‘Huge safety risks’: Police warn against expanding citizen’s arrest powers
Wednesday, 26 February 2025
The proposed expansion of citizen’s arrest powers has landed with a dull thud as police officers warn the new rules pose “huge safety risks”.
On Wednesday, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith announced his intention to give businesses more power to detain those stealing from them.
“Currently, no one, including retailers and security guards, is protected from civil or criminal liability if they arrest and detain a person stealing goods valued at less than $1000 during the day.
“The operation of the Crimes Act 1961 hinders people from stopping offending as it occurs right in front of them,” Goldsmith said.
As the law currently stands, anyone can make an arrest at night where there are reasonable grounds for believing a person is committing an offence for which the maximum punishment is at least three years’ imprisonment.
Goldsmiths’ revamped law would include four reforms:
amending the Crimes Act to allow citizens to stop an offender at any time of the day;
clarifying that restraints can be used when reasonable during an arrest;
changing the defence of property provisions to make it clear that reasonable force may be used; and
requiring that a person making an arrest contact police and follow their instructions.
“This initial package of reforms, put forward by the Ministerial Advisory Group for victims of retail crime, will give Kiwi businesses additional tools to deal with those that are robbing them of their livelihood and economic growth,” Goldsmith said.
However, the proposed reforms have been criticised as posing safety risks, inciting vigilante action and further stretching limited police resources.
Reform poses ‘huge safety risks’, police officers warn
For one frontline police officer from Auckland, who The Post agreed not to name to protect his employment, the fear was that offenders would arm themselves with the intention of “fighting back”.
“Staff members also won’t be getting the proper training. They’ll have good intentions, but there are huge safety risks. We’ve already seen what happens when they fight back,” the officer warned.
In November 2022, 34-year-old Janak Patel was killed by a masked robber who had stolen the cash register from the Auckland dairy he was watching for friends.
Patel chased after the robber, later identified as Frederick Hobson, with a hockey stick before Hobson stabbed him three times.
The officer also expressed concerns about trusting that shop owners understood what ‘reasonable force’ actually was.
“Do citizens know what excessive force is for someone who shoplifts a chocolate bar, for example?”
These sentiments were echoed by a North Island detective, who The Post also agreed not to name, who dubbed the proposed changes a “knee-jerk reaction”.
“It could lead to assaults both on offenders and shop staff. It also won’t free up police staff, who will need to attend anyway if charges are laid.
“If I was a shop owner who had been targeted a few times, I’d probably have some sort of weapon handy. Police response times can vary depending on availability.”
The real solution, the detective said, was more police staff.
Police union predicts ‘serious legal issues’
Police Association President Chris Cahill told The Post he had “serious concerns” about the proposed legislation.
“While we have sympathy with the frustrations the current law creates, I don’t believe the consequences of this legislation change have been fully understood,” Cahill said.
Cahill feared retailers would be putting themselves at a much higher risk if they tried to detain offenders.
“They don’t know what these offenders are armed with, whether they’re under the influence of drugs, or even how many offenders they are. By their very nature, offenders are dangerous.
“Police make hundreds of arrests every day, and when they do they follow a very clear risk assessment, but even then officers get assaulted, sometimes seriously.”
Cahill also urged the Government to consider the nuances of the “reasonable force” defence.
“Legally it’s going to cause some real issues. Police officers undergo extensive training to understand what’s considered reasonable force, and they don’t always get that right.
“Now the minister is suggesting untrained people try and make that judgment. I can foresee police having to charge a number of people for unreasonable force and unreasonable detention,” he said.
The growing shortages in police staffing would also become more apparent, he said.
“Police don’t have the ability to attend to all of these things. How is a shop owner going to feel if they call 111 to tell police they’ve detained someone and then they’re told police can’t come, so they need to let that person go?
“How long can they even detail someone before they have to let them go? It’s pretty short-sighted.”
Goldsmith’s proposed amendments will be introduced to Parliament, before going to a select committee process.