Police Powers and Knife Crime (NSW)

In 2024, the New South Wales government introduced new police powers and increased penalties aimed at tackling knife crime. These laws are contained in the Summary Offences Act 1988 and the Law Enforcement (Powers and Responsibilities) Act 2002. This page outlines the changes.

‘Wanding’ powers to detect knife crime

Under Division 2 of the Law Enforcement (Powers and Responsibilities) Act 2002, certain public areas may now be declared ‘designated areas’ by a senior police officer if certain types of offences have occurred there. A public transport station, shopping precinct, sporting venue or other place prescribed by regulation may be declare a ‘designated area’.

When a place is declared a ‘designated place’, police have the power to require persons in the area to stop and submit to the use of a hand-held scanner to detect the presence of metal without a warrant. The police must exercise this power in the least invasive way possible, and where possible, the officer should be the same sex as the person being searched.  

A person who fails to comply with such a request commits an offence under section 45N of the Law Enforcement (Powers and Responsibilities) Act 2002. This offence is punishable by a fine of up to 50 penalty units.

A place may be declared a designated area for a period of up to 12 hours if, in the last 12 months, there has been:

• at least one offence involving a knife committed there
• at least one serious offence involving violence committed against a person there  
• more than one offence of possessing a knife or weapon at a public place or school

AND the senior police officer:

• considers that the use of hand-held scanners will help to detect or deter knife-related offences in the area; and
• has considered the impact the use of scanner will have on lawful activity in the area and (if the areas has previously been declared a designated area), whether knifes or other weapons were found there.

Knife crime provisions

The Summary Offences Act 1988 contains several offences involving knives, some of which are new or have been altered under the recent changes, and some of which are unaffected.

Selling knife to child

Under the changes, the penalty for selling a knife to a child under 16 has increased. Under section 11F of the Summary Offences Act 1988, a person who sells a knife to a child under 16 is guilty of an offence.

There is now also a new offence of selling a knife to a child aged 16 or 17 without a reasonable excuse. A reasonable excuse exists where the child aged 16 or 17 requires the knife for work, training or study purposes.

These offences carry a maximum penalty of a fine of 100 penalty units, imprisonment for one year, or both.

Allowing a child to carry a knife

Under section 11D of the Summary Offences Act 1988, it is an offence for a parent to allow a child under 18 to carry a knife. This offence is punishable by a fine of five penalty units. This offence is unchanged by the new laws.

Custody of offensive implement

Under section 11B of the Summary Offences Act 1988, it is an offence to have custody of an offensive implement in a public place or school. This offence is punishable by a fine of 50 penalty units, imprisonment for two years, or both. The court may also order that the implement be forfeited. This offence is also unchanged by the new laws.

Types of knives

The provisions of the Summary Offences Act 1988 relating to knives only apply to certain types of knives. Under section 11 of the Summary Offences Regulation 2020, the restrictions and offences do not apply to plastic knives designed for eating or to any blades other than knife blades, machetes, cleavers or swords.

Responses to the changes

When the changes were announces, NSW Premier Chris Minns said, “These are commonsense changes that strike a careful balance between preserving the rights of individuals and ensuring communities stay safe.”

However, concerns have been expressed that the new powers may be abused by the police force and that the wording of the legislation is not sufficiently clear. The need for the changes has also been questioned, as statistic from the Australian Bureau of Statistics indicate that knife crime in New South Wales has declined over the last 20 years.

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