WA Police reverses Land Forces ban after legal threat
WA Police dropped Matilda Lane-Rose's exclusion from Land Forces after legal centres threatened court action.
A WA Greens staffer and activist had her police ban from the defence expo overturned after two legal centres threatened to take the exclusion to the Supreme Court. Lane-Rose was one of several people placed on an exclusion list barring them from the Perth Exhibition and Convention Centre during the expo this week.
Police Minister Reece Whitby had said the bar for exclusion was set very high to prevent violence and risk. The reversal raises questions about how police decide who to exclude.
Land Forces is Australia's biggest defence expo, running October 6 to 8. Police spent $11.5 million on security to avoid clashes like those at the 2024 Melbourne event.
- $11.5 million
- Security cost
- October 6 to 8
- Expo dates
- Up to 3 years jail, over $30,000 in fines
- Penalty for breach
- About 10,000 overseas and interstate
- Expected visitors
Why it mattersThe decision tests what legal threshold police can use to ban people from public spaces and events.
AustraliaWA civil liberties law and police powers to restrict protest access will face closer scrutiny after this backflip.
✓ Claims checked against the source. checked 2 h ago
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