Consorting laws for kids: Stopping teens communicating with hardened criminals

Young Victorians are being banned from communicating with convicted criminals, under revised government consorting laws.

As reported in the Herald Sun, the strengthening of consorting laws is to stop teens as young as 14 from mixing with known gang members under a crackdown on youth crime.

Ross described the changes as ‘consorting laws for kids’.

Police Minister Lisa Neville told Ross and John the young person who is issued the notice can be someone with no convictions at all – but the list of those who they cannot consort with must be convicted of some offence.

“This is often how motorcycle gangs or Middle Eastern crime gangs work, they try to pick up those cleanskins into their criminal networks,” Ms Neville said.

“We want to stop them engaging, often with older criminals, who are getting them to do the dirty work.

“They can’t have meetings, they can’t communicate through electronically or social media.”

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