Police Offences Act

Feilding Star, Volume VII, Issue 16, 18 July 1885, Page 2

Police Offences Act

The Police Offences Act Amendment Bill, introduced by Mr Fisher, enacts that "Any person who is the occupier of any house, room or place, which is frequented by reputed thieves, prostitutes, or persons who have no visible lawful means of support, shall be deemed an idle and disorderly person within the meaning of the said Act, and to be keeping a disorderly house, und shall be liable to imprisonment with hard labour for any time not exceeding siz months," also, that " any person found in any such house, room or place as aforesaid, in company with any such reputed thieves, prostitutes, or persons, who does not give a good aooount of his lawful means ef support, and also of his being in such house, room, or place upon some lawful occasion shall be deemed an idle and disorderly person within the meaning of the said Act, -ud shall be liable to imprisonment fur any time not exceeding three mou tha." The Bill further enacts that " any person who appears, acts, or behaves aa master or mistress, or as tho persons having the care, government, or management of any house, room or place which is frequented by reputed thieves, or prositutes, or persons who have no lawful means of support, shall be deemed and taken to the occupier thereof, and shall be liable to be prosecuted and punished as such, notwithstanding he or ahe shall not, in fact, be the real occupier thereof. And whenever there shall be joint occupiers of any such house, room, or place, each aad every such joint occupier of any such house, room, or place, shall be deemed the occupier thereof, and shall be liable to be prosecuted and punished as such." This measure is a drastic one, but it has been rendered painfully necessary in the large cities of the colony. __ _ __^___