SA Author. For almost forty years, Tim Tollenaar worked the streets of Adelaide. Starting as a nineteen-year-old probationary constable, he spent the next four decades maturing into his role, dealing with bikies, drug dealers, violent offenders, sudden deaths, high-speed pursuits, drunken idiots and the endless stream of flawed humanity that flowed through South Australia’s busiest entertainment precinct. The Street Cop is an honest, often hilarious and occasionally confronting account of life on the frontline of Australian policing. Through dozens of true stories, Tim takes readers inside a world most people never see; a world of dark humour, trauma, split-second decisions and the cumulative toll of spending a lifetime dealing with the best and worst of human nature. While the stories are uniquely Australian, policing is an international occupation. Whether in Adelaide, London, New York, Toronto or Auckland, police officers face many of the same challenges, frustrations, dangers and absurdities. Readers from around the world will recognise familiar patterns of human behaviour and the universal realities of life on the street. From outrageous encounters and bizarre characters to tragedy, burnout and the final, well-timed decision to leave, The Street Cop is a rare and authentic glimpse into nearly four decades of frontline policing during a period of unprecedented change – seen through the eyes of a bloke who simply kept showing up.
