Section 474.17 of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Commonwealth) criminalises the use of a phone or the internet to threaten, harass or seriously offend somebody.
The Offence of Use Carriage Service To Menace, Harass, Offend
The offence of use carriage service to menace, harass or offend is contained in section 474.17 of the Criminal Code contained in schedule one of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth) and states that a person commits an offence if:
• the person uses a carriage service; and
• the person does so in a way (whether by the method of use or the content of a communication, or both) that reasonable persons would regard as being, in all the circumstances, menacing, harassing or offensive.
What Actions Might Constitute Using A Carriage Service to Menace, Harass Or Cause Offence?
Examples of using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend include:
• calling random phone numbers and yelling insults or threats at the person who picks up;
• posting a Facebook status calling someone ugly and stupid;
• sending dozens of text messages each day to a woman who doesn’t want to go on a second date with you; and
• posting a photograph of your ex-girlfriend on Reddit with the caption “roast me” and posting the link to her social media accounts.
(, Tue 28 Jul 2020, 20:01, Reply)
posting a photograph of your ex-girlfriend on Reddit with the caption “roast me” and posting the link to her social media accounts.
This would seem to fit that criterion. It would seem the random strangers were 'a carriage service'
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My Name was saying these words inside your head on, Tue 28 Jul 2020, 23:59,
Reply)
yeah, this doesn't define harassment, sorry
it lists some examples of what might be "Menace, Harass Or Cause Offence" which is a rather large bucket, but neither distinguishes which of the examples relate to which ("or" being the operative word), or defines the meaning, so for our argument is not a particularly helpful addition despite your googling
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cumquat may will not be commenting further on the allegations, Wed 29 Jul 2020, 0:35,
Reply)
But
it does seem to make the bloke's actions an offence, that being whatever offence this particular ruling applies to.
They seem to have quite clearly performed the actions described in the quoted statute.
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My Name was saying these words inside your head on, Wed 29 Jul 2020, 0:59,
Reply)
actually it's not clear at all, and my argument with star wars was about defining it as harassment
The queensland police didn't charge or caution the man in that pesky thing called reality despite it being on the news, though they did help in taking down the posters which was nice, showing that they have more of a sense of proportion and grasp of the legal aspects than most of the amateur lawyers here. Did I mention I also taught the MET police in London, including powers of arrest?
I imagine after having to do numerous domestic violence call outs, having a woman who's been slightly inconvenienced by getting some wookie calls on her mobile for a couple of days was an amusing diversion
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cumquat may will not be commenting further on the allegations, Wed 29 Jul 2020, 1:15,
Reply)
