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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
South Australia
Summary Offences (Interviewing Vulnerable Witnesses)
Amendment Bill 2017
A BILL FOR
An Act to amend the
Summary
Offences Act 1953
.
Contents
Part 2—Amendment
of Summary Offences Act 1953
3Section 74EC—Admissibility of evidence of
interview
Schedule 1—Transitional
provision
The Parliament of South Australia enacts as
follows:
This Act may be cited as the Summary Offences (Interviewing Vulnerable
Witnesses) Amendment Act 2017.
In this Act, a provision under a heading referring to the amendment of a
specified Act amends the Act so specified.
Part 2—Amendment
of Summary Offences
Act 1953
3—Section
74EC—Admissibility of evidence of interview
(1) Section 74EC—delete "prescribed person" wherever occurring and
substitute in each case:
prescribed interviewer
(2) Section 74EC(1)(b)—delete "prescribed person's" and
substitute:
prescribed interviewer's
(3) Section 74EC—after subsection (1) insert:
(1a) If a person to
whom this Division applies is to be interviewed as a potential witness in
relation to the investigation of any other offence, evidence of the interview
may be admissible under section 13BA of the
Evidence
Act 1929
if—
(a) an audio visual recording of the interview is made in accordance with
the regulations; and
(b) the interview is conducted by a prescribed interviewer; and
(c) the manner in
which the interview is conducted meets the prescribed requirements to the
prescribed extent.
(1b) If a prescribed interviewer's conduct and recording of an interview
does not meet the requirements of
subsection (1a)(c)
, the court may nevertheless admit evidence of the interview if satisfied
that the interests of justice require the admission of the evidence despite the
prescribed interviewer's non-compliance.
(4) Section 74EC(2)—after "subsection (1)(b)" insert:
or (1b)
Schedule 1—Transitional
provision
(1) An audio visual
record of a statement of a witness to whom this subclause applies made to an
investigating officer after the commencement of Part 5 of the SAVW Act
and before the commencement of
Part 2
of this Act as part of a formal interview process in relation to the
investigation of an alleged offence (other than a serious offence against the
person) may be admissible under section 13BA of the
Evidence
Act 1929
as evidence in the trial of a charge of the offence as if the recording
had been made pursuant to Division 3 of Part 17 of the
Summary
Offences Act 1953
in accordance with the requirements of that Division as in force following
the commencement of
Part 2
of this Act.
(2)
Subclause (1)
applies to a witness who is—
(a) a child of or under the age of 14 years; or
(b) a person with a disability that adversely affects the person's
capacity to give a coherent account of the person's experiences or to respond
rationally to questions.
(3) In this clause—
interview and investigating officer have the
same meanings as in section 74C of the
Summary
Offences Act 1953
;
serious offence against the person has the same meaning as in
section 74EA of the
Summary
Offences Act 1953
;
SAVW Act means the
Statutes
Amendment (Vulnerable Witnesses) Act 2015
.