The Court held that procedural breaches of s 19 of the Children (Detention Centres) Act 1987 (such as failure to obtain timely approval of segregation decisions) will not necessarily invalidate segregation decisions or ground claims for false imprisonment where the detainee is lawfully held on remand, particularly where the decision-maker held the required statutory beliefs on reasonable grounds and the segregation served safety purposes consistent with WHS obligations. The case confirms that the onus falls on the detainee to prove statutory breaches when challenging conditions of detention years after the event, and that WHS Act duties on detention centre staff are a relevant and potentially determinative consideration in assessing the lawfulness and reasonableness of segregation decisions.
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