The Queensland government is set to introduce new legislation prohibiting weapon possession amongst young people in a bid to curb spiralling rates of youth crime across the state.
Under the laws to be tabled in Parliament, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk’s cabinet has called for sweeping changes to restrictions around the sale and advertising of knives, replica firearms (including gel blasters), and other bladed items to all persons under the age of 18.
If the bill passes, all trading of these weapons to juveniles would be outlawed and both vendor and buyer parties would be charged as offenders in the instance of a dealing.
Along with knives and gel blasters, the sale of other “controlled weapons” like machetes, axes, swords, daggers, sickles, scythes, spear-guns, and tomahawks will also be banned.
Any person attempting to use false identification to purchase these items could also be charged.
Police Minister Mark Ryan said the measures sought to be pre-emptive in bringing down knife crime and would seek to supplement the landmark Queensland legislation of Jack’s Law rolled out earlier this year.
“The Palaszczuk Government is committed to continually looking at new ways to improve community safety,” he said in a statement released on Sunday.
“These laws will assist in keeping dangerous items out of the hands of young criminals, before violent offences can occur.
“This will go hand in hand with the expansion of Jack’s Law, which is saving lives and reducing violence across Queensland every single day.”
Under expanded Jack’s Law legislation – passed through Parliament in March after first introduction in 2021 – Queensland Police was granted powers to detect people carrying knives in public by conducting stop and wand operations in all Safe Night Precincts (SNPs), on public transport and transport hubs across the state.
In the six months following, QPS officers have scanned more than 31,000 people and charged almost 1,000 in relation to weapon and drug offences.
Police also seized 350 weapons during these “wanding” operations, which allowed authorities to use handheld metal detecting wands in the approved locations, in what was the first knife-related legislation of its kind to be implemented in Australia’s history.
In addition to outlawing all sales of knives, replica firearms, and bladed items, the new laws also propose restrictions on how the items are advertised.
Retailers will be required to display evident signage regarding the prohibition of sales to juveniles, securely store away controlled weapons prior to transactions, and not market the products in a violent manner or one that suggests they are “suitable for combat”.
The state’s police force is confident the bolstered reforms will help them enhance community safety in the long run and prevent acts of “senseless violence” by reducing weapon accessibility to youth.
“These laws will be a step forward in enhancing how police can stop knife crime in its tracks and keep communities safe,” QPS Acting Assistant Commissioner Paul Hart said.
“With every wanding operation we see an opportunity to educate on the impacts of knife crime and intervene in the lives of those who are making the poor decision to carry a weapon. The results from Jack’s Law speak for themselves, and with further legislation restricting young people’s access to weapons, we’re confident we can continue to enhance community safety.”
The devastation of knife crime has been prevalence across Queensland over the last few years, the effects of which have been compounded by the state’s high re-offending rate among youngsters – currently the worst in the nation.
Productivity Commission figures released in January showed about 60 per cent of youth offenders aged 10 to 16 at the time of release from prison were back in contact with the criminal justice system within just 12 months.
The premise of Jack’s Law was also a fatal case of knife-related felony. It came after the death of 17-year-old Jack Beasley in 2019 who was killed after being stabbed during a teenage brawl between two groups in Surfers Paradise.
