Criminal Code Amendment (Offences Against Australians) Act 2002

No. 106, 2002

An Act to amend the Criminal Code Act 1995, and for related purposes

[Assented to 14 November 2002]

The Parliament of Australia enacts:

This Act may be cited as the Criminal Code Amendment (Offences Against Australians) Act 2002.

(1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, on the day or at the time specified in column 2 of the table.

Commencement information
Column 1	Column 2	Column 3
Provision(s)	Commencement	Date/Details
1. Sections 1 to 3 and anything in this Act not elsewhere covered by this table	The day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent	14 November 2002
2. Schedule 1	1 October 2002	1 October 2002

Note: This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally passed by the Parliament and assented to. It will not be expanded to deal with provisions inserted in this Act after assent.

(2) Column 3 of the table is for additional information that is not part of this Act. This information may be included in any published version of this Act.

3 Schedule(s)

Each Act that is specified in a Schedule to this Act is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this Act has effect according to its terms.

Schedule 1—Amendments

Criminal Code Act 1995

1 The Schedule (at the end of Chapter 5 of the Criminal Code)

Add:

Part 5.4—Harming Australians

Division 104—Harming Australians

104.1 Murder of an Australian citizen or a resident of Australia

(1) A person is guilty of an offence if:

(a) the person engages in conduct outside Australia; and

(b) the conduct causes the death of another person; and

(d) the first‑mentioned person intends to cause, or is reckless as to causing, the death of the Australian citizen or resident of Australia or any other person by the conduct.

Penalty: Imprisonment for life.

(2) Absolute liability applies to paragraph (1)(c).

104.2 Manslaughter of an Australian citizen or a resident of Australia

(1) A person is guilty of an offence if:

(a) the person engages in conduct outside Australia; and

(b) the conduct causes the death of another person; and

(d) the first‑mentioned person intends that the conduct will cause serious harm, or is reckless as to a risk that the conduct will cause serious harm, to the Australian citizen or resident of Australia or any other person.

Penalty: Imprisonment for 25 years.

(2) Absolute liability applies to paragraphs (1)(b) and (c).

104.3 Intentionally causing serious harm to an Australian citizen or a resident of Australia

(1) A person is guilty of an offence if:

(a) the person engages in conduct outside Australia; and

(b) the conduct causes serious harm to another person; and

(d) the first‑mentioned person intends to cause serious harm to the Australian citizen or resident of Australia or any other person by the conduct.

Penalty: Imprisonment for 20 years.

(2) Absolute liability applies to paragraph (1)(c).

104.4 Recklessly causing serious harm to an Australian citizen or a resident of Australia

(1) A person is guilty of an offence if:

(a) the person engages in conduct outside Australia; and

(b) the conduct causes serious harm to another person; and

(d) the first‑mentioned person is reckless as to causing serious harm to the Australian citizen or resident of Australia or any other person by the conduct.

Penalty: Imprisonment for 15 years.

(2) Absolute liability applies to paragraph (1)(c).

104.5 Saving of other laws

This Division is not intended to exclude or limit the operation of any other law of the Commonwealth or of a State or Territory.

104.6 Bringing proceedings under this Division

(1) Proceedings for an offence under this Division must not be commenced without the Attorney‑General’s written consent.

(2) However, a person may be arrested, charged, remanded in custody, or released on bail, in connection with an offence under this Division before the necessary consent has been given.

104.7 Ministerial certificates relating to proceedings

(1) A Minister who administers one or more of the following Acts:

(a) the Australian Citizenship Act 1948;

(b) the Migration Act 1958;

may issue a certificate stating that a person is or was an Australian citizen or a resident of Australia at a particular time.

(2) In any proceedings, a certificate under this section is prima facie evidence of the matters in the certificate.

104.8 Geographical jurisdiction

Each offence against this Division applies:

(a) whether or not a result of the conduct constituting the alleged offence occurs in Australia; and

(b) if the alleged offence is an ancillary offence and the conduct to which the ancillary offence relates occurs outside Australia—whether or not the conduct constituting the ancillary offence occurs in Australia.

104.9 Meaning of causes death or harm

In this Division, a person’s conduct causes death or harm if it substantially contributes to the death or harm.

[Minister’s second reading speech made in—

House of Representatives on 12 November 2002

(235/02)

Senate on 13 November 2002]