- Comprehensive $1.28 billion Community Safety Plan legislation passed by the Queensland Parliament
- The Safety Plan features new and expanded laws designed to enhance community safety, support police efforts to protect the community and further support victims
- The Safety Plan also supports the delivery of more police and more police resources including an expanded Polair capability to the Far North and Sunshine Coast/Wide Bay regions
The Community Safety for Queensland has been passed by the Queensland Parliament.
It’s a comprehensive, evidence-based plan that includes new laws, harsher penalties, the expansion of nation-leading initiatives like Jack’s Law to a much broader range of venues and locations and also includes new investments in more police and more police resources.
A highlight of the Community Safety Plan for Queensland is the creation of a new law, known as ‘Susan’s Law’.
Under Susan’s Law, a person who evades police and then causes a crash that results in the death of another person will face 20 years in prison.
The law is named in honour of the mother of Claudine Snow.
Claudine suffered the traumatic loss of family members and as a consequence became a strong advocate for a strong deterrent and harsher penalties for those who recklessly and dangerously put others at risk.
Like Claudine, Brett and Belinda Beasley have been dedicated advocates for measures that enhance community safety.
Under the Community Safety Plan for Queensland, the nation-leading Jack’s Law will be expanded to include licensed premises, sporting venues, retail precincts and transport networks including bus and train lines.
Important elements of the Community Safety Plan for Queensland include:
- expanding electronic monitoring of young offenders
- expanding Jack’s Law
- cracking down on posting and boasting on social media
- the introduction of Firearms Prohibition Order Scheme
- Strengthening hooning laws
- New offences for ramming an emergency vehicle and;
- removing detention as a last resort
As stated by Premier Steven Miles:
“Queenslanders deserve to feel safe, and be safe, in their communities.
“That’s why I developed the Community Safety Plan in partnership with the Police Minister and new Police Commissioner, to tackle the root causes of crime, and implemented reforms to continue to give police the tools and laws they need.
“We will always back the evidence-based prevention and intervention services to prevent crime from happening.
“By investing in these areas, we are building a stronger, safer Queensland for everyone.”
As stated by Police Minister Mark Ryan:
“Safety around weapons is a priority for us, and we vow to make every change we can to increase not only wider community safety, but the safety of our police officers.
“We plan to reform the qualifying test for members of the public by expanding the types of serious offending captured in our data and to introduce a category listing disqualified people.
“We simply cannot be too careful.
“Much has been learned this year from the Wieambilla inquest and the safety of our officers stands alongside the safety of our community.”
As stated by Police Commissioner Steve Gollschewski:
“The QPS welcomes and thanks the government for further legislation around community and officer safety.”
“Announcements around new laws will continue to empower our dedicated frontline officers. “The State maximum penalty increase to those who wrongly choose to carry a knife in public is further welcomed by th e service as a whole.”
“The community can rest assured we will still continue the successful operations Operation Whiskey Unison, Operation Whiskey Legion and Taskforce Guardian to reduce crime right across the state.”
As stated by Claudine Snow:
“I’m grateful to have the Minister’s support in bringing Susan’s Law to fruition.
“It’s devastating to lose family unexpectedly, which is why I wanted to advocate for change and stop this from happening to anyone else.
“If Susan’s Law means even one person thinks twice before putting others at risk, my efforts are worth it.”
As stated by Brett Beasley:
“I want to thank Minister Mark Ryan for his consistent support of the efforts of Belinda and myself to protect the community.
“The expansion of Jack’s Law is a no-brainer.
“Jack’s Law works.
“Jack’s Law saves lives.
“The expansion of Jack’s Law is another step towards getting dangerous weapons off our streets.”
Explainer:
Community Safety Amendment Bill 2024 amendments include:
Improved knife crime prevention
- Expand and extend the trial of hand-held scanners in public places through Jack’s Law.
- Increase the maximum penalty for possessing a knife in a public place or school.
Improved weapons safety
- Introduction of a firearms prohibition order scheme in Queensland.
- introduce a verification process for purchasing small arms ammunition.
