Rosalie Sterritt

Rosalie Sterritt joined the New Zealand Police in 1948 as part of the fourth intake of women to be trained as police officers.

Originally from Kaikoura, Rosalie and five others were sent, after graduation, as temporary constables to Auckland where they worked for a year before being appointed permanently.

Two years after joining the Police, Rosalie suffered a serious back injury during a search for a missing mental patient at One Tree Hill in Auckland. While attempting to climb higher she had grabbed a branch which broke and caused her to fall. The accident and the damage caused by the fall were the start of an uphill battle for Rosalie to keep her job as a policewoman.

Rosalie had spinal surgery to repair her back in 1957 and it took her a year to recover. When she returned to work she was assigned office work because she couldn’t perform full duties. In 1959, there was a push to deem her medically unfit to work. Determined not to have her job taken from her, Rosalie pursued Supreme Court action and won her case, keeping her job. Despite the then commissioner successfully appealing the decision, no further action was taken against Rosalie and she stayed with Police

Rosalie became an inquiry officer, then an inquest officer before retiring in 1985. She has actively pursued her interests - scouting, music and woodworking and has her own workshop for repairing and making items from wood and metal. Rosalie owns a campervan and regularly takes it away on trips around the country. She recently moved into a new retirement home, which she chose based on the fact she was able to take her beloved campervan with her.