Compilation #8 | Effective 2019-08-30
FRBR Work URI: /akn/au/act/2000/13
This Act may be cited as the Crimes at Sea Act 2000.
Sections 1 and 2 commence on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent.
Subject to subsection (3), the remaining provisions of this Act commence on a day to be fixed by Proclamation.
If the provisions referred to in subsection (2) do not commence under that subsection within the period of 12 months beginning on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent, they commence on the first day after the end of that period.
Subject to section 2, each Act that is specified in Schedule 2 is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in that Schedule, and any other item in that Schedule has effect according to its terms.
In this Act:
act includes an omission.
adjacent area means the whole of the area to which the cooperative scheme applies.
Australian ship means:
a ship registered in ; or
a ship that operates, or is controlled, from a base in and is not registered under the law of another country; or
a ship that belongs to an arm of the Defence Force.
cooperative scheme means the legislative and administrative scheme for applying and enforcing criminal law in the areas adjacent to the coast of set out in Schedule 1.
foreign ship means a ship other than an Australian ship.
Greater Sunrise special regime area has the same meaning as in the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973.
intergovernmental agreement means the intergovernmental agreement entered into under clause 5 of the cooperative scheme.
law of criminal investigation, procedure and evidence has the same meaning as in clause 1 of Schedule 1.
petroleum activities has the same meaning as Petroleum Activities has in the Treaty between Australia and the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste Establishing their Maritime Boundaries in the Timor Sea done at New York on 6 March 2018, as in force from time to time.
police officer means a member or special member of the Australian Federal Police or a member of the police force or police service of a State or Territory.
ship means a vessel or boat of any description and includes: a floating structure; and a hovercraft or other similar craft.
Note: The Treaty could in 2019 be viewed in the Australian Treaties Library on the AustLII website (http://www.austlii.edu.au).
a floating structure; and
a hovercraft or other similar craft.
substantive criminal law has the same meaning as in clause 1 of Schedule 1.
To the extent that it lies within the legislative competence of the Commonwealth to give the cooperative scheme the force of law, it has the force of law.
The substantive criminal law of the , as in force from time to time, applies at sea outside the adjacent area to a criminal act:
on an Australian ship; or
in the course of activities controlled from an Australian ship; or
of a person who has abandoned, or temporarily left, an Australian ship and has not returned to land.
The substantive criminal law of the , as in force from time to time, applies at sea outside the adjacent area to a criminal act:
of an Australian citizen (other than a member of the crew) on a foreign ship; or
of an Australian citizen (other than a member of the crew) in the course of activities controlled from a foreign ship; or
of an Australian citizen who has abandoned, or temporarily left, a foreign ship and has not returned to land.
The substantive criminal law of the , as in force from time to time, is taken to have applied at sea outside the adjacent area to a criminal act:
on a foreign ship; or
in the course of activities controlled from a foreign ship; or
of a person who has abandoned, or temporarily left, a foreign ship and has not returned to land;
if the first country at which the ship calls, or the person lands, after the criminal act, is or an external territory of .
A charge of an offence that arises under this section cannot proceed to hearing or determination or, if the offence is an indictable offence, to preliminary examination in committal proceedings, unless the Attorney-General consents in writing to the hearing and determination of the charge.
Before granting such a consent, the Attorney-General must take into account any views expressed by the government of a country other than whose jurisdiction over the alleged offence is recognised under principles of international law.
Even though the Attorney-General has not granted such a consent, the absence of consent is not to prevent or delay:
the arrest of the suspected offender or proceedings related to arrest (such as proceedings for the issue and execution of a warrant); or
the laying of a charge against the suspected offender; or
proceedings for the extradition to of the suspected offender; or
proceedings for remanding the suspected offender in custody or on bail.
If the Attorney-General declines to grant consent, the court in which the suspected offender has been charged with the offence must permanently stay proceedings on the charge.
In any proceedings, an apparently genuine document purporting to be a copy of a written consent granted by the Attorney-General in accordance with this section will be accepted, in the absence of proof to the contrary, as proof of such consent.
If:
a person is charged with an offence that arises under this section; but
there is a country other than whose jurisdiction over the alleged offence is recognised under principles of international law;
it is a defence to prove:
that no corresponding offence exists under the law of the other country; or
that such a corresponding offence does exist but a defence to a charge of the corresponding offence could be made out under the law of the other country.
This section does not apply to an act that takes place in:
(a) the territorial waters of (within the meaning of the Territorial Waters Act 1926 of ); or
(b) the coastal sea (Acts Interpretation Act 1901 of the Commonwealth) of any of the following Territories:within the meaning of subsection 15B(4) of the
the ;
the (Keeling) ;
the ;
the and ;
the and ;
the .
In this section:
criminal act means an act that would, if done in the , contravene the substantive criminal law of the .
