The ‘crackdown’
The Prime Minister Scott Morrison has promised a crack down aimed at vegan protestors, to prevent them advertising target locations on the internet.
Under the new laws, anyone who incites protests online could face up to 12 months gaol.
The law the PM’s proposing is a Commonwealth law so it’s easy for the PM to introduce.
The actual charges that protestors are facing are state laws that are different in each state and territory (much like gun laws. You can read about those in my blog).
The story so far
Last week’s vegan protests caused traffic chaos in Melbourne’s CBD and saw protestors target abattoirs in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania.
There was political outrage from the Liberal and National parties ahead of a federal election. PM Scott Morrison labelled the protestors “green-collared criminals” who should face the “full force of the law”.
Federal Agriculture Minister David Littleproud said vegan activists who break into farms would face “enormous fines”.
But the fines protestors face are more like being hit with a wet lettuce than a leg of lamb.
How tough are the charges?
I’m a lawyer in NSW and each state has different laws for crime, so I’ll use the charges laid against 9 protestors in Goulburn to demonstrate the point.
It’s alleged that the protestors chained themselves to a conveyor at a local abattoir and refused to leave when asked by the owner and police. They will face court next month.
NSW Police report that the charges include the following:
– Resisting police;
– Interfere with conduct of business; and
– Enter inclosed lands.
How serious are the charges?
All of these charges are dealt with in the local court because they are summary or less serious offences. (as opposed to indictable, more serious offences)
Here’s a breakdown:
Resist police
Resist police is the most serious of the charges since it is the only one that carries the possibility of a criminal conviction. (Crimes Act 1900, s546C).
The maximum penalty if convicted of this offence is 12 months gaol or an $1,100 fine or both.
Having a criminal conviction recorded against you is serious and restrictive. It can affect your employment and overseas travel, amongst other things.
However, unless the vegans here have a prior criminal record or similar it’s highly unlikely they will see any gaol time. Whether a criminal conviction is recorded will depend on the evidence and other matters.
Enter inclosed lands/Interfere with the conduct of business
‘Enter inclosed lands’ is a fancy legal way of saying trespass ie being somewhere where you’re not supposed to be. (Inclosed Lands Protection Act 1901, s4)
To be successful, police must prove beyond a reasonable doubt:
- 1. The person entered the private property (inclosed land);
- 2. The person entered the property without lawful excuse or the owner’s permission; and
- 3. The person refused to leave after being asked by the owner to do so.
The maximum penalty for this offence is a $550 fine.
Since the protestors allegedly interfered with a business operation (in this case an abbatoir) police have charged the more serious offence of ‘interfere with the conduct of business’. (Inclosed Lands Protection Act 1901, s4B)
This is a more serious or aggravated form of trespass.
The maximum penalty for this offence is $5,500.
These two charges are related. The less serious charge has been laid as a back-up to the more serious charge (‘in the alternative’).
What does that mean? Police are covering their bases. None of the protestors can be found guilty of both the trespass charges, they can be found guilty of one or the other.
Of course, if there’s not enough evidence to prove either offence beyond a reasonable doubt, a protestor might be found not guilty of any kind of trespass.
The protestors face court on various dates in May.
Stay tuned.
If you are charged with resist police offences or inclosed land offences, call me on 0444 580 187 or email fleur@fleurbitcon.com
If you’re interested in knowing about the right to protest, see my blog.