Division 2Powers of
inspectors
38Definitions
(1)
In this Division:
game
hunting offence means:
(a)
an offence under this Act or the regulations,
or
(b)
an offence under section 68 of the Forestry Act
2012,
and includes any such offence that there are reasonable
grounds for believing has been, or is to be, committed.
search includes examine or
inspect.
(2)
For the purposes of this Division, a thing is
connected
with a game hunting offence if it is:
(a)
a thing with respect to which the offence has
been committed, or
(b)
a thing that will afford evidence of the
commission of the offence, or
(c)
a thing that was used, or is intended to be used,
for the purpose of committing the offence.
s 38: Am 2012 No 96,
Sch 4.12 [2].
39Powers of
entry
(1)
For the purposes of this Act or the regulations,
an inspector may enter any premises in which the inspector has reason to
believe:
(a)
persons are hunting for game to which this Act
applies, or
(b)
there is anything connected with a game hunting
offence.
(2)
The inspector must give the occupier of the
premises notice of intention to enter the premises unless:
(a)
the entry is made with the permission of the
occupier, or
(b)
the entry is made to a part of the premises open
to the public, or
(c)
the giving of notice would defeat the purpose for
which the premises were entered or would unreasonably delay the inspector in a
case of urgency.
(3)
Entry under the power conferred by this section
may only be made at a reasonable time or at any hour when the inspector has
reason to believe that game is being hunted on the premises. This subsection
does not apply to a power conferred by a search warrant.
40Use of force on
entry
(1)
Reasonable force may be used for the purpose of
gaining entry to premises under a power conferred by this Division, but only
if authorised by the Game Council in accordance with this section or in cases
of emergency.
(2)
The authority of the Game Council:
(a)
must be in writing, and
(b)
must be given in respect of the particular entry
concerned, and
(c)
must specify the circumstances that are required
to exist before force may be used.
(3)
This section does not apply to a power conferred
by a search warrant and does not affect section 70 of the Law
Enforcement (Powers and Responsibilities) Act
2002.
s 40: Am 2002 No 103,
Sch 4.40 [1].
41Entry to premises used for
residential purposes
The powers of entry conferred by this Division
are not exercisable in relation to any part of premises used only for
residential purposes except:
(a)
with the permission of the occupier of the
premises, or
(b)
under the authority conferred by a search
warrant.
42Search
warrant
(1)
An inspector may apply to an authorised officer
for a search warrant if the inspector has reasonable grounds for believing
that a provision of this Act or the regulations has been or is being or is
about to be contravened in or about any premises.
(2)
An authorised officer to whom an application is
made under this section may, if satisfied that there are reasonable grounds
for doing so, issue a search warrant authorising the inspector named in the
warrant to enter the premises and to search the premises for evidence of a
contravention of this Act or the regulations.
(3)
Division 4 of Part 5 of the Law
Enforcement (Powers and Responsibilities) Act 2002 applies
to a search warrant issued under this section.
(4)
In this section:
authorised officer has the same
meaning as it has in the Law Enforcement (Powers and
Responsibilities) Act 2002.
s 42: Am 2002 No 103,
Sch 4.40 [2]–[4].
43General powers available on
entry
For the purposes of this Act or the regulations,
an inspector who enters premises under this Division may do any of the
following:
(a)
search the premises for persons hunting for game
or for anything connected with a game hunting offence,
(b)
require any person in or about those premises to
answer questions or otherwise furnish information,
(c)
require the occupier of the premises to provide
the inspector with such assistance and facilities as is or are reasonably
necessary to enable the inspector to exercise the inspector’s
functions,
(d)
require the production of and inspect any
documents in or about those premises and take copies of or extracts from any
such documents,
(e)
exercise all other functions that are conferred
on an inspector by this Act or the regulations.
