56Monitoring contact with lawyer

56 Monitoring contact with lawyer (1) The contact a person detained under a preventative detention order has with the person’s lawyer must not be monitored unless a direction under subsection (2) requires the contact between them to be monitored.

(2) A senior police officer may direct, in writing, that contact between the detained person and a lawyer named in the direction be monitored by a police officer, if the senior police officer believes, on reasonable grounds, that 1 or more of the following consequences may happen if the contact between them is not monitored: (a) interference with or harm to evidence of, or relating to, a serious offence; (b) interference with or physical harm to a person; (c) the alerting of a person who is suspected of having committed a serious offence, but has not been arrested for it; (d) interference with the gathering of information about the commission, preparation or instigation of a terrorist act; (e) making it more difficult to prevent a terrorist act because a person is alerted; (f) making it more difficult to secure a person’s apprehension for a terrorist act because a person is alerted. (3) Before giving a direction under subsection (2), the senior police (a) give the legal aid commission written notice that the officer is considering giving a direction under that subsection; and (b) consult with the PIM appointed under subsection (4) about the proposed direction; and (c) take into account any submissions made by the PIM. (4) On receiving notice under subsection (3) (a), the legal aid commission must appoint a person from the public interest monitor panel under section 62 to be the public interest monitor (PIM) for the proposed direction under subsection (2).

(5) If the senior police officer gives a direction under subsection (2), the (a) give a copy of the direction to— (i) the person; and (ii) the person’s lawyer; and (iii) the nominated senior police officer; and (b) record the reasons for giving the direction. (6) If a direction under subsection (2) is in force, the contact the detained person has with the lawyer may take place only if it is conducted in a way that the contact, and the content and meaning of the communication that takes place during the contact, can be effectively monitored by a police officer exercising authority under the (7) If subsection (6) applies, the contact may take place in a language other than English only if the content and meaning of the communication that takes place during the contact can be effectively monitored with the assistance of an interpreter. (8) Without limiting subsection (7), the interpreter may be a police officer. (9) If subsection (6) applies and the detained person asks for the contact to take place in a language other than English, the police officer detaining the person must arrange for an appropriate interpreter to be available for the contact unless it is impracticable to arrange for an appropriate interpreter to be available. (10) A communication that is monitored under this section must not be recorded.