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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
Queensland
EVIDENCE (WITNESS
ANONYMITY) AMENDMENT
BILL 2000
Queensland
EVIDENCE (WITNESS ANONYMITY)
AMENDMENT BILL 2000
TABLE OF PROVISIONS
Section Page
PART 1--PRELIMINARY
1 Short title . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2 Commencement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
PART 2--AMENDMENT OF EVIDENCE ACT 1977
3 Act amended in pt 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
4 Insertion of new pt 2, div 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Division 5--Witness anonymity
21B Definitions for div 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
21C Application of division . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
21D Witness anonymity certificate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
21E What witness anonymity certificate must state . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
21F Effect of witness anonymity certificate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
21G Persons to be given copy of witness anonymity certificate . . . . . . . 8
21H Orders relevant entity may make on filing of witness
anonymity certificate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
21I Relevant entity may grant leave to disclose identity . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
21J Review of giving of witness anonymity certificates other
than by criminal justice commission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
21K Review of operation of division . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
PART 3--AMENDMENT OF JUDICIAL REVIEW ACT 1991
5 Act amended in pt 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
6 Amendment of sch 1 (Operation of other laws) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
2000
A BILL
FOR
An Act to amend the Evidence Act 1977, and for other purposes
s1 4 s4
Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Amendment
The Parliament of Queensland enacts-- 1
ART 1--PRELIMINARY 2
P
title 3
Short
Clause 1. This Act may be cited as the Evidence (Witness Anonymity) 4
Amendment Act 2000. 5
6
Commencement
Clause 2. This Act commences on a day to be fixed by proclamation. 7
PART 2--AMENDMENT OF EVIDENCE ACT 1977 8
amended in pt 2 9
Act
Clause 3. This part amends the Evidence Act 1977. 10
of new pt 2, div 5 11
Insertion
Clause 4. Part 2, after section 21A-- 12
insert-- 13
`Division 5--Witness anonymity 14
for div 5 15
`Definitions
`21B. In this division-- 16
s4 5 s4
Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Amendment
"controlled operation" means a controlled operation approved under the 1
Police Powers and Responsibilities Act 2000, chapter 5, part 2, 2
division 31 for the purposes of an investigation being conducted by a 3
law enforcement agency. 4
"covert operative", for a controlled operation conducted by a law 5
enforcement agency, means a police officer or another person named 6
as a covert operative in an approval under the Police Powers and 7
Responsibilities Act 2000, section 178.2 8
"law enforcement agency" means-- 9
(a) the crime commission; or 10
(b) the criminal justice commission; or 11
(c) the police service. 12
"protected witness" has the meaning given by section 21F.3 13
"relevant entity", for a relevant proceeding, means the entity before whom 14
the relevant proceeding is being heard or conducted. 15
"relevant proceeding" means a proceeding before a court, including a 16
criminal proceeding. 17
of division 18
`Application
`21C. This division applies to a relevant proceeding in which a witness 19
who is or was a covert operative is or may be required to give evidence that 20
was obtained when the operative was engaged in activities for a controlled 21
operation. 22
1 Police Powers and Responsibilities Act 2000, chapter 5 (Controlled operations and
controlled activities), part 2 (Controlled operations), division 3 (Approval of
controlled operations)
2 Police Powers and Responsibilities Act 2000, section 178 (What approval must
state)
3 Section 21F (Effect of witness anonymity certificate)
s4 6 s4
Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Amendment
anonymity certificate 1
`Witness
`21D.(1) The chief executive officer of a law enforcement agency may, 2
for the agency, give a witness anonymity certificate in the approved form 3
for the purposes of a relevant proceeding if the officer considers it is 4
reasonably necessary to protect a person-- 5
(a) who is, or was, a covert operative for the agency; and 6
(b) who is, or may be, required to give evidence in the proceeding. 7
`(2) Also, a senior police officer may, for the police service, give the 8
witness anonymity certificate for the purposes of a relevant proceeding if the 9
senior police officer considers it is reasonably necessary to protect a 10
person-- 11
(a) who is, or was, a covert operative for the police service; and 12
(b) who is, or may be, required to give evidence in the proceeding. 13
`(3) The law enforcement agency must-- 14
(a) file the witness anonymity certificate with the relevant entity 15
before the person for whom the certificate was given is called to 16
give evidence; and 17
(b) if the agency is not the criminal justice commission, give to the 18
chairperson of the criminal justice commission a copy of the 19
certificate and notice of the date it was filed. 20
`(4) Power to give a witness anonymity certificate under subsection (1) 21
or (2) may not be delegated. 22
`(5) Subsection (4) applies despite any other Act. 23
`(6) A decision to give a witness anonymity certificate under this 24
section-- 25
(a) is final and conclusive; and 26
(b) can not be impeached for informality or want of form; and 27
(c) can not be appealed against, reviewed, quashed or invalidated in 28
any court. 29
s4 7 s4
Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Amendment
`(7) In this section-- 1
"senior police officer" means a person performing functions in the police 2
service as-- 3
(a) a deputy commissioner; or 4
(b) the assistant commissioner responsible for crime operations. 5
witness anonymity certificate must state 6
`What
`21E.(1) A witness anonymity certificate must state the following in 7
relation to a person for whom the certificate is given (the "witness")-- 8
(a) the name the witness used in the relevant controlled operation; 9
(b) for a stated period the witness was a covert operative for a stated 10
law enforcement agency; 11
(c) the witness has not been convicted of any offence, other than a 12
stated offence; 13
(d) if the witness is a police officer, whether the witness has at any 14
time been found guilty of misconduct or a breach of discipline 15
within the meaning of either of the following and if so, details of 16
the misconduct or breach of discipline-- 17
(i) the Police Service Administration Act 1990; 18
(ii) a law of the Commonwealth or another State that 19
corresponds to the Police Service Administration Act 1990; 20
(e) if, to the knowledge of the person giving the certificate, a court or 21
judge has made any adverse comment on the credibility of the 22
witness, what was said about the witness. 23
`(2) A witness anonymity certificate must not include any information 24
that may enable the actual identity of the witness, or where the witness lives, 25
