Wives of cops killed in the line of duty remember getting the knock on the door
Two families have come together to mark the anniversary of one of the darkest days in NSW Police history, which claimed the lives of two officers.
Bob Spears and Peter Addison were two young police officers working a regular shift in July 1995 when they responded to a domestic violence call at Crescent Head on the Mid North Coast.
Upon arrival, they were ambushed and fatally shot.
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Two families have come together to mark the anniversary of one of the darkest days in NSW Police history, which claimed the lives of two officers. A Current Affair
It is now known that one of the officers had emptied his revolver and was reloading when he was gunned down.
Spears and Addison's partners remember the day all too well.
"He'd always prepared me for that. 'This is how it happens, if something happens, you'll get a knock at the door'," Addison's wife Liana Stewart said.
"I just remember thinking, 'no, I can't open the door', because I knew it was bad news."
"I remember lying in bed and hearing three doors shut at five o'clock in the morning, and I realised I was in a lot of trouble," Spears' wife Kath Ward said.
"I opened the door and saw the red of the police chaplain, and I knew it wasn't going to be good news."
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Bob Spears and Peter Addison were two young police officers working a regular shift in July 1995 when they responded to a domestic violence call at Crescent Head on the Mid North Coast. A Current Affair
Pat Gleeson was a young homicide squad detective at the time and has since retired.
The 59-year-old has completed a 250-kilometre trek in memory of the two officers while raising money for Police Legacy.
"It's a job that sometimes takes a lot from people, and in this case, Spears and Addison, and their families left behind, their children," he said.
"It's always been a significant event throughout my entire policing career."
Gleeson finished his odyssey at an emotional memorial service on Wednesday, raising almost $30,000 for Police Legacy.
"It's an awesome epic journey," Ward said.
"This is just wonderful that you would even think of doing something like this," Stewart said.
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Bob Spears' wife Kath Ward will never forget the day her life was torn apart. A Current Affair
Liana Stewart says her husband had always prepared her for the worst news she could receive. A Current Affair
For Ward and Stewart, Policy Legacy has been a godsend.
"Legacy were there for me, they still are," Ward said.
"It was the only place I felt as though I fitted in. It was so difficult going through murder and trying to find something, some way to fit back into this world."
Police Legacy held the two families together, allowing romance to spark between Spears' daughter and the Addison's son. They're now married and have three children of their own.
The murders of Spears and Addison changed policing in NSW.
Revolver pistols were replaced with semi-automatic handguns, police were issued bullet-resistant vests, and officers received night shoot training.
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It was one of the darkest days in NSW Police history. A Current Affair
Thirty years on, Spears' and Addison's families want the officers to be remembered.
"He was a great man, a great friend. He died doing a job he loved, which is really sad," Ward said.
"I never want them to be forgotten," Stewart said.
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