NSW Police have asked for tougher knife-crime penalties, including sanctions for parents who allow their children to possess them, despite data showing that the overall rate of violent crimes involving blades has steadily fallen over the last decade.
The police have also called for a separate category of offences for people caught carrying knives on public transport, calling it a “high risk” activity when “considering the mass of people concentrated in these areas and potential vulnerability of people using public transport”. “You’re not going to get an exact attack in the future, but it’s important that we look at how they’re applied in practice, and whether we can make changes to prevent it from happening again,” he said.
The NSW government last year introduced laws which doubled penalties for some knife offences. It means the maximum penalty for possessing a knife in a public place or school doubled to four years in prison, a $4400 fine, or both. In 2010, there 1034 assault and robbery charges in NSW involving a knife. That figure had dropped to 545 by 2023. Similarly, the number of children who committed assaults using a knife fell from 96 in 2010 to 37 in 2023.Still, the government faces increased pressure to introduce further penalties as concerns grow about the prevalence of young people carrying knives.
“There have always been issues with young men, but it seems to become a rite of passage now that you put your jeans on, you put your running shoes on, and you slip your knife into your back pocket. It has got to stop,” he said.
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