Page 4096 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 22 October 2019
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As first responders, police officers, firefighters and paramedics are obliged to render assistance and to stay at a scene, as opposed to members of the public, who may elect to leave an escalating incident. These workers are routinely called upon to provide emergency assistance in volatile and dangerous situations.
The issue of occupational violence experienced by emergency workers is well documented by national research. Organisations such as Beyond Blue and Safe Work Australia highlight that the unique challenges faced by emergency workers can have a profound effect not only on a person’s physical health but also in terms of mental and emotional harms. The impacts can be long-lasting and devastating.
It is a serious problem and one this government is committed to addressing. We must ensure that our police, firefighters and paramedics are safe and can carry out their duties effectively. This bill recognises the important role that police officers, firefighters and paramedics have in providing emergency services to the community and sends a clear message that violent behaviour is unacceptable and will not be tolerated in our community.
The bill establishes a new offence for assaults against police officers, firefighters and paramedics, with a maximum penalty of two years imprisonment; an offence for intentionally or recklessly driving at a police officer and exposing a police officer to a risk to safety, with a maximum penalty of 15 years imprisonment; and an offence for driving at and causing damage to a police vehicle, with a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment.
The bill’s intention is to establish that an assault against a police officer, firefighter or paramedic and violent driving behaviour against police and police vehicles are serious crimes—that is, they are crimes which involve a discrete criminality and should be recognised as distinct from other similar conduct.
Similar provisions for the protection of vulnerable victims currently exist in ACT legislation in relation to aggravated offences against pregnant women. These aggravated offences were created in recognition of the fact that some acts of violence are worse than others. The same principle applies to the offences in the bill, recognising the unique nature of responsibility that the territory places upon those acting in frontline emergency service roles. Police officers, firefighters and paramedics are required to step forward to face risks that others are expected to step away from, and it is appropriate for the law to specifically reflect this vulnerability.
Importantly, reforms to strengthen criminal justice responses to violence targeted at police and other emergency service workers are strongly supported by ACT Policing, the Australian Federal Police Association and the emergency service agencies and unions in the ACT. This message has been core in driving the development and purpose of the bill.
I will now go into further detail about each of the offences in the bill, and, firstly, to the creation of a new assault offence. This offence aims to address increasing concerns about the frequency and severity of assaults against police and other
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