Australian Capital Territory Numbered Acts

CRIMES (CHILD SEX OFFENDERS) AMENDMENT ACT 2015 (NO. 35 OF 2015) - SECT 16

substitute

78     Photographing offender

    (1)     A police officer receiving a report made in person by or for a registrable offender may require the offender—

        (a)     to be photographed; or

        (b)     to expose any part of the offender's body to enable that part of the body to be photographed by the officer or another person authorised by the officer.

Note     See s 79 (1A) for a restriction relevant to par (b).

    (2)     Force may not be used in photographing a registrable offender except in accordance with an order of a magistrate under section 78A.

    (3)     Before a registrable offender's photograph is taken, the police officer must tell the offender, in language likely to be understood by the offender—

        (a)     why the photographs are being taken; and

        (b)     that it is an offence not to comply with the requirement to be photographed; and

        (c)     that the photographs will be kept by the chief police officer.

    (4)     A registrable offender commits an offence if—

        (a)     a police officer requires the offender to be photographed under this section; and

        (b)     the offender does not comply with the requirement.

Maximum penalty: 500 penalty units, imprisonment for 5 years or both.

78A     Order allowing use of force for photographing offender

    (1)     A magistrate may, on application by a police officer, order the photographing of a registrable offender if satisfied on the balance of probabilities that—

        (a)     a police officer has required the offender to be photographed under section 78 and the offender has failed to comply with the requirement; and

        (b)     there are reasonable grounds to believe that photographing the offender is likely to assist law enforcement, crime prevention or child protection purposes; and

        (c)     allowing reasonable force to be used in photographing the offender is justified in all the circumstances.

    (2)     For subsection (1) (c), the magistrate must consider the following:

        (a)     the seriousness of the circumstances surrounding the commission of each offence that resulted in the offender being on the register and the severity of each offence;

        (b)     the age, mental health and cultural background of the offender, to the extent that they are known by the magistrate;

        (c)     if the offender gives any reasons for not complying with the requirement—the reasons;

        (d)     any other circumstances that the magistrate considers relevant.

    (3)     An application under this section must be—

        (a)     made in writing; and

        (b)     supported by evidence on oath or by affidavit dealing with the matters mentioned in this section.