Jon Hanley is a familiar face around the Cairns courthouse for all the right reasons however the Officer in Charge of Prosecutions made a special appearance recently.
The Senior Prosecutor – Officer in Charge (OIC) at the Queensland Police Service (QPS) was one of seven newly admitted lawyers at the April admission sitting before Justice Henry at the Cairns Supreme Court.
The OIC enjoyed being part of the admission ceremony after having witnessed several over his years at QPS and the support on the day stands out as a strong memory.
“Largely the presence of friends, family, and colleagues from both sides of the bar table,” he said of what he most remembered from the ceremony.
“In my position as Officer in Charge of Cairns Prosecutions, I had seen a fair few admission ceremonies of staff that have been through the office.
“It was great to finally be one of them and be surrounded by everyone that mattered to me.
“I actually almost undertook my law degree back in the UK in 2005-2008 but chose to do a business degree instead. After a few years working in project management and business development, and also emigrating in 2012, I decided to join the QPS.
“After a few years working in operational positions in the Far North and the Cape, and starting a family, I made the move to Prosecutions which had always held an interest.
“Alongside that I decided to undertake my LLB, out of self-interest and development but also to complement the role in Prosecutions, all the while with a view to the future.”
He asked Steven Baso, a criminal lawyer at ATSILS and Accredited Special, to move his admission in Cairns.
“I have previously been the Senior Sergeant, Officer in Charge of Cairns Prosecutions overseeing almost 40 staff, being a mix of admin, civilian lawyers and sworn Police Prosecutors,” Jon said.
“Currently I am the Officer in Charge of Innisfail Prosecutions. I met Steve through my role in Cairns Prosecutions across 2023/24.
“He quickly became a good friend and was a key member of that office that I could always turn to for advice. Despite what he says below, he was and remains a great mentor to me! He is extremely knowledgeable and I have a huge degree of respect for him.”
Expanding on their shared history, Steven said he worked with Jon during late 2023 to early 2025 when they were both prosecutors with QPS Prosecution Services.
“Originally we were both Senior Prosecutors in the Far North District, myself as a civilian lawyer and Jon as a Sergeant,” he recalled.
“Then throughout 2024 we worked very closely together with Jon relieving as Officer in Charge of the Cairns Prosecutions office, while I held the role of Principal Prosecutor in that office.
“He had already been working as a prosecutor for several years by the time I met him, so I don’t think I can take any credit for mentoring him.”
Despite the joking, the mutual respect between new lawyer and admission mover is obvious.
“I have a great deal of respect for Jon – he is competent, knowledgeable about the law, and highly measured and effective as an advocate,” Steven said.
“As a prosecutor, he is very fair and reasonable to deal with – not only when we were both prosecutors, but that has continued in my interactions with him from the opposite end of the bar table.
“He is very highly regarded, both within the prosecution office, by operational police, and also by the criminal practitioners in the Cairns legal community.”
Steven said Jon’s commitment to study was commendable.
“Police prosecutors in Queensland have traditionally been sworn officers, given a crash course by the QPS on how to prosecute, but who have not usually been qualified lawyers,” he explained.
“As the workload and the complexity of matters that are determined in the Magistrates Court has increased in the post-Moynihan years, there has been a growing trend for sworn police prosecutors to undertake legal studies, usually part-time, as Jon did.
“I know that it was a heavy burden on his family, balancing that workload. But to be able to stand there with him at the end of it and see him achieve that milestone – to be part of it in some small way – was a tremendous honour for me.”
The Cairns admission sitting was also a new appearance for Steven – moving his first admission.
“I’m very glad that the first time I had the pleasure of moving an admission was for Jon.”
Jon is currently Acting Senior Sergeant as Officer in Charge of Innisfail Police Station. As for the future, he says: “There are a number of positions within QPS that are of interest. Beyond that I am not 100 per cent sure, but I haven’t ruled out private practice in some capacity.”
Rockhampton admissions before Justice Crow in March were: Cassie Harvey, Gemma Rowell and Reid Thompson.
Proctor celebrates all newly admitted lawyers and congratulates them on this significant achievement. Please email details to proctor@qls.com.au. Ensure you include some details of your current role, your admission mover, along with images from your admission sitting.
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