Loitering
18 Loitering
Where a person is loitering in a public place or a group of persons is assembled in a public place and a police officer believes or apprehends on reasonable grounds—
that an offence has been, or is about to be, committed by that person or by one or more of the persons in the group or by another in the vicinity; or
that a breach of the peace has occurred, is occurring, or is about to occur, in the vicinity of that person or group; or
that the movement of pedestrians or vehicular traffic is obstructed, or is about to be obstructed, by the presence of that person or group or of others in the vicinity; or
that the safety of a person in the vicinity is in danger, the officer may request that person to cease loitering, or request the persons in that group to disperse, as the case may require.
A person of whom a request is made under subsection (1) must leave the place and the area in the vicinity of the place in which he or she was loitering or assembled in the group.
Maximum penalty: $1 250 or imprisonment for 3 months.
If a police officer has reasonable grounds to suspect that a person who is loitering in a public place is of a prescribed class, the officer may request that the person state the reason why he or she is in that place.
The police officer must, before making the request, advise the person—
that the request is being made under this section; and
which prescribed class the officer believes the person belongs to.
If, in response to a request by a police officer under subsection (3), a person of a prescribed class refuses or fails to state a satisfactory reason for being in that place, the person is guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty: $5 000 or imprisonment for 3 months.
A person is of a prescribed class for the purposes of this section if the person is—
a person who has been found guilty of, or who is reasonably suspected of having committed, a serious and organised crime offence; or
a prescribed drug offender within the meaning of the Criminal
Assets Confiscation Act 2005;
or
a person who is subject to a firearms prohibition order under Part 8 of the Firearms
Act 2015;
or
a person who is subject to a control order under the Serious and Organised Crime (Control) Act 2008;
or
a person who is subject to a weapons prohibition order under Part 3A;
or
a person who is subject to a consorting prohibition notice under Part
14A; or
a person who is subject to a non‑association or place restriction order under Part 4 Division 5 of the Summary
Procedure Act 1921;
or
a person who is subject to a paedophile restraining order under Part 4
Division 7 of the Summary
Procedure Act 1921;
or
a person of a class prescribed by regulation.
For the purposes of subsection (6), a person may belong to a prescribed class by virtue of an offence committed, an order made or a notice issued before or after the commencement of that subsection.
In any proceedings for an offence under subsection (5)—
an apparently genuine document purporting to be signed by the
Commissioner and to certify that at a specified time a weapons prohibition order or a consorting prohibition notice applied to, or was in force against, a specified person is admissible as evidence of the matter so certified and is, in the absence of proof to the contrary, to be regarded as proof of the matter so certified; and
an apparently genuine document purporting to be signed by the Registrar of Firearms and to certify that at a specified time a firearms prohibition order applied to, or was in force against, a specified person is admissible as evidence of the matter so certified and is, in the absence of proof to the contrary, to be regarded as proof of the matter so certified.
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