to be revealed. 26
of witness anonymity certificate 27
`Effect
`21F. On the filing of a witness anonymity certificate-- 28
s4 8 s4
Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Amendment
(a) the witness ("protected witness") may give evidence in the 1
relevant proceeding under the name the witness used in the 2
relevant controlled operation; and 3
(b) subject to section 21I-- 4
(i) a question may not be asked that may lead to the disclosure 5
of the actual identity of the protected witness or where the 6
protected witness lives; and 7
(ii) a witness, including the protected witness, can not be 8
required to answer a question, give any evidence, or provide 9
any information, that may lead to the disclosure of the actual 10
identity of the protected witness or where the protected 11
witness lives; and 12
(iii) a person involved in a relevant proceeding must not make a 13
statement that discloses or could disclose the actual identity 14
of the protected witness or where the witness lives. 15
to be given copy of witness anonymity certificate 16
`Persons
`21G.(1) On the filing of a witness anonymity certificate, the relevant law 17
enforcement agency must give a copy of the certificate to the following-- 18
(a) for a criminal proceeding--each accused person to whom the 19
relevant proceeding relates or the person's lawyer; 20
(b) for a civil proceeding--each party to the relevant proceeding or 21
the party's lawyer; 22
(c) for another proceeding--each person who has been given leave to 23
appear in the relevant proceeding or the person's lawyer. 24
`(2) The relevant entity may also require the relevant law enforcement 25
agency to give a copy of the witness anonymity certificate to a person the 26
relevant entity considers should be given a copy. 27
s4 9 s4
Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Amendment
relevant entity may make on filing of witness anonymity 1
`Orders
certificate 2
`21H.(1) The relevant entity may make any order it considers necessary 3
to protect the identity of the protected witness. 4
5
Example of types of orders--
6
1. An order prohibiting sketching of the witness.
7
2. An order that the witness give evidence in the absence of the public.
`(2) A person must not contravene an order made under subsection (1). 8
Maximum penalty--85 penalty units or 1 year's imprisonment. 9
`(3) Subsection (2) does not limit the relevant entity's power to punish 10
for contempt. 11
entity may grant leave to disclose identity 12
`Relevant
`21I.(1) The relevant entity may, on application to it, give leave to any of 13
the following ("relevant party") to ask questions of a witness, including 14
the protected witness, or make a statement that, if answered or made, may 15
disclose the protected witness's actual identity or where the protected 16
witness lives-- 17
(a) for a criminal proceeding--each accused person to whom the 18
relevant proceeding relates or the person's lawyer; 19
(b) for a civil proceeding--each party to the relevant proceeding or 20
the party's lawyer; 21
(c) for another proceeding--each person who has been given leave to 22
appear in the relevant proceeding or the person's lawyer; 23
(d) a lawyer assisting the relevant entity. 24
`(2) The relevant entity may direct that the application be heard in the 25
absence of any jury empanelled for the proceeding and the public. 26
`(3) The relevant entity must not give leave under subsection (1) unless 27
satisfied-- 28
(a) there is some evidence that, if believed, would call into question 29
the credibility of the protected witness; and 30
s4 10 s4
Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Amendment
(b) it is in the interests of justice for the relevant party to be able to 1
test the credibility of the protected witness; and 2
(c) it would be impractical to test properly the credibility of the 3
protected witness without knowing the actual identity of the 4
witness. 5
`(4) If the relevant entity gives leave, a person may, in accordance with 6
the leave-- 7
