An account of a rural cop's life as a forensic investigator


FORENSIC INVESTIGATOR Geoff Bernasconi had always been passionate about his job as a policeman in rural New South Wales and, from the earliest days of his career, went the extra mile, both for victims of crime and for their families. But one night in 1984, he was called to investigate the scene of an horrific car accident in which an entire family had been wiped out - and which it was impossible for him to forget. Geoff's day-to-day working life became a catalogue of tragedies, some of which involved people close to him, and he found himself spiralling downwards in the grip of post-traumatic stress disorder.

When Esther Mckay, fellow forensic investigator and author of the best-selling Crime Scene, heard that Geoff has been awarded maximum compensation for his suffering, she knew immediately this was a story that needed to be told.

This is a harrowing account of what it is like to work on the front-line of crime and tragedy as a forensic investigator. But it is also the inspiring story of someone who has been exposed to sights and experiences many of us can hardly even imagine, yet has emerged from the darkness to begin his journey to recovery.