Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated Acts(1) A person who is a defence member or a defence civilian commits an offence if:
(a) the person is in possession of service property; and
(b) the person has no lawful authority for being in possession of the property.
Maximum punishment: Imprisonment for 6 months.
(2) An offence under subsection (1) is an offence of strict liability.
Note: For strict liability , see section 6.1 of the Criminal Code .
(3) It is a defence if the person proves that he or she:
(a) was not aware that he or she was in possession of the property; or
(b) was not aware that the property was service property; or
(c) had a reasonable excuse for his or her possession of the property without authority.
Note: The defendant bears a legal burden in relation to the matter in subsection (3). See section 13.4 of the Criminal Code .