Page 2821 - Week 09 - Thursday, 13 August 2015
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To those people who shared their personal stories, I applaud their bravery and courage in coming forward to talk about their use of something that is, for all intents and purposes, illegal at this time in the ACT. To those people, thank you so much for your willingness to share your views on how medicinal cannabis might work in the ACT.
Debate (on motion by Mr Corbell) adjourned to the next sitting.
Crimes Legislation Amendment Bill 2015
Mr Corbell, pursuant to notice, presented the bill, its explanatory statement and a Human Rights Act compatibility statement.
Title read by Clerk.
MR CORBELL (Molonglo—Deputy Chief Minister, Attorney-General, Minister for Health, Minister for the Environment and Minister for Capital Metro) (10.29): I move:
That this bill be agreed to in principle.
The Crimes Legislation Amendment Bill 2015 makes a number of important amendments to the criminal law of the ACT. The government is committed to continuous improvement to our criminal law. The amendments in this bill bring forward changes to ACT legislation as a response to issues and concerns raised by a range of stakeholders in the justice system including ACT Policing, the Aboriginal Legal Service of New South Wales and the ACT, Access Canberra and the commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions.
I take this opportunity to highlight several key amendments in this bill. Firstly the bill includes important amendments to the Crimes Act 1900 by providing authority to police officers to take certain material from suspects under 18 years of age for identification purposes. This material includes fingerprints, palm prints, photographs and voice recordings. Magistrate approval for the taking of this material is required for any suspect under the age of 16 years, a young person who is in an impaired state or a young person who is not in police custody. Police officers are authorised to take material without a magistrate’s order where the young person is aged 16 and 17 years of age at the time of committing the alleged offence and in circumstances where the young person is in police custody and not in an impaired state at the time the material is taken.
Where material is to be taken, a police officer is to inform the suspect about the purposes for which the material is required, the offence which the young person is believed to have committed or is charged with and that the material may be used as evidence in proceedings in relation to an offence. The material must also be taken in the presence of a person with parental responsibility for the child or young person if it is practicable to do so and the child or young person does not object. Where this is not practicable an interview friend is to be present when the explanation is given or the material taken. This amendment will streamline identification procedures used by police and ensure that the person is detained for a minimal amount of time while their identity is being determined.
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