CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE ACT 2008 - SECT 280 Seizing mail etc
CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE ACT 2008 - SECT 280
Seizing mail etc(1) The director-general may seize anything in a young detainee's protected mail if the director-general believes on reasonable grounds that the thing—
(a) may physically harm the addressee or anyone else; or
(b) is a prohibited thing.
(2) The director-general may seize other mail of a young detainee, or anything in the mail, if the director-general suspects on reasonable grounds that the seizure is necessary—
(a) to stop any of the following entering or leaving a detention place:
(i) a prohibited thing;
(ii) anything that may be used by the young detainee in a way that may involve an offence, a behaviour breach, a risk to the personal safety of someone else or a risk to security or good order at a detention place; or
(b) to stop correspondence that is threatening, or not in the best interests of the young detainee, from entering or leaving a detention place; or
(c) to stop a young detainee obtaining or buying goods without the director-general's approval.
Example—correspondence not in best interests of young detainee—par (b)
mail addressed to a young person by someone convicted of a sexual offence against a child
(3) The director-general may seize a document under this section only if the director-general believes on reasonable grounds that the document is not privileged.
(4) If the director-general believes on reasonable grounds that a document seized under subsection (3) is privileged, the director-general must return the document to the detainee immediately.
(5) In this section:
"mail" means postal mail.
"protected mail" means mail between a young detainee and any of the following:
(a) a lawyer representing the young detainee;
(b) an official visitor;
(c) the inspector of correctional services;
(d) the director of public prosecutions;
(e) a commissioner exercising functions under the Human Rights Commission Act 2005
;
(f) the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner;
(g) the information privacy commissioner;
(h) the ombudsman;
(i) the integrity commissioner;
(j) a person prescribed by regulation.