The provisions of the substantive criminal law of the Northern Territory from time to time apply to a criminal act done in the Greater Sunrise special regime area that is connected with, or arises out of, petroleum activities as if the act had been done in the Northern Territory.
However, the relevant substantive criminal law does not apply to:
an act done on or from a ship or aircraft; or
an act done by a national of Timor-Leste who is not also a national of ; or
an act done by a permanent resident of Timor-Leste who is not also a national of .
Proceedings for an offence against a substantive criminal law as applied under this section may not be instituted against a person if:
the person has been acquitted or discharged without penalty in proceedings for an offence against a law in force in Timor-Leste arising out of the same act; or
the person has incurred a penalty under a law in force in Timor-Leste for such an offence; or
a competent authority of Timor-Leste has decided not to prosecute the person for such an offence.
A prosecution for an offence against a law applied by subsection (1) may only be heard and determined if the Attorney-General consents in writing to the prosecution.
Although the Attorney-General has not consented to a prosecution under subsection (4):
a person may be arrested for the offence, and a warrant for the arrest of a person for the offence may be issued and executed; and
a person may be charged with the offence; and
a person charged with the offence may be remanded in custody or on bail.
The Commonwealth and Northern Territory laws of criminal investigation, procedure and evidence from time to time apply to a criminal act done in the Greater Sunrise special regime area that is connected with, or arises out of, petroleum activities in the same way as those laws would apply to a maritime offence under clause 3 of Schedule 1 if in paragraph (2)(b) of that clause:
a reference to a State or to the State were a reference to the Northern Territory; and
the reference to the area of administrative responsibility for the relevant State were a reference to the Greater Sunrise special regime area.
In this section:
criminal act means an act that would, if done in the , contravene the substantive criminal law of the .
(1) If Timor-Leste wishes to transport in custody through a person (the accused) who has been arrested for an offence against a criminal law in force in Timor-Leste that applies in the Greater Sunrise special regime area, the following provisions apply:
the accused may be transported in custody through ; and
if an aircraft or ship transporting the accused makes a landing or calls at a place in :
the person holding the accused in custody before the landing or call is made may hold the accused in custody for not more than 24 hours; and
a police officer may provide reasonable and necessary assistance to facilitate the transport of the accused in custody; and
a magistrate to whom application is made, according to the regulations, on behalf of Timor-Leste is required to issue a warrant ordering a person specified in the warrant to hold the accused in custody for a period or periods the magistrate considers necessary to facilitate the transport of the accused in custody; and
the Attorney-General may, on application on behalf of Timor-Leste, authorise, in writing, a magistrate to issue a warrant ordering a person specified in the warrant to hold the accused in custody for a further specified period in order to facilitate the transport of the accused in custody; and
the Attorney-General may at any time direct a person having custody of the accused under this paragraph to release the accused; and
the total period of custody under subparagraphs (i) and (iii) must not exceed 96 hours.
A police officer may, without warrant, arrest a person if the officer has reasonable grounds for believing that the person has escaped from custody authorised by subsection (1).
A person arrested under subsection (2) must be returned to custody.
For the purposes of this section, a place at which an aircraft or ship begins its journey or voyage is to be treated as a place at which the aircraft has landed, or the ship has called, as the case requires.
The regulations may give effect to an agreement or arrangement between and Timor-Leste about the enforcement of criminal laws applying in the Greater Sunrise special regime area.
The regulations may, for example:
provide for the production of documents, the summoning of witnesses and the taking of evidence by authorities of Timor-Leste for use in proceedings in ; and
provide for:
the apprehension and detention in the Greater Sunrise special regime area, by authorities of Timor-Leste, of persons accused of offences against criminal laws of Australia applied under this Part; and
the transport and surrender, in the Greater Sunrise special regime area or elsewhere, of the persons to Australian authorities; and
provide for:
the apprehension and detention in the Greater Sunrise special regime area, by Australian authorities, of persons accused of offences against criminal laws in force in Timor-Leste; and
the transport and surrender, in the Greater Sunrise special regime area or elsewhere, of the persons to authorities of Timor-Leste; and
prescribe the practice and procedure of magistrates in performing functions under regulations made for the purposes of this section.
A provision for detention of a person under this section may only authorise detention until the time it first becomes practicable to surrender the person to an appropriate authority of or Timor-Leste.
(4) A provision made under paragraph (2)(c) excludes the application of the Extradition Act 1988 from offences to which the provision applies.
The Minister must have the intergovernmental agreement, and any amendment to the intergovernmental agreement, published in the Gazette.
This Act and the cooperative scheme do not apply to an act to which Crimes (Aviation) Act 1991 applies.section 15 of the
The Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters:
required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or
necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.
However, this section does not authorise the making of regulations for the purposes of the cooperative scheme.
Note: The Governor-General has power to make regulations for the purposes of the cooperative scheme under clause 12 of the scheme.