Jack Lawson (Blue Heelers)

Template:Blue Heelers character Jack Lawson was a fictional character from Australia's police series Blue Heelers. He came into the show in 1999 and left in 2001 when he was arrested for murder. Jack arrived in Mount Thomas with his horse Matilda, who appeared frequently on the show. Jack was riding in the bush when he discovered the body of fellow police member Constable Greg Mason. Jack was 19 when he first arrived in Mount Thomas and was still completing his policing degree.

Jack left his girlfriend Molly behind in his hometown, the young lovers having promised each other to wait to consummate their relationship until marriage. But when she visited him in Mount Thomas it was revealed that she had been having an affair with Jack's cousin, and he broke off their relationship. In episode 250, "Under Fire", Molly was impaled during a bus accident caused by a car being pursued by Maggie and Ben. Jack promised her that he would marry her and they would have children once she was set free, but concerns about dangerous chemicals on the bus meant that she could not be extracted from the bus in time. After her death, Jack admitted that he had lied to her about his feelings.

During his time on the show, Jack was on the Mount Thomas footy team, the Mudlarks. One of his detailed story lines involves his friendship with teammates Matty and Scotty. Both Jack's friends, Matty was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer and Scotty went to jail for manslaughter of another teammate. Matty married his girlfriend Lettie, who gave birth to his son, Matty Jr, before he died. Jack eventually fell in love with Lettie. He lost his virginity to her and moved into her house. The relationship fell apart when Scotty came back from prison and Lettie realised she was in love with him 'in a different way'.

Jack was shot by a 'mate' after about a year in Mount Thomas, when he tried to get his friend to turn himself in over a drug deal. The bullet lodged too close to his spinal chord to operate, leaving Jack in a wheelchair for some months. Jack was very depressed during this time and even sold his horse Matilda to a passing rodeo. After a suspect in a wheelchair was convicted of burglary, and Inspector Falcon-Price ordered Jack to be put on restricted duties at St. Davids, Jack convinced his specialist to operate, despite being given only a 5% chance of success. In the next episode he was already up and about, apparently with no need for physio or recovery.

The shooting left Jack with a lot of resentment towards people who dealt with drugs and caused him to let an innocent man fall to his death. Lawson is best remembered as a kind hearted copper, however, his inability to constantly overheat soon became his downfall.