The law making it a criminal offense to display gang insignia in a public place comes into effect on November 21.
Photo: RNZ/John Edens
- Deputy Commissioner Paul Basham says police have met with gang leadership to clarify their expectations around the ban on gang patches.
- Basham says the force has been working behind the scenes for six months to prepare for the introduction of the law.
- He says the safety of officers and the public will be paramount in deciding when to actively enforce the ban.
- One officer says the ban will be a useful tool in allowing police to better combat illegal gang activity.
- The ( gang patch law explained).
Officers are ready to enforce the ban on gang patches, the deputy police commissioner says.
The new bill to amend gang legislation will come into effect on November 21. making it a crime to display gang insignia in a public place.
Deputy Commissioner Paul Basham said police had been working behind the scenes to prepare for the past six months.
He said 77 dedicated Gang Disruption Officers – supported by a further 25 positions in the National Gang Units – would take the lead in determining how police would enforce the patch ban.
Over the past three months, police have held hundreds of meetings with gangs and community groups to communicate what was expected when the law came into effect.
“Some clubs have indicated a level of compliance, other clubs are deciding for themselves what position they will take. It is not black and white in terms of what we have heard out there, but we have had a very good period of commitment and so we are cautiously optimistic,” said Basham.
Basham said the ban was about tackling the intimidating behavior that has characterized gang meetings and tangi in the past.
He said if it was not safe to enforce the law at the time, police would follow up on breaches afterwards.
‘Safety must come first and the police are always dependent on the situation. A gang tangi in Auckland will potentially be policed differently to a gang tangi in other parts of the country, depending on how much notice we have. So if that doesn’t happen right now, we will certainly gather evidence and we will strive to come back and enforce these laws,” Basham said.
He said that with just over a week to go, a whopping 97 percent of officers had completed an online training module to ensure their position was consistent and clear.
A Wellington police officer who did not want to be named said he felt well supported by the training, but admitted there would be an element where police would have to learn as they go.
‘One of the misconceptions is that a shitstorm will suddenly erupt on November 21, with officers with batons wrestling people with rags. But the most important thing is that there is no urgency.
“As each scenario unfolds in the future, we will only learn and do more as a team. You don’t have to deal with everything as it happens. Just like any other crime, if you have the evidence you can investigate and follow up later,” he said.
He said evidence of breaches of the patch ban would allow police to obtain arrest warrants and have even greater powers to disrupt illegal activity.
“They may lament the loss of their place, but they certainly don’t want the police to search their homes.
“Then you find all their money and their drugs and you show up at two in the morning and you wake them up and their kids and you find their meth and their guns and everything. They won’t want that,” he said.
The officer said he was confident most gangs would see the point in not blatantly breaking the law, but there would always be exceptions.
‘There will be those who put pressure on it, but it is no different from any other crime.
“Everyone knows it’s illegal to smoke meth, but there are still people who do it. There are still people attacking people and still people committing murder. So there will still be gang members who think they are above the law and can run around with it. put their patches on and the police will just do their best to manage that,” he said.
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