August 23, 2024
Criminals boasting about their offences on social media face stiffer penalties with the expansion of State Government’s Post and Boast laws.
The legislation, passed by State Parliament on Thursday, creates a new stand-alone offence for publishing material on social media depicting crimes where the purpose is to glorify the conduct or increase someone’s reputation.
This includes offences involving:
- Driving or operating a vehicle;
- Violence or a threat of violence;
- Taking, damaging, destroying, removing, using, interfering with or entering property;
- A weapon.
The laws will ban offenders and associated persons posting their offending behaviour online to glorify the offence and evoke fear in the community.
The new offence has a maximum penalty of two years’ jail.
The new laws also expand offences where boasting on social media can be an aggravating factor in sentencing. These include:
- Going armed so as to cause fear;
- Dangerous operation of a vehicle;
- Common assault;
- Assaults occasioning bodily harm;
- Burglary;
- Possession of a knife in a public place or a school.
The Bill will not affect community members who share offending behaviour for the purpose of warning others in the community or journalists.
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New laws have also been passed for dangerous drivers who evade police.
People who drive dangerously, evade police, and then become involved in a crash that causes death or grievous bodily harm could face up to 20 years in prison.
As well, the maximum penalty for someone who drives dangerously and leaves a crash scene after causing death or grievous bodily harm will be increased from 14 years to 20 years.
The maximum penalty for dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death or grievous bodily harm will also increase from 10 to 14 years.
This new circumstance of aggravation will also apply to youth offenders who drive dangerously, evade police and cause death or grievous bodily harm.
