South Australian Current Acts

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SUMMARY OFFENCES ACT 1953 - SECT 72A

72A—Power to conduct metal detector searches etc

        (1)         Subject to this section, a police officer may, for the purpose of detecting the commission of an offence under Part 3A, carry out a search in relation to—

            (a)         any person who is in, or is apparently attempting to enter or to leave, an area to which this section applies; and

            (b)         any property in the possession of such a person.

        (2)         The following provisions apply to a search carried out in accordance with this section:

            (a)         the search must, in the first instance, be a metal detector search;

            (b)         if the metal detector search indicates the presence or likely presence of metal, a police officer may require the person to produce items detected by the metal detector (and, for the purpose of determining whether or not the person has produced such items, may conduct further metal detector searches);

            (c)         if the person refuses or fails to produce any such item, a police officer may, for the purpose of identifying the item, conduct a search in relation to the person or property (which need not be a metal detector search but may be conducted as if it were a search of a person who is reasonably suspected of having, on or about his or her person an object, possession of which constitutes an offence).

        (3)         This section applies to the following areas:

            (a)         licensed premises;

            (b)         a public place holding an event (being a community, cultural, arts, entertainment, recreational, sporting or other similar event that is to be held over a limited period of time) declared by the Commissioner by notice in the Gazette under subsection (4);

            (c)         a car parking area specifically or primarily provided for the use of patrons of an area referred to in paragraph (a) or (b).

        (4)         A declaration referred to in subsection (3)(b)—

            (a)         must be made in accordance with guidelines (if any) prescribed by regulation; and

            (b)         must specify the event and the public place to which the declaration relates; and

            (c)         must specify that the declaration operates during the period for which the event is held; and

            (d)         may be subject to conditions specified in the notice.

        (5)         The Commissioner must cause notice of the declaration to be published in a newspaper circulating throughout the State or on the Commissioner's website before the commencement of the period during which the declaration will operate.

        (6)         Nothing in this section authorises a police officer to carry out a search of a person, or property of a person, in his or her place of residence or in a hotel room, lodging room or any other place in which he or she is temporarily residing.

        (7)         The following information must be included in the annual report of the Commissioner under section 75 of the Police Act 1998 (other than in the year in which this section comes into operation) in respect of the period to which the report relates (the "relevant period ):

            (a)         the number of declarations made under subsection (4) during the relevant period;

            (b)         the number of metal detector searches carried out under this section during the relevant period;

            (c)         the number of occasions on which a metal detector search carried out during the relevant period indicated the presence, or likely presence, of any metal;

            (d)         the number of occasions on which weapons or articles of a kind referred to in Part 3A were detected in the course of such searches and the types of weapons or articles so detected;

            (e)         any other information requested by the Minister.

        (8)         In this section—

"licensed premises" means—

            (a)         premises in respect of which 1 of the following classes of licence is in force under the Liquor Licensing Act 1997 :

                  (i)         a general and hotel licence;

                  (ii)         an on premises licence;

                  (iii)         a restaurant and catering licence;

                  (iv)         a club licence;

                  (v)         a licence of a class prescribed by regulation,

other than premises, or premises of a class, declared by the regulations to be excluded from the application of this paragraph;

            (b)         the premises defined in the casino licence, within the meaning of the Casino Act 1997 , as the premises to which the licence relates;

            (c)         premises subject to a licence prescribed by regulation;

"metal detector search" means a search conducted—

            (a)         using only a metal detector of a kind approved by the Commissioner; and

            (b)         in accordance with any directions issued by the Commissioner.



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