The Crisafulli Government’s expansion of Jack’s Law is helping make Queensland safer, with new figures showing dangerous weapons are being removed from our streets before they can be used.
One year after Jack’s Law was made permanent and expanded across Queensland, police have scanned more than 173,000 people, seized more than 1,300 weapons, and charged more than 2,600 people with over 5,100 offences statewide.
In Far North Queensland alone, police have scanned 12,540 people and seized 119 weapons, demonstrating the importance of providing police with the powers they need to proactively prevent violent crime.
These results show Jack’s Law is working, but they also highlight the ongoing challenge facing communities across Queensland.
The laws, introduced in memory of 17-year-old Jack Beasley, allow police to use handheld metal detectors in public places to identify dangerous weapons before tragedy occurs.
While the statewide results are encouraging, Far North Queensland communities know there is still more to do to tackle youth crime, knife crime and community safety concerns.
The number of victims of crime in Queensland has started to decline, but the figures remain far too high and there are still too many Queenslanders who don’t feel safe in their own communities. That’s why we’re continuing to deliver the stronger laws, resources and frontline support our police need to keep dangerous offenders off the streets.
This year alone, the Crisafulli Government has continued its commitment to restoring community safety through a range of measures. We delivered the third tranche of Adult Crime, Adult Time reforms, ensuring serious repeat youth offenders face consequences that better reflect the impact of their crimes on victims and the community.
Here in Far North Queensland, we recently welcomed a new intake of police officers to Cairns, strengthening frontline policing capacity across the region. These officers will play a vital role in protecting local communities and responding to crime where it occurs.
We’ve also secured a permanent POLAIR presence in Far North Queensland, ensuring there are now permanent eyes in the sky to support police operations, track offenders and improve community safety across our vast region.
And we’re not stopping there.
The next step in our community safety agenda is Breach of Bail Reform, ensuring repeat offenders who ignore their bail conditions are held accountable. Queenslanders expect bail conditions to mean something, and our reforms will help restore confidence in the justice system while putting community safety first.
Jack’s Law is a key part of this broader strategy. The seizure of 119 weapons in Far North Queensland over the past 12 months demonstrates the importance of giving police the powers and tools they need to proactively remove dangerous weapons before tragedy occurs.
Every weapon taken off the streets is a potential life saved. Every additional police officer strengthens community safety. Every reform is focused on delivering what Queenslanders expect – safer communities, fewer victims and a justice system that puts law-abiding citizens first.
While there are early signs of progress, we know the job isn’t done. We will continue backing our police, strengthening our laws and working to make Far North Queensland and the entire state safer for everyone.
