An Act to amend the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 to make it an aggravating factor in sentencing for certain traffic offences where a child was present in the offender’s vehicle.
1 Name of Act
This Act is the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Amendment (Children in Vehicles) Act 2011.
2 Commencement
This Act commences on the date of assent to this Act.
Schedule 1 Amendment of Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 No 92
[1] Section 21A Aggravating, mitigating and other factors in sentencing
Insert after section 21A (2) (o):(p) without limiting paragraph (ea), the offence was a prescribed traffic offence and was committed while a child under 16 years of age was a passenger in the offender’s vehicle.
[2] Section 21A (5C)
Insert after section 21A (5B):(5C) For the purpose of subsection (2) (p), an offence under section 13 (2), 15 (4), 18B (2), 18D (2), 22 (2), 24D (1) or 29 (2) of the Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) Act 1999 is taken to have been committed while a child under 16 years of age was a passenger in the offender’s vehicle if the offence was part of a series of events that involved the driving of the vehicle while the child was a passenger in the vehicle.
[3] Section 21A (6)
Insert in alphabetical order:prescribed traffic offence means an offence under any of the following provisions:(a) sections 9, 11B (1) and (3), 12 (1), 13 (2), 15 (4), 18B (2), 18D (2), 22 (2), 24D (1) and 29 (2) of the Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) Act 1999,(b) sections 51B (1) and 52A (1) (a) and (3) (a) of the Crimes Act 1900,(c) section 52A (2) and (4) of the Crimes Act 1900 in the circumstances of aggravation referred to in section 52A (7) (a), (c) or (d) of that Act.
[4] Schedule 2 Savings, transitional and other provisions
Insert at the end of clause 1 (1):