Queensland Numbered Acts

POLICE AND OTHER LEGISLATION AMENDMENT ACT 2005 No. 17 - SECT 13

Chapter 7, part 3, after section 257--

insert--

'(1) This division applies if a police officer reasonably considers--

(a) a support person present during questioning of a relevant person is unable to properly perform the role of a support person; and

(b) in the particular circumstances, it would be in the interests of the relevant person to exclude the person and arrange for another support person to be present during questioning.

'(2) This division is in addition to, and does not limit, division 4.4

'(1) This section states circumstances in which a person may be unable to properly perform the role of a support person for a relevant person.

'(2) However, this section does not limit the circumstances in which a person may be unable to properly perform the role of a support person.

'(3) The circumstances are as follows--

(a) the person's ability to perform the role is substantially impaired by the effect of something the person has ingested, for example, alcohol, a drug or a potentially harmful thing, to the extent that the person is unable to act in the best interests of the relevant person;

(b) the person is a person with an impaired capacity and the person's impairment prevents the person from acting in the best interests of the relevant person;

(c) the person is, or appears to a police officer to be, unwilling to perform the role of a support person because of illness, injury, pain, tiredness or a similar cause;

(d) the person has an affiliation, association or other relationship with a police officer questioning the relevant person;

(e) the person has a relationship of authority with the relevant person that may prevent the person from acting in the best interests of the relevant person;

Example for paragraph (e)--

A teacher who recently excluded the relevant person from a school.

(f) the person is a victim of the offence for which the relevant person is being questioned or a friend of the victim;

(g) the person witnessed the commission of the offence for which the relevant person is being questioned.

'(4) In this section--

ingest includes--

(a) administer; and

(b) inhale; and

(c) smoke.

'(1) This section applies if a police officer considers a support person present during questioning is unable to properly perform the role of support person.

'(2) The police officer must exclude the support person from being present during questioning.

'(3) The police officer must explain to the support person the reasons for the person's exclusion.

'(4) The explanation must be written or electronically recorded.

'If a police officer excludes the support person from being present during questioning, the police officer must advise the relevant person--

(a) if the relevant person was not present when the support person was excluded from questioning--that the support person has been excluded from questioning and the reasons for the person's exclusion; and

(b) if the relevant person is a person in relation to whom section 251, 252 or 253 applies, questioning is delayed for a reasonable time to allow another person to be present as a support person during questioning; and

(c) if the relevant person is a child--that he or she may choose another person to be present as a support person during the questioning.'.