- reform the ‘fit and proper person’ test in the Weapons Act 1990 by expanding the types of serious offending captured, introducing a new category of disqualified people.
Dangerous operation of a motor vehicle
- Increase to the maximum penalty for dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death or grievous bodily harm, and a new circumstance of aggravation for dangerous operation of a vehicle where the offender was evading police and cause the death or grievous bodily harm of another person.
- Newly created offences for damaging an emergency vehicle when operating a motor vehicle and driving a motor vehicle in a way which could injure or endanger the safety of a police officer.
- Increase the maximum penalties for wilful damage to property where the property is an emergency vehicle, unlawful use or possession of emergency vehicles, and unlawful entry of an emergency vehicle for committing a crime.
Prevent online unlawful content ‘Boasting and Posting’
- Introduction of a framework for removal of online content depicting conduct that constitutes an offence or creates an offence for publishing material.
- Increase the maximum penalties for a range of related offences such as the aggravating factor of social media boasting in relation to the unlawful use of a motor vehicle.
Domestic and Family Violence amendments:
- Improve law enforcement capabilities to further protect Domestic and Family Violence victim-survivors.
- Enable a court hearing an appeal in a family and domestic violence matter to make a temporary protection order to protect the victim-survivor.
- Extend the maximum period before a police protection notice must be first mentioned in court.
- Amend definitions in the Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012 to remove parent-minor child relationships from domestic and family violence responses, allowing them to be dealt with under child harm or youth justice provisions.
Modernise our service and optimise efficiencies
- Enable electronic signatures to be affixed to all documents executed by police officers
- Expand the options available to police officers to effect document service, including electronically in certain circumstances
- Allow for a trial of arrangements for corrective services officers to serve prescribed domestic and family violence documents on prisoners in corrective facilities in prescribed circumstances
- Allow the Police Minister to subdelegate compensation powers to the Commissioner of Police.
- Harmonise the reporting dates for several annual reports under the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act 2000 and the Public Safety Preservation Act 1986.
Opening access in some circumstances to Children’s court
- Enable some people and the media to be present at Childrens Court criminal proceedings
- Targeting hooning behaviours as well as boost law enforcement activity for low range drink driving
- Extend the offence of ‘unlawful conduct associated with commission of racing, burn out or other hooning offence’ to include a person who merely spectated a hooning activity without reasonable excuse
- Provide police officers with the option of issuing penalty infringement notices for low-level drink driving offences in certain circumstances
- Increase the maximum fine amount that can be imposed by a court for drink driving offences and increase the minimum driver licence disqualification that a court must impose for certain drink driving offences
- Attach a licence disqualification of 2 months to a penalty infringement notice
Amendments relating to Youth Justice, expanding electronic monitoring, laws for phone and camera use and transfers of young people from watch houses to youth detention centres
- Reword youth justice principle 18 to state a child should be detained in custody, where necessary, including to ensure community safety, where other non-custodial measures of prevention and intervention would not be sufficient, and for no longer than necessary to meet the purpose of detention
- Enable temporary transfers from watchhouses to youth detention centres to facilitate participation in programs and physical exercise at youth detention centres.
- Regulate the use of cameras and smart phones in youth detention centres.
- Enable the recording of detainees’ phone calls in certain circumstances.
- Increase the number of participants in the electronic monitoring trial by expanding the list of prescribed indictable offences and expanding the criteria for electronic monitoring to include children who have been charged with a prescribed indictable offence in the preceding 12 months
- Provide that consideration of risks associated with granting bail, and any conditions that may mitigate those risks, should occur in the one process, prior to a decision to release the child.
- Amend the arrangements for the transfer of remanded detainees over 18 years old, creating a presumption of prompt transfer.
- Insert a reference to disability services into the youth justice principles to highlight that a child’s disability needs must be met while they are in detention.
- remove any doubt that participation in a program or engagement in a service by a detainee while remanded in custody cannot be used in evidence in any civil, criminal or administrative proceedings relating to the offence for which the child has been remanded in custody.