44Power to detain and search
vehicles or vessels
(1)
An inspector who has reason to believe that there
is in or on a vehicle or vessel anything connected with a game hunting offence
may:
(a)
stop and detain the vehicle or vessel,
and
(b)
enter and search the vehicle or vessel,
and
(c)
break open and search any container in or on the
vehicle or vessel that the inspector has reason to believe contains any such
thing.
(2)
An inspector may require the person in charge of
the vehicle or vessel to take the vehicle or vessel to a specified place for
the purposes of searching the vehicle or vessel if it is not reasonably
practicable to carry out the search where the vehicle or vessel is
stopped.
(3)
s 44: Am 2012 No 52,
Sch 1 [21].
45Power of
seizure
(1)
An inspector may seize anything that is found by
the inspector in any search under this Division and that the inspector has
reason to believe is connected with a game hunting
offence.
(2)
A power conferred by this section to seize a
thing includes a power to remove the thing from the place where it is found
and a power to guard the thing in or on the premises or to secure the thing
from interference.
(3)
The State, the Game Council, an inspector and any
other person are not liable for any seizure under this section for which there
was reasonable cause.
(4)
A court may order the forfeiture of a thing
seized under this section in connection with an offence if the court finds a
person guilty of the offence.
(5)
The owner of anything seized under this section
may dispute the seizure by giving notice to that effect in writing to the Game
Council within 28 days after becoming aware of the
seizure.
(6)
If the seizure of a thing is so disputed by the
owner, the thing is to be returned to the owner (or the person from whom it
was seized) unless:
(a)
proceedings have been instituted for an offence
in connection with which the court may order the thing to be forfeited,
or
(b)
proceedings have been instituted under this
section for the forfeiture of the thing.
(7)
An inspector may institute proceedings in the
Local Court for the forfeiture of a thing seized under this section and that
court may order the forfeiture of the thing if satisfied it was duly seized
under this section.
(8)
Anything that is forfeited under this section (or
the proceeds of its sale) becomes the property of the
State.
s 45: Am 2007 No 94,
Sch 3; 2012 No 52, Sch 1 [22].
46Power of inspectors to obtain
information, documents and evidence
(1)
An inspector may, by notice in writing served on
a person, require the person to do any one or more of the following things if
the inspector has reasonable grounds to believe that the person is capable of
giving information, producing documents or giving evidence in relation to a
possible game hunting offence:
(a)
to give an inspector, in writing signed by the
person (or, in the case of a body corporate, by a competent officer of the
body corporate) and within the time and in the manner specified in the notice,
any such information of which the person has knowledge,
(b)
to produce to an inspector, in accordance with
the notice, any such documents.
(2)
A notice under this section must contain a
warning that a failure to comply with the notice is an
offence.
(3)
An inspector may inspect a document produced in
response to a notice under this section and may make copies of, or take
extracts from, the document.
(4)
An inspector may take possession, and retain
possession for as long as is necessary for the purposes of this Act, of a
document produced in response to a notice under this section if the person
otherwise entitled to possession of the document is supplied, as soon as
practicable, with a copy certified by an inspector to be a true
copy.
(5)
A certified copy provided under subsection (4) is
receivable in all courts as if it were the original.
(6)
Until a certified copy of a document is provided
under subsection (4), the inspector who has possession of the document must,
at such times and places as the inspector thinks appropriate, permit the
person otherwise entitled to possession of the document, or a person
authorised by that person, to inspect the document and make copies of, or take
extracts from, the document.
47Power of inspector to demand
name and address and to demand game hunting licence
(1)
An inspector may require a person whom the
inspector reasonably suspects has committed a game hunting offence to state
the person’s full name and residential address.
(2)
The holder of a game hunting licence is required
to carry the licence when engaged in hunting for animals for which the licence
is required. Accordingly, an inspector may require a person whom the inspector
reasonably suspects is engaged in hunting for animals for which a game licence
is required to produce the licence to the inspector for
inspection.
