Crimes Amendment (Performance Crime) Act 2025 (Vic)

Crimes Amendment (Performance Crime) Act 2025

No. 29 of 2025

TABLE OF PROVISIONS

Section  Page

1Purpose

2Commencement

3New Division 2E of Part I inserted

4Repeal of this Act

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Endnotes

1     General information

Crimes Amendment (Performance Crime) Act 2025

No. 29 of 2025

[Assented to 19 August 2025]

The Parliament of Victoria enacts:

1Purpose

The purpose of this Act is to amend the Crimes Act 1958 to provide for a new offence in relation to the publication of material about the commission of certain offences.

2Commencement

This Act comes into operation on the day after the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.

3New Division 2E of Part I inserted

Before Division 3 of Part I of the Crimes Act 1958 insert—

"Division 2E—Performance crime

195SDefinitions

(1)For the purposes of this Division—

material means—

(a)any film, audio, photograph, printed matter, image, computer game or text; or

(b)any electronic material, including data from which text, images or sound may be generated; or

(c)any other thing of any kind;

Note

See also subsection (2).

publish has the meaning given by section 195T;

relevant offence has the meaning given by section 195U.

(2)For the purposes of this Division, an image may be still, moving, recorded or unrecorded.

195TMeaning of publish

(1)For the purposes of this Division, to publish material means to make the material available to the public or a section of the public—

(a)by electronic communication; or

(b)by sending, supplying, exhibiting, transmitting or communicating the material by any other means.

(2)A person does not publish material by making the material available to only one other person.

195UMeaning of relevant offence

(1)For the purposes of this Division, a relevant offence is—

(a)an offence against any of the following sections—

(i)section 74 (theft), if the property stolen is a motor vehicle;

(ii)section 75 (robbery);

(iii)section 75A (armed robbery);

(iv)section 76 (burglary);

(v)section 77 (aggravated burglary);

(vi)section 77A (home invasion);

(vii)section 77B (aggravated home invasion);

(viii)section 79 (carjacking);

(ix)section 79A (aggravated carjacking);

(x)section 195H (affray);

(xi)section 195I (violent disorder); or

(b)an offence against section 321G (incitement) or 321M (attempt) in relation to an offence referred to in paragraph (a).

(2)However, an offence referred to in subsection (1)(a) or (b) is not a relevant offence if it is committed before the commencement of section 195V.

(3)For the purposes of subsection (2), if an offence is committed—

(a)at an unidentified time between 2 dates, one before and one on or after the commencement of section 195V; or

(b)throughout a period during which section 195V commences—

the offence is committed before that commencement.

195VPublishing material about the commission of a relevant offence

(1)A person must not—

(a)publish or cause to be published material that depicts, describes or otherwise indicates the commission of a relevant offence by the person; and

(b)undertake or cause that publication with the intention of attracting attention to the commission of that offence.

Penalty:Level 7 imprisonment (2 years maximum).

(2)An offence against subsection (1) is a summary offence.

(3)Without limiting subsection (1)(a), material that depicts, describes or otherwise indicates the commission of a relevant offence includes material that depicts or describes—

(a)anything done in the course of committing the relevant offence; or

(b)property obtained from committing the relevant offence; or

(c)damage or harm caused by committing the relevant offence.

(4)A person is not liable for an offence against subsection (1) unless the person is found guilty of the relevant offence referred to in subsection (1)(a), whether in the same proceeding or in an earlier proceeding.

(5)Nothing in subsection (4) requires that a person must have been found guilty of a relevant offence before they may be charged with an offence against subsection (1) in respect of that relevant offence.

195WIssue of search warrant by magistrate in respect of performance crime offence

(1)Section 465 applies to and in respect of an offence against section 195V(1) as if it were an indictable offence.

(2)The other provisions of Subdivision (31) of Division 1 of Part III apply in relation to a warrant issued under section 465, as applied by subsection (1), in the same way that those provisions apply in relation to any other warrant issued under section 465.".

4Repeal of this Act

This Act is repealed on the first anniversary of its commencement.

Note

The repeal of this Act does not affect the continuing operation of the amendments made by it (see section 15(1) of the Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984).

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ENDNOTES

1   General information

See for Victorian Bills, Acts and current authorised versions of legislation and up-to-date legislative information.

Minister's second reading speech—

Legislative Assembly: 18 June 2025

Legislative Council: 31 July 2025

The long title for the Bill for this Act was "A Bill for an Act to amend the Crimes Act 1958 to provide for a new offence in relation to the publication of material about the commission of certain offences and for other purposes."