South Australian Current Acts

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CRIMINAL LAW CONSOLIDATION ACT 1935 - SECT 19AA

19AA—Unlawful stalking

        (1)         A person stalks another if—

            (a)         on at least two separate occasions, the person—

                  (i)         follows the other person; or

                  (ii)         loiters outside the place of residence of the other person or some other place frequented by the other person; or

                  (iii)         enters or interferes with property in the possession of the other person; or

                  (iv)         gives or sends offensive material to the other person, or leaves offensive material where it will be found by, given to or brought to the attention of the other person; or

            (iva)         publishes or transmits offensive material by means of the internet or some other form of electronic communication in such a way that the offensive material will be found by, or brought to the attention of, the other person; or

            (ivb)         communicates with the other person, or to others about the other person, by way of mail, telephone (including associated technology), facsimile transmission or the internet or some other form of electronic communication in a manner that could reasonably be expected to arouse apprehension or fear in the other person; or

                  (v)         keeps the other person under surveillance; or

                  (vi)         acts in any other way that could reasonably be expected to arouse the other person's apprehension or fear; and

            (b)         the person—

                  (i)         intends to cause serious physical or mental harm to the other person or a third person; or

                  (ii)         intends to cause serious apprehension or fear.

        (2)         A person who stalks another is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty:

            (a)         for a basic offence—imprisonment for 3 years;

            (b)         for an aggravated offence—imprisonment for 5 years.

        (3)         A person who is charged with stalking is (subject to any exclusion in the instrument of charge) to be taken to have been charged in the alternative with offensive behaviour 1 so that if the court is not satisfied that the charge of stalking has been established but is satisfied that the charge of offensive behaviour has been established, the court may convict the person of offensive behaviour.

        (4)         A person who has been acquitted or convicted on a charge of stalking may not be convicted of another offence arising out of the same set of circumstances and involving a physical element that is common to that charge.

        (5)         A person who has been acquitted or convicted on a charge of an offence other than stalking may not be convicted of stalking if the charge of stalking arises out of the same set of circumstances and involves a physical element that is common to the charge of that other offence.

        (6)         For the purposes of this section, the circumstances of a dealing with material may be taken into account in determining whether the material was offensive material but, if material was inherently offensive material, the circumstances of a dealing with the material cannot be taken to have deprived it of that character.

Note—

1         See section 7 of the Summary Offences Act 1953 .



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