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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
Queensland
CRIMINAL LAW
AMENDMENT BILL 1993
Queensland
CRIMINAL LAW AMENDMENT BILL
1993
TABLE OF PROVISIONS
Section Page
1 Short title . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2 Amended Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
3 Insertion of new ss.359A and 359B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
359A Unlawful stalking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
359B Summary proceedings for unlawful stalking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1993
A BILL
FOR
An Act to amend the Criminal Code
4
Criminal Law Amendment
The Parliament of Queensland enacts-- 1
title 2
Short
Clause1. This Act may be cited as the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1993. 3
Code 4
Amended
Clause2. The Criminal Code is amended as set out in this Act. 5
of new ss.359A and 359B 6
Insertion
Clause3. After section 359-- 7
insert-- 8
stalking 9
`Unlawful
`359A.(1) A person must not unlawfully stalk another person. 10
`(2) A person (the "offender") unlawfully stalks another person (the 11
"victim") if-- 12
(a) the offender engages in a course of conduct involving doing a 13
concerning act on at least 2 separate occasions to another person 14
or other persons (whether the victim, another or others); and 15
(b) the offender intends that the victim be aware that the course of 16
conduct is directed at the victim, even if the concerning acts or 17
particular concerning acts are done to, or to the property of, a 18
person other than the victim; and 19
(c) the victim is aware that the course of conduct is directed at the 20
victim; and 21
(d) the course of conduct would cause a reasonable person in the 22
victim's circumstances serious concern that an offensive act (a 23
"concerning offensive act") may happen. 24
`(3) For the purpose of subsection (2)(d), the victim's circumstances are 25
those known or foreseen by the offender and those reasonably foreseeable 26
by the offender. 27
5
Criminal Law Amendment
`(4) It is a defence to a charge under this section to prove that the course 1
of conduct was engaged in for the purposes of a genuine-- 2
(a) industrial dispute; or 3
(b) political or other public dispute or issue carried on in the public 4
interest. 5
`(5) The offence under this section may only be committed against an 6
individual. 7
`(6) Unlawful stalking is a crime for which the offender is liable to a 8
maximum penalty of-- 9
(a) imprisonment for 5 years if, for any of the concerning acts 10
constituting the offence, the offender-- 11
(i) unlawfully uses or threatens to use unlawful violence against 12
another person or another person's property; or 13
(ii) has possession of a weapon within the meaning of the 14
Weapons Act 1990; or 15
(iii) contravenes an injunction or order imposed or made by a 16
court under a law of the State, the Commonwealth, another 17
State or a Territory, or threatens this; or 18
(b) imprisonment for 3 years in any other case. 19
`(7) In this section-- 20
"concerning act" means any of the following acts-- 21
(a) following, loitering near, watching or approaching another 22
person; 23
(b) telephoning or otherwise contacting another person; 24
(c) loitering near, watching, approaching or entering a place where 25
another person lives, works or visits; 26
(d) interfering with property in the possession of another person; 27
(e) leaving offensive material where it will be found by, given to or 28
brought to the attention of, another person; 29
(f) giving offensive material to another person, directly or indirectly; 30
(g) an act of harassment, intimidation or threat against another 31
6
Criminal Law Amendment
person; 1
(h) an unlawful act committed against the person or property of 2
another person; 3
"concerning offensive act" means an unlawful act of violence by the 4
offender against-- 5
(a) the victim's person or property; or 6
(b) a person, other than the victim, about whose health or custody the 7
victim would reasonably be expected to be seriously concerned if 8
the act were done, including, for example, a dependant, relative, 9
friend, employer or associate of the victim; or 10
(c) the property of a person, other than the victim, about whose 11
property the victim would reasonably be expected to be seriously 12
concerned if the act were done, including, for example, the 13
premises where the victim lives or works, or the property of a 14
dependant, relative, friend, employer or associate of the victim; 15
"property" of a person other than the offender includes property in which 16
both the offender and the other person have an interest; 17
"unlawful" act means an unlawful act constituting an offence; 18
"violence" against the person includes an act depriving a person of liberty; 19
"violence" against property includes an unlawful act of damaging, 20
destroying, removing, using or interfering with property. 21
proceedings for unlawful stalking 22
`Summary
`359B.(1) A proceeding for an indictable offence against section 359A 23
may be dealt with summarily, unless the offender is charged with a 24
circumstance of aggravation mentioned in section 359A(6)(a). 25
`(2) The maximum sentence that may be imposed on a summary 26
conviction for an indictable offence against section 359A is imprisonment 27
for 18 months. 28
`(3) A proceeding for an indictable offence against section 359A may be 29
dealt with summarily even though the proceeding was started more than 30
1 year after the offence was committed. 31
`(4) A proceeding for an indictable offence against section 359A may be 32
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Criminal Law Amendment
dealt with summarily at any place appointed for holding Magistrates Courts 1
regardless of where the offence was committed. 2
`(5) The summary jurisdiction conferred by this section must be 3
exercised in the way, and subject to the conditions, prescribed by 4
section 444 for the summary trial and punishment of offenders who may be 5
summarily convicted of indictable offences under that section.'. 6
7
© State of Queensland 1993
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