Constable
Ronald Francis SOMMERVILLE
YEAR OF DEATH
1961
JURISDICTION
New South Wales
DETAILS OF DEATH
On the morning of the 4 April 1961 Constable Sommerville was riding a Police motor cycle outfit in Darling Street Balmain. At the intersection of Cooper Street the cycle ran into the rear of a car which had stopped to make a right hand turn. It is thought that the Constable’s cap had moved obscuring his vision for a moment. While grabbing for and adjusting his cap he failed to see the vehicle in front of him stop. As a result of the collision Constable Sommerville was thrown from the cycle sustaining severe head injuries. He was conveyed to the Balmain District Hospital where he died on 15 April 1961. The Constable was born in 1940 and joined the New South Wales Police Force on 5 March 1956 as a Cadet. He was sworn in on 9 August 1959. At the time of his death he was stationed at Balmain.
