New South Wales Consolidated Acts

WORK HEALTH AND SAFETY ACT 2011 - SECT 34A

34A Exception for police responding to particular active armed offender incidents

(1) A member of the NSW Police Force does not commit an offence under this Division for a failure to comply with a health and safety duty that occurs while--

(a) the member is responding to a particular active armed offender incident, or

(b) the member is in command of, or is otherwise authorising actions by or providing directions to, other members of the NSW Police Force who are responding to a particular active armed offender incident, or

(c) the member is receiving information from, or providing information to, other members of the NSW Police Force for the purposes of assisting them in responding to a particular active armed offender incident, or

(d) the member is participating with other members of the NSW Police Force in preparing or planning for responding to a particular active armed offender incident.

(2) A member of the NSW Police Force is
"responding to a particular active armed offender incident" if--

(a) a person armed with an offensive weapon or instrument (the
"offender" ) is attacking or has attacked, or is attempting to attack or has attempted to attack, another person (the
"victim" ), and

(b) the member reasonably believes (or one or more other members of the NSW Police Force who are commanding, authorising actions by or directing the member reasonably believe) that the offender will do any of the following unless prevented from doing so--

(i) continue attacking, or attempting to attack, the victim,

(ii) attack, or attempt to attack, the victim again,

(iii) attack, or attempt to attack, another person apart from the victim, and

(c) the member is acting (whether or not in combination with, or at the command or direction of, other members of the NSW Police Force) to prevent the offender from doing so.

(3) To avoid doubt, this section does not affect the duties of the State or the Crown under this Part in connection with responding to a particular active armed offender incident.

(4) In this section--

"offensive weapon or instrument" has the same meaning as in the Crimes Act 1900 .