More than 120 girls under the age of 18 have been strip searched by NSW Police since 2016, data obtained under freedom of information laws has revealed.
The numbers, obtained by the Redfern Legal Centre (RLC), showed two of the 122 children strip searched were just 12 years old and eight were 13 years old.
In regular circumstances, police can strip search children between the ages of 10 and 18 in NSW only while a parent, guardian or support person present.
However, if police believe evidence may be at risk of being destroyed and the circumstances are “urgent”, they can search the child while a parent or guardian is not there.
RLC’s head of police accountability, Samantha Lee, said the laws should be changed to prohibit the use of strip searches on children unless a court order had been obtained.
“We don’t know the circumstances of these particular cases, they are just raw data,” she said.
“But certainly they do highlight some major concerns in terms of the law and the fact that the law needs to change to protect all children from strip searches.”
The practice came under the microscope last month, when NSW’s Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC) held an inquiry into the strip search of a 16-year-old girl at a music festival.
While giving evidence at the inquiry, the officer who conducted the search conceded it was likely unlawful.
NSW Attorney-General Mark Speakman defended the use of strip searches but acknowledged the policy was being reviewed.
“Strip searches are an important investigative tool but obviously we have to get the balance right, they need to be used only where appropriate,” he said.
“They can be invasive, they can be stressful, that’s why we have the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission doing a general review of strip searches and operations in NSW and I look forward to its report.”
Ms Lee said that review should include new regulations around the presence of parents or guardians during strip searches of minors.
“If the police believe the circumstances are urgent enough to prevent evidence from being destroyed or concealed, then they can decide not to have the parent or guardian there,” she said.
“We want that legislation changed, we want it to be compulsory to have a support person or guardian present for a child.”
The FOI figures revealed 3,919 women were strip searched over the three-year period.
“On average 66 per cent [of those searches] found nothing and when something was found in 80 per cent of cases it was for minor drug possession,” Ms Lee said.
