When Overland replaced Christine Nixon, he indicated he would continue to lead the force in broadly the same direction. But the reality is that Overland has begun a quiet revolution that is winding back the clock.
''I think the theme of the past 12 months has been a back-to-basics approach,'' he says.
He has doubled operational safety and tactics training for police from two to four days a year following an Office of Police Integrity review criticising policies on the use of force. Although this will cost about 16,000 shifts, senior police say it is vital to improve the police response in dealing with people who have become irrational due to alcohol, drugs or mental illness.
It is precisely the same decision made by chief commissioner Neil Comrie in 1994 when he introduced the ''safety first'' tactics to protect both police and suspects.
Overland has also cut away the Nixon leadership-by-committee style, giving his three deputy commissioners responsibility for key areas. ''We want to strengthen accountability.''
Police divisions will be reduced from five to four and he will soon announce a major reshuffle of his senior officers that will give some new challenges and others bruised egos. And there is a growing belief that several will find they do not have jobs at all.
HIS greatest challenge has been and will continue to be the core business of policing - the crisis response that leads police to switch on the blue lights and sirens. ''Our focus over the next three years will be on violence, policing the roads and emergency management,'' he says. It will be back to the future.
Recent operations have confirmed long-held truisms in policing: that a blitz on one type of misbehaviour suppresses other problem areas. In Bendigo, a recent series of hoon driver blitzes saw an immediate trickle-down effect that reduced street crime.
When police in Collingwood, Richmond and Fitzroy moved on local drug addicts, the crime rate dropped. These tactics will be adopted state-wide in a move designed to drastically increase visible uniformed presence and provide a very public reassurance that police are listening to community concerns.
On Monday, police launched the operational response unit - the group that will be used for saturation policing in problem areas. ''In football terms, it will be about getting numbers at the ball.'' Overland expects the unit to grow to about 500 strong.
Both Brumby and Cameron were there for the announcement. After all, it was good news.
It may be sold as an innovation when the reality is that it is as old as policing itself - more uniformed police on the beat where it matters.
In the new world of policing, strategies are built around figures, statistics and trends. Problems are discovered, objectively analysed and a response formulated. It is supposed to move from laptop to whiteboard to station and then finally to the street.
But Overland knows that policing can't be reduced to a flow chart, no matter how scientific. He acknowledges that his set of numbers do not match the community's sense of unease.
''We have a safe state but many people don't feel that way. We can't just police off the stats. It is a real problem if people don't feel safe.''
He says too many people are having their quality of life damaged by fear - to the point where many will not come into Melbourne at night because of their perceptions of street crime. ''My focus will be for people to feel safe and to be safe.''
He says that while debate on law and order is vital, it can become overheated and fuel exaggerated community fears. ''This can be slightly magnified in an election year.''
Overland says youth violence, including knife crime, is now one of the greatest challenges facing law enforcement. ''More and more kids are carrying knives. It is becoming part of our culture and it is truly frightening.''
He says some carry knives believing that if they are armed they will deter potential attackers, while the reality is they increase the risks. Despite headlines highlighting large combat-style prohibited weapons, most attackers use household knives rather than exotic weapons.
While the government has introduced tougher knife laws, it requires police to announce plans for major searches seven days in advance, effectively destroying the element of surprise.
In the first six months of his term, Overland attended as many functions as possible to connect with different community groups. He has since scaled back, although he plans to visit police stations on a weekly basis and will work operational shifts with the rank and file.
He recently completed operational safety and tactics training so he is qualified to work the streets anywhere in the state.
THE next big reform in the Overland blueprint will be to change the way crime is investigated around Victoria. Now, the first police at the scene carry the load in all but the most serious cases. This means patrolling police can be caught for hours dealing with the problem, leaving whole suburbs with inadequate cover. Mundane cases can be shuffled down the list of priorities, leaving front-line police overworked and victims unsatisfied.
It will be the police version of medical triage - a system designed to deal with the most important cases first without ignoring remaining problems. Detectives now deal with serious crimes such as rapes, suspicious deaths, armed robberies and dangerous assaults, while most offences are dealt with by the first police officers who attend.
Under the statewide system, to be rolled out by deputy commissioner Sir Ken Jones, first-response units will have 24 hours to make inroads or the investigation will be moved to a fresh team.
''We need to free up the vans by stripping away some of that workload.'' Overland says that uniformed street police deal with most of the crime in the state and are often under-trained for the task. Under the new system, they will be retrained. They will be expected to solve the problem rather than just place a bandage around it.
The Chief Commissioner has promised to reintroduce promotional exams - the traditional method of moving through police ranks - a system lost during the Nixon years.
As a career policeman, Overland knew the job of chief commissioner would be demanding and unrelenting.
It has been a year in which police administration has been savaged with the Ombudsman finding the inept information and technology department was $39 million over budget and the forensic science laboratory dysfunctional. In both cases, Overland admitted the huge mistakes (although they had been ignored for years) and pledged to fix them.
A year after his appointment, he has been surprised at the level of scrutiny.
''There is such a focus on everything I say and do. There have certainly been times I have regretted using certain words to make a point.'' Such as last month when he advised a group of Indian students to ''try to look as poor as you can''.
''It was a flippant comment. It was a joke that got a laugh from the audience but was taken out of context.''
Despite the bruises, the scrutiny and the pressure, he says he is still enjoying his role.
''It is a fantastic job. I love it.''
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