Crimes (Substituted section 59) Amendment Act 2007 - Three Month Review
On 22 June 2007, the Crimes (Substituted Section 59) Amendment Act (the Amendment) came into force, amending section 59 of the Crimes Act 1961. The purpose of the Amendment was "to make better provision for children to live in a state free from violence by abolishing the use of parental force for the purpose of correction".
As outlined in the Justice and Electoral Select Committee Report, "the Amendment removes the defence of using “reasonable force” against a child for the purpose of correction and clarifies that reasonable force may be used for other purposes such as protecting a child from harm, providing normal daily care, and preventing the child doing harm to others".1
Following the Amendment, New Zealand Police (Police) agreed to undertake a three month review (23 June to 28 September 2007) of the impact of the Amendment on Police activity.
1. Justice and Electoral Select Committee, "Crimes (Abolition of Force as a Justification for Child Discipline) Amendment Bill (271-2) and petition 2005/25 of Barry Thomas and 20,750 others," [2006], 2.