NSW Police Wanding Powers: Fresh enforcement figures released this month show NSW Police have conducted 34 wanding operations across metropolitan and regional New South Wales, scanning 4,147 people, seizing 91 unlawful weapons and charging 67 people with a total of 71 weapons offences.
The figures, covering the first year of operation of the state’s expanded wanding regime, come as community debate continues over how the laws should be applied, and where the line sits between effective law enforcement and the ordinary right to move through public space.
If you catch public transport, attend a sporting event, or walk through a shopping precinct in NSW, these powers may affect you. In this article, we are going to explain what wanding powers are, when police can lawfully use them, what your obligations are if you are stopped, and what options you have if you believe you have been unlawfully searched or charged.
What Are Wanding Powers In NSW?
Wanding is the use of a hand-held metal detector by police to scan a person for concealed metal objects, most commonly knives. For the wand scan itself, police do not need a warrant, and they do not need an individualised reasonable suspicion that the person is carrying a weapon.
However, wanding is not a general power to search a person. Any further step, such as searching bags, pockets, or conducting a pat-down, still requires reasonable suspicion under the ordinary search provisions of the Law Enforcement (Powers and Responsibilities) Act 2002 (NSW) (LEPRA). The scope of the power is limited to the scan itself and to a request that a person produce a detected metal item.
The powers were introduced by amendments to LEPRA and are modelled on Queensland’s “Jack’s Law”, named after teenager Jack Beasley, who was fatally stabbed on the Gold Coast in 2019.
In practice, a wanding encounter works like this:
- A senior police officer of the rank of Assistant Commissioner or above authorises the use of wanding powers in a designated area for a defined period
- Uniformed officers in that area can then wand members of the public without individualised suspicion
- If the wand detects metal, police may direct the person to produce the metal object
- Failure to comply with a lawful direction to stop, be wanded, or produce a detected item can result in a maximum penalty of a $5,500 fine
Where Can Police Use Wanding Powers?
Wanding powers cannot be activated state-wide as a matter of routine. They can only be switched on for a designated area, and the law ties the activation of wanding powers to specified types of recent incidents within that geographical area.
In general terms, an area can be designated where there has been relevant weapons-related or violent offending in the recent past, typically referenced to a twelve-month window. Eligible locations include:
- Train, bus, light rail and ferry stations, and their immediate surrounds
- Shopping centres and retail precincts
- Sporting and entertainment venues
- Public events and festivals
- Licensed premises and surrounding streets
- Identified precincts such as Kings Cross
The authorisation must be in writing and must specify both the area and the duration. NSW Police are not required to publish a map of declared areas in advance, which has been the subject of submissions from legal professional bodies during consultation.
What Must You Do If Police Want To Wand You?
If you are in a designated area and an officer directs you to stop to be wanded, the expectation under the law is that you will comply. The law does not give an individual a right to refuse a wanding simply because they believe they are not carrying a weapon, because the power is designed to operate without individualised suspicion.
That said, you retain important rights:
- You are entitled to ask the officer to confirm that the area is a designated area and that the wanding authorisation is in force
- You are entitled to ask for the officer’s name, rank, and station
- You are entitled to remain silent beyond providing your name and address if lawfully directed to do so
- If the wand detects metal, you are only required to produce the detected object, not to empty your pockets, hand over your phone, or submit to a broader search
- Any further or more invasive search must be supported by reasonable suspicion under the relevant LEPRA provisions
Refusing to be wanded, walking away once lawfully directed to stop, or producing a false identity are the behaviours most likely to attract additional charges beyond any weapons offence that may be detected.
What Happens If A Weapon Is Detected?
If wanding detects an unlawful weapon, most commonly a knife carried in contravention of the Summary Offences Act 1988 (NSW) or a prohibited weapon under the Weapons Prohibition Act 1998 (NSW), police may choose to charge the person at the time, or at a later stage.
Common charges in this space include:
- Custody of a knife in a public place, which carries significant maximum penalties including imprisonment and fines
- Possession of a prohibited weapon without a permit, where penalties can be substantial in the more serious cases
- Carrying a cutting weapon with intent to use, which attracts higher penalties again
The law allows for certain defences such as “reasonable excuse”, examples historically recognised include carrying a knife for legitimate use at work, for recreation such as fishing, or for religious observance such as a kirpan. Whether a particular excuse is accepted is highly fact-specific and often contentious, and not every seemingly sensible reason will satisfy the court. If you are charged, it is critical to speak to a firearms and weapons defence lawyer before making any formal statement to police.
Tougher Penalties For Selling Knives To Children
Alongside the wanding powers, NSW has introduced new offences and increased penalties for the sale of knives to minors. Under the current law:
- Selling a knife to a child under 16 attracts a significant maximum penalty under the current law, including the possibility of imprisonment
- A new offence prohibits selling a knife to a child aged 16 or 17 without a reasonable excuse
Retailers are also subject to increased compliance obligations and should consider obtaining legal advice if they operate in categories, such as outdoor retail and kitchenware, where sales to young people are commonplace.
Civil Liberties Considerations
The wanding regime has been the subject of ongoing consultation and debate. Legal professional bodies, including the NSW Law Society and the NSW Bar Association, raised considerations during the consultation process including:
- The absence of an individualised suspicion threshold before police can approach and scan a member of the public
- Transparency about when and where authorisations are in force
- The potential for stop-and-search style powers to fall disproportionately on young people, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, and members of culturally and linguistically diverse communities
- The importance of ensuring the scheme does not expand beyond the knife-crime problem it was designed to address
At the same time, the laws were introduced in response to real concerns about knife-related violence, and the public-safety objectives underlying them are legitimate.
The enforcement numbers released this month illustrate both sides of the discussion. Of 4,147 people scanned, 91 unlawful weapons were detected, meaning approximately 2.2% of people scanned were found to be carrying an unlawful weapon. The remaining 97.8% had no unlawful weapon detected, highlighting the large number of people subject to the wanding power without being found to be in breach.
What If You Were Unlawfully Wanded Or Searched?
Wanding powers are not unlimited, and compliance with the legal boundaries of those powers is essential. Common situations in which a wanding interaction may have gone beyond what the law permits include:
- The area was not properly designated, or the authorisation had expired
- Police conducted a broader search beyond the wanding power, without reasonable suspicion
- Force was used that was disproportionate to the circumstances
- The person was detained for longer than was reasonably necessary to conduct the scan
If police go beyond the lawful scope of the wanding power, or use unjustified force or detention, civil claims may arise, including claims for false arrest, unlawful imprisonment, assault, or battery. Importantly, evidence obtained during an unlawful search may also be excluded from a criminal prosecution under section 138 of the Evidence Act 1995 (NSW).
Charged After Being Wanded? Speak To Our Criminal Defence Lawyers
If you have been charged with a weapons offence following a wanding operation, the scope of the police power, and whether it was lawfully exercised in your case, may be the single most important issue in your matter. At O’Brien Criminal & Civil Solicitors, our criminal defence lawyers have extensive experience defending weapons offences, challenging the admissibility of evidence, and running trials where police powers have been exceeded.
We also act for clients in civil proceedings against NSW Police where the circumstances of a search have given rise to false arrest or unlawful imprisonment claims. We recognise that the wanding regime is aimed at a genuine public-safety problem; our focus is on ensuring the legal boundaries are properly respected in each individual matter.
Whatever stage your matter is at, the earlier you obtain advice, the better your options.
