NZ Herald
February 9 2004
Steve Long - 'Professional with a heart'
by Julie Middleton
Steve Long
Steve Long, aged in his
early 50s, is a fifth-generation policeman. But in investigating his own he is
taking on one of the tougher jobs of his career.
Long is heading the
police investigation into complaints by Louise Nicholas that she was raped by
three police officers in a Rotorua police house in 1986, when she was 18.
He will bring together a
group of senior investigators to assemble all the files held over complaints
made by Mrs Nicholas, the investigations into those complaints and other
records relating to others involved.
The Police Complaints
Authority will oversee the inquiry.
Mr Long's
team is separate from the Government's commission of inquiry, yet to be
appointed.
A Herald story from 1997
describes Mr Long as having been a "rural English copper" before emigrating to New Zealand with his wife. He did a short
stint in a freezing works before joining the New Zealand police.
In 2000, Mr Long was up
against Auckland's top cop, Clint Rickards, one of the men accused by Louise
Nicholas, for the Deputy Commissioner's job.
Commissioner Rob Robinson
told Prime Minister Helen Clark that "sexual misconduct" allegations
had been made against Mr Rickards but that he had been cleared.
The Prime Minister elected
to go for the other candidate. She has since said that the allegations were a
factor in Mr Rickards not getting the post.
Mr Long holds a master of
arts degree in history gained while working as an officer. He once told the
Herald it was "helpful in policing to know where you've been, so you know
where you're going".
According to one senior
officer, Mr Long is "a very mild man, very nice and proper and
moral".
A former detective says
Mr Long is a "great guy ... he's very astute and has very much a people's
touch. He's a Kiwi down to the bottom of his boots nowadays".
Dean of Waikato Father
Ian Hanley, a former officer who was chaplain to police at the time Mr Long ran
North Shore police, describes the Deputy Commissioner as a man with a sense of
humour who is a "safe pair of hands".
"He's a professional
with a heart." Any report he produces will be "thorough, fair and
detailed".
Mr Long was
second-in-command for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Auckland
in 1995.
As district commander for
North Shore and Waitakere regions, he merged the two
into a single command.
In more recent times Mr
Long was among the police who turned up in New Plymouth's court to support
"Constable A", Keith Abbott, who was acquitted of murdering Waitara
man Steven Wallace.
In July last year, Mr
Long commissioned a review of police pursuits after concerns were raised that
police chases were leading to unnecessary deaths.
When the review was
released, he made comments that might seem prophetic in the current circumstances:
"I think it's time for change ... we have got to be brutally honest with
ourselves about whether things are working or whether they aren't working.
"We have to almost
shake ourselves and say, 'for goodness' sake, let's sort this out'."
STEVE LONG - Deputy Commissioner of Police
1975: Emigrates
to New Zealand from England. Joins the New Zealand police
1991-1994: Officer in
charge of planning, South Island
1994-1997: District
commander, North Shore-Waitakere
Other posts include
director of training at the police college, and
general manager training and professional development at police headquarters.
March 2001: Becomes
acting Deputy Commissioner in charge of operations, and two weeks later takes
the job permanently, reporting directly to Rob Robinson.