New measures include prohibiting insignia and the gathering of members
The government has introduced new legislation to address criminal gang activity.
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith and Police Minister Mark Mitchell announced that under the new law, all gang insignia in public areas will be banned. Moreover, police will have a greater ability to limit the gathering of gangs, and gang affiliation will be given increased consideration during sentencing.
This move is in line with the National, ACT and NZ First coalition agreement.
“Police will be able to issue dispersal notices, which will require gang members to immediately leave the area and not associate with one another for seven days. Courts will be able to issue non-consorting orders, which will stop specified gang offenders from associating or communicating with one another for up to three years”, Goldsmith said.
The new measures are being introduced to combat the significant boost in gang membership.
“Over the last five years gangs have recruited more than 3,000 members, a 51% increase. At the same time, we’ve seen a significant escalation in gang-related violence, public intimidation and shootings, with violent crime up 33%,” Goldsmith added.
“For too long gangs have been allowed to behave as if they are above the law. There is no tolerance for this behaviour and these new laws will support police to take action against it”, Mitchell said.
