Lees died on 2 September 2004 at the age of 84.[3] His funeral was attended by incumbent Police Commissioner Ken Moroney as well as former Police Commissioners Cec Abbott, John Avery and Tony Lauer.

Police career

After giving up on farming Lees accepted as a cadet in the New South Wales Police Force at the age of 17 in 1936. Within six months he was made a constable and began to rise through the ranks of the force.

In 1976 Lees became Assistant Police Commissioner and was appointed Commissioner in October 1979. As well as receiving 12 New South Wales Police commendations he also received the Queen's Police Medal in 1976, the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal in 1977, the National Medal also in 1977, and the honour of receiving the Australian Father of the Year award in 1981.

References

"New South Wales Commissioners of Police" (pdf). New South Wales Police. Retrieved 12 July 2010.
Moyes, Gordon (2004-10-26). "Death of Mr Jim Lees, QPM, a former Commissioner of Police". NSW Parliament-parliament.nsw.gov.au. Archived from the original on 2014-03-25. Retrieved 2014-03-25.
Brown, Malcolm (2004-09-06). "'Untouchable' police commissioner dead at 84". The Sydney Morning Herald. www.smh.com.au. Retrieved 2014-03-25.

Police appointments
Preceded by Mervyn Wood	Commissioner of the New South Wales Police 1979–1981	Succeeded by Cecil Abbott

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[1] "New South Wales Commissioners of Police" (pdf). New South Wales Police. Retrieved 12 July 2010.

[parl-obit-2] Moyes, Gordon (2004-10-26). "Death of Mr Jim Lees, QPM, a former Commissioner of Police". NSW Parliament-parliament.nsw.gov.au. Archived from the original on 2014-03-25. Retrieved 2014-03-25.

[smh-death-3] Brown, Malcolm (2004-09-06). "'Untouchable' police commissioner dead at 84". The Sydney Morning Herald. www.smh.com.au. Retrieved 2014-03-25.