The New Laws on Mental Health in the Criminal Justice System: The Diversionary Pathway
There is an available legislative framework for a NSW court to determine criminal proceedings where the accused or defendant has mental health issues relevant to the case. This legislative framework is echoed in The Mental Health (Forensic Provisions) Act 1990 (NSW) (‘The Act’). It is a response to the increasing contact with the criminal ...continue reading
The Return of Stationary Random Breath Tests and Road Side Drug Tests in NSW
By Poppy Morandin & Jimmy Singh In anticipation of the Queen’s Birthday long weekend, NSW Police announced the return of stationary Random Breath Tests and Roadside Drug Tests. As the easing of restrictions have allowed for a higher level of unrestricted movement and, pubs, clubs and restaurants are now allowed to seat up to ...continue reading
Your Rights as a Driver When Pulled Over by Police for RBT in NSW
As the Coronavirus continues to spread across our world, fears continue to rise so much so that our Governments have been taking drastic and unprecedented actions to combat the spread of the pandemic. Other than people shutting down shops, and even Castle Towers Myer store just recently, Police RBT’s have been suspended indefinitely out ...continue reading
An Outline of the New Penalties for Mid-range Drink Driving in NSW
It is reported that a 60-year-old woman in Melbourne has allegedly been caught drink driving when her car ended up getting stuck in a Melbourne train track on Friday. At about mid-night last Friday, the 60-year-old woman allegedly lost control of her car whilst in a train station car park before getting stuck on ...continue reading
Is it a Crime to Drive with a Mid-range Blood Alcohol Concentration in NSW?
It is reported that a 41-year-old man drove a Ferrari worth about $300K in the Sydney CBD before crashing it straight into a jewellery store near David Jones in Sydney CBD- at the corner of Castlereagh and Market Street on Monday. Unfortunately, a woman in her sixty’s sustained minor injuries and was escorted to ...continue reading
Is it Illegal to Sleep in your Car While Drunk?
By Sahar Adatia and Jimmy Singh. There’s a good reason why you might find yourself asleep in your car: You had a bigger night out than expected and now you’re stuck, unable to drive home. So, you consider the options… Of course, you could just get a cab. But cabs are expensive. Then there’s ...continue reading
New Penalties for Low Range Drink Drivers: On-The-Spot Fines & Immediate Suspensions
As of 20 May 2019, a police officer can issue an on-the-spot fine of $561 and an immediate 3-months driver licence suspension period to people who are caught driving with a low-range concentration of alcohol level on a NSW Road if it is their first offence. The low-range concentration of alcohol level is where ...continue reading
What are the Police Powers to Conduct a Random Breath Test?
The Transport Accident Commission (TAC) in Victoria has suspended a $4 million road safety funding it had previously granted to Victoria Police. This came following revelations from an internal police investigation that over a 5-year period, over 258,000 breath tests were falsified by police officers in attempts to return negative readings. It is reported ...continue reading
New NSW Sentencing Penalty Introduced: The New ‘Intensive Corrections Orders’
On 24 October 2017, Parliament in NSW assented to the amending legislation which effectively changed the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW). As of 24 September 2018, three major new sentencing options were introduced into NSW. A Magistrate or Judge can now impose any one of these new sentencing or penalty options for traffic ...continue reading
New Sentencing Option Introduced in NSW: ‘Community Correction Orders’
Our previous blog outlined how the ‘section 10 bond’ has now replaced the new ‘conditional release order’ as a new sentencing option in NSW for criminal and traffic offences. This blog outlines a further new sentencing option called a ‘community corrections order’ which effectively replaces the old ‘section 9 bond’ and ‘community service order’ penalties, ...continue reading