A report, published by UNSW and commissioned by Redfern Legal Centre warns imprecise legal thresholds defining when an officer is able to conduct a strip search mean unlawful use of the practice is “potentially widespread”.
The report, which reveals a twentyfold increase in strip-searches conducted in NSW over the past 12 years, is littered with case studies of people being subjected to the invasive procedure on suspect grounds.
Under the Law Enforcement Powers and Responsibilities Act, NSW police are allowed to conduct a strip search if the “seriousness and urgency of the circumstances” makes it necessary.
The report’s authors argue that this “broadly defined” threshold fails to give police guidance on when a strip search should be carried out, meaning many are conducted without adequate legal grounds.
“Strip-searches are an invasive, humiliating and harmful process, and as such, should only be used in exceptional circumstances when no other alternative is available,” RLC police powers solicitor Samantha Lee said.
“Updating police education and training material will not suffice. Clear guidance about police strip-search procedures needs to be driven by clear and rigorous law. Without law reform, we will continue to see insufficient training and poorly informed decision-making from police conducting strip-searches,” Ms Lee said
Read the full article here (The Guardian, 22 August 2019)
