Section 3Part 1 — PRELIMINARY
Commission of domestic violence
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A person commits an act of domestic violence against a prescribed person where it is proved that the person's conduct caused or is intended to cause —
emotional or psychological abuse;
financial abuse;
physical abuse; or
sexual abuse.
In this section —
"emotional or psychological abuse" means behaviour which is intended to harass or undermine the emotional or mental well-being of a prescribed person including —
intimidation by using abusive or threatening language in a manner calculated to cause annoyance to, instil fear in or result in ill-treatment of the prescribed person;
following the prescribed person to or waylaying the prescribed person at any place;
depriving the prescribed person of the use of property;
watching or besetting of the place where the prescribed person resides, works or conducts business;
interfering with the property of the prescribed person;
damaging any property owned by, or available for the use or enjoyment of, the prescribed person, or any property in the care or custody or situated at the residence of the prescribed person;
forced confinement of the prescribed person;
the making of persistent telephone calls to the prescribed person at the prescribed person's place of residence, work or any other place where the prescribed person resides or conducts the prescribed person's activities;
sending any data, text, mail, image, sound or code by electronic means to the prescribed person; and
making unwelcome and repeated or intimidating contact with the prescribed person;
"financial abuse" means behaviour which is intended to exercise coercive control over, exploit or limit a prescribed person's access to financial resources so as to ensure financial dependence;
"physical abuse" means any act or omission which causes or threatens physical injury; and
"sexual abuse" includes sexual contact of any kind that is coerced by force or threat of force.
Any act of abuse identified in subsection (1) which is committed on a single occasion shall be regarded as an act of domestic violence even though some or all of those acts, when viewed in isolation, may appear minor.
Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1), a person abuses a child if that person —
causes or allows the child to see or hear the physical, sexual, emotional or psychological abuse of a person with whom the child resides; or
places the child, or allows the child to be placed at real risk of seeing or hearing the abuse described in paragraph (a).
Defined Terms
emotional or psychological abusefinancial abusephysical abusesexual abuse