(3)
A person does not commit an offence under section
50 in respect of a requirement made under this section if:
(a)
the inspector does not, at the time when the
inspector makes the requirement, show the person the inspector’s
identification card, or
(b)
the inspector does not, at the time when the
inspector makes the requirement, warn the person that it would be an offence
not to comply with the requirement.
48Provisions relating to
requirements under this Division
(1A)Warning to be given on each
occasion
A person is not guilty of an offence of failing
to comply with a requirement under this Division to make a statement, to give
or furnish information, to answer a question or to produce a document unless
the person was warned on that occasion that a failure to comply is an
offence.
(1)Self-incrimination not an
excuse
A person is not excused from a requirement under
this Division to make a statement, to give or furnish information, to answer a
question or to produce a document on the ground that the statement,
information, answer or document might incriminate the person or make the
person liable to a penalty.
(2)Statement, information or
answer not admissible if objection made
However, any statement made or any information or
answer given or furnished by a natural person in compliance with a requirement
under this Division is not admissible in evidence against the person in
criminal proceedings (except proceedings for an offence under this Division)
if:
(a)
the person objected at the time to doing so on
the ground that it might incriminate the person, or
(b)
the person was not warned on that occasion that
the person may object to making the statement or giving or furnishing the
information or answer on the ground that it might incriminate the
person.
(3)Documents
admissible
Any document produced by a person in compliance
with a requirement under this Division is not inadmissible in evidence against
the person in criminal proceedings on the ground that the document might
incriminate the person.
(4)Further
information
Further information obtained as a result of a
document produced, a statement made or information or answer given or
furnished in compliance with a requirement under this Division is not
inadmissible on the ground:
(a)
that the document, statement, information or
answer had to be produced, made, given or furnished, or
(b)
that the document, statement, information or
answer might incriminate the person.
s 48: Am 2012 No 52,
Sch 1 [23].
49Inspector may request
assistance
(1)
A police officer may accompany and take all
reasonable steps to assist an inspector in the exercise of the
inspector’s functions under this Division:
(a)
in executing a search warrant issued under
section 42, or
(b)
if the inspector reasonably believes that he or
she may be obstructed in the exercise of those
functions.
(2)
Any person whom an inspector believes to be
capable of providing assistance in the exercise of the inspector’s
functions under this Division may accompany the inspector and take all
reasonable steps to assist the inspector in the exercise of the
inspector’s functions.
(3)
Nothing in subsection (1) is to be taken to limit
the generality of section 71 of the Law Enforcement
(Powers and Responsibilities) Act
2002.
s 49: Am 2002 No 103,
Sch 4.40 [5].
50Offences relating to
inspectors
A person must not:
(a)
without reasonable excuse, refuse or fail to
comply with a requirement made or to answer a question of an inspector asked
in accordance with this Division, or
(b)
in purported compliance with a requirement under
this Division, or in answer to a question of an inspector asked in accordance
with this Division, give or furnish information or evidence or produce a
document knowing it to be false or misleading in a material particular,
or
(c)
obstruct, hinder, impede, assault, threaten or
intimidate an inspector in the exercise of the inspector’s functions
under this Act.
Maximum penalty: 50 penalty
units.
s 50: Am 2012 No 52,
Sch 1 [24].
50ADirection to leave or not to
enter declared public hunting land
(1)
An inspector who has reason to believe that a
person is committing or about to commit a game hunting offence may direct the
person to leave or not to enter any declared public hunting land specified in
the direction.
(2)
A person to whom such a direction is given must
comply with the direction.
Maximum penalty: 50 penalty
units.
s 50A: Ins 2012 No
52, Sch 1 [25].
51Care to be
taken
In the exercise of a function under this
Division, an inspector must do as little damage as
possible.
52Compensation
The Game Council must pay compensation for any
loss or damage caused by any inspector in the exercise of any power to enter
premises under this Division, but not if that loss or damage is caused because
the occupier obstructed, hindered or restricted the inspector in the exercise
of the power of entry.