(a) ask a question that may lead to the disclosure of the actual identity 8
of the protected witness or where the protected witness lives; or 9
(b) answer a question, give evidence, or provide information that may 10
lead to the disclosure of the actual identity of the protected witness 11
or where the protected witness lives; or 12
(c) make a statement that discloses or could disclose the actual 13
identity of the protected witness or where the witness lives. 14
`(5) The relevant entity may also make any orders the entity considers 15
appropriate in the circumstances, including, for example, orders about 16
hearing the relevant part of the proceeding in the absence of the public, and 17
suppressing the publication of anything said in the relevant part of the 18
proceeding. 19
`(6) A person must not contravene an order made under subsection (5). 20
Maximum penalty--85 penalty units or 1 year's imprisonment. 21
`(7) Subsection (5) does limit the relevant entity's power to punish for 22
contempt. 23
of giving of witness anonymity certificates other than by 24
`Review
criminal justice commission 25
`21J.(1) This section applies to witness anonymity certificates filed with 26
a relevant entity by a law enforcement agency other than the criminal justice 27
commission. 28
`(2) As soon as practicable after the end of a proceeding in which a 29
witness anonymity certificate is filed by the crime commission or the police 30
service, the chief executive officer of the relevant law enforcement agency 31
s4 11 s4
Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Amendment
must give the chairperson of the criminal justice commission notice of the 1
date the proceeding to which the certificate relates ended. 2
`(3) The chairperson must-- 3
(a) review the giving of each witness anonymity certificate as soon as 4
practicable after the end of the proceeding to which the certificate 5
relates and, in any event, within 3 months after the end of the year 6
in which the certificate is filed; and 7
(b) consider whether, in the circumstances, it was appropriate to give 8
the certificate; and 9
(c) if the chairperson considers it was inappropriate to give the 10
certificate, notify whichever of the following is relevant of that 11
fact as soon as practicable-- 12
(i) for a criminal proceeding--each accused person to whom 13
the relevant proceeding relates or the person's lawyer; 14
(ii) for a civil proceeding--each party to the relevant proceeding 15
or the party's lawyer; 16
(iii) for another proceeding--each person who has been given 17
leave to appear in the relevant proceeding or the person's 18
lawyer; 19
(iv) a lawyer assisting the relevant entity. 20
`(4) The chief executive officer of the relevant law enforcement agency, if 21
asked by the chairperson, must give the chairperson-- 22
(a) all the information the law enforcement agency used for deciding 23
to give a witness anonymity certificate; and 24
(b) particulars relating to each person to whom a copy of the 25
certificate was given under section 21G. 26
`(5) The chairperson-- 27
(a) must give a copy of any report on the review to the law 28
enforcement agency affected by the review as soon as practicable 29
after the report is completed; and 30
(b) may include a report about the reviews in the annual report of the 31
operations of the criminal justice commission. 32
s5 12 s6
Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Amendment
of operation of division 1
`Review
`21K.(1) The Attorney-General must ensure the operation of this 2
division is reviewed within 5 years after it commences. 3
`(2) Also, the Attorney-General must table a report on the review in the 4
Parliament within 3 months after the review is complete.'. 5
ART 3--AMENDMENT OF JUDICIAL REVIEW ACT 6
P
1991 7
amended in pt 3 8
Act
Clause 5. This part amends the Judicial Review Act 1991. 9
of sch 1 (Operation of other laws) 10
Amendment
Clause 6. Schedule 1, part 1-- 11
insert-- 12
`2A. Evidence Act 1977, section 21D'. 13
14
© State of Queensland 2000
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