Our expert criminal lawyers for failure to comply with a move-on direction can help you:
- Obtain bail.
- Be found not guilty.
- Receive a lenient sentence, like no conviction and no prison.
You will be represented by a team of award-winning criminal lawyers, with 500+ five-star Google reviews, who offer fixed fees and free first consultations.
You can read our reviews here.
 Failure to comply with a move on direction
Failure to comply with a move on direction is a public order offence that commonly arises during incidents in nightlife precincts, protests, or street disturbances. Police have the power to direct a person to leave an area in certain circumstances, refusing to comply with that direct may result in a charge.
Police must follow strict legal guideline when issuing a move on direction. If those requirements are not met, the charge may not be valid.
Police may give a move on direction if they believe a person’s behaviour is:
- Obstructing another person or traffic,
- Harassing or intimidating another person,
- Is causing fear to another person,
- Likely to result in violence or damage to property,
- obtaining, procuring or purchasing any prohibited drug that it would be unlawful for the person to possess.
Section 198 of the Law Enforcement (Powers and Responsibility) Act 2002 (NSW) notes that a police officer may give a direction to an intoxicated person who is in a public place to leave the place and not return for a specified period. A police officer needs to believe on reasonable grounds that their behaviour is disorderly and may cause a risk.
Additionally, section 198 of the Law Enforcement (Powers and Responsibility) Act 2002 (NSW) notes a person cannot refuse or fail to comply with a direction.
Pleading not guilty
To prove the offence, police must establish beyond a reasonable doubt that a lawful move in a direction was given, you heard and understood the direction, and you failed or refused to comply with that direction.
You can read more information about pleading not guilty here.
Common defence arguments include:
- The move on direction was not lawfully given,
- Police did not have reasonable grounds to issue the move-on direction,
- Insufficient evidence,
- You did not hear or understand,
- You did comply with the direction.
Pleading guilty
If you agree that you have committed the offence (and the police are able to prove so), it is best to plead guilty as you will normally receive a discount on your sentence, and it will demonstrate remorse and contrition. Alternatively, one of our experienced solicitors may be able to negotiate with the prosecutors to have you plead guilty to less serious facts or to a less serious charge.
If you are found guilty of failure to comply with a move on direction offence, you may be penalised the maximum penalty of 2 penalty units, which is currently $220.
You can read about all the sentencing options a court has, including no conviction being recorded.
You can read more about pleading guilty here.
Do I need references?
We believe references are an extremely important part of a plea of guilty in court. Read about court processes and how to write a good character reference.
Contact Australian Criminal Law Group
Our criminal lawyers, with 500+ five-star Google reviews, can beat your failure to comply with the move-on direction charge or obtain a lenient sentence for you if you plead guilty.
Call us on (02) 8815 8167 for your free first conference or submit a website enquiry.