Section 15HA — Crimes Act 1914: Protection from criminal responsibility for controlled conduct during controlled operations

(1) This section applies if: (a) a participant in a controlled operation engages in conduct in the course of, and for the purposes of, the controlled operation; and (b) engaging in that conduct is a Commonwealth offence or an offence against a law of a State or Territory. (2) Despite any other law of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory, the participant is not criminally responsible for the offence, if: (a) the participant engages in the conduct in accordance with the authority to conduct the controlled operation; and (b) the participant is identified in the authority as a person authorised to engage in controlled conduct for the purposes of the controlled operation; and (c) the conduct does not involve the participant intentionally inducing a person to commit a Commonwealth offence or an offence under a law of a State or Territory that the person would not otherwise have intended to commit; and (d) the conduct does not involve the participant engaging in any conduct that is likely to: (i) cause the death of, or serious injury to, any person; or (ii) involve the commission of a sexual offence against any person; and (e) if the participant is a civilian participant in the operation—he or she acts in accordance with the instructions of a law enforcement officer. (3) To avoid doubt, nothing in subparagraph (2)(d)(ii) is intended to prevent the participant being protected from criminal responsibility if the conduct involves the participant: (a) dealing with material depicting, material describing or material otherwise involving a sexual offence against any person; or (b) facilitating a person to deal with such material.