Tasmania Police has a new deputy commissioner after the appointment of veteran officer and former assistant commissioner Donna Adams.
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When she officially takes on the role next week, the current acting deputy commissioner will become the first female appointed to that rank in the history of Tasmania Police.
Acting Deputy Commissioner Adams will step into the role after serving as acting deputy commissioner for the past few months and will formally take on the job on July 23 after current Deputy Commissioner Scott Tilyard retires.
The role of deputy commissioner will be a far cry from the position acting Deputy Commissioner Adams entered the force in.
Acting Deputy Commissioner Adams started with Tasmania Police as a constable before working her way up the ranks over 34 years - though it almost was not to be.
After finishing year 12 she enrolled in both a PE teaching course at university and police recruitment. It could have gone either way, but a dose of work experience with Tasmania Police some time before gave her an idea of what to expect as an officer.
When she entered the police force, female officers were required to carry their handcuffs and baton in a black handbag, the only toilet for women was located in a male block and details from the crime scene were recorded on a little note pad.
There was a height and weight restriction on female applicants and a testing obstacle course required potential officers to drag a 90-kilogram dummy around the course to simulate saving someone in a building.
Alongside commendable police work, like being on call at Bellerive when the Port Arthur tragedy was unfolding and then spending the next seven days at the scene, acting Deputy Commissioner Adams coordinated one of the most significant transformations Tasmania Police had ever undergone.
She was the project leader when the force made a transition from the notepads she had grown so used to, to using up to date technology.
"The rollout of the tablets [computers] and the transformation in the use of that technology is something I'm very proud of," she said.
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"As part of that project we introduced the police infringement notice and also online crash reporting."
Acting Deputy Commissioner Adams said the technology streamlined policing across the state, enabling officers to make reports from crash scenes and completing their reports without having to go back and forth between the scene and the office.
"It really saw the benefit of technology and I'm really proud we've continued to build on that technology and improve the way we deliver our services," she said.
Though her appointment is a first for Tasmania Police, acting Deputy Commissioner Adams' career had been a series of firsts.
She was the first female Commander promoted and in 2011 was the first female to be promoted to Assistant Commissioner. She was also the first female deputy secretary for Tasmania's Fire and Emergency Services Department.
Acting Deputy Commissioner Adams' 34 years of service accounted for just under three-quarters of the total time women have been permitted to work for Tasmania Police.
It was not until 104 years ago the transition was made to allow female police officers to join the force and acting Deputy Commissioner Adams said their roles were restrictive.
"When police women stated off they had three distinct roles: to look after children, to suppress fortune telling and they had their own police women's office," she said.
"But certainly things have changed now ... when police arrive at a job you don't look at their gender, you look that you've got a Tasmania Police officer and both are more than capable to deliver a strong service to our community."
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