Offensive Weapons Act 2019

15 Requirements for application for order under section 14

(1) An application for a knife crime prevention order under section 14 may be made only by—

(a) a relevant chief officer of police,

(b) the chief constable of the British Transport Police Force, or

(c) the chief constable of the Ministry of Defence Police.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1)(a) a chief officer of police is a relevant chief officer of police in relation to an application for a knife crime prevention order in respect of a defendant if—

(a) the defendant lives in the chief officer’s police area, or

(b) the chief officer believes that the defendant is in, or is intending to come to, the chief officer’s police area.

(3) An application for a knife crime prevention order under section 14 made by a chief officer of police for a police area may be made only to a court acting for a local justice area that includes any part of that police area.

(4) Subsections (5) and (6) apply if a person proposes to apply for a knife crime prevention order under section 14 in respect of a defendant who—

(a) is under the age of 18, and

(b) will be under that age when the application is made.

(5) Before making the application the person must consult the youth offending team established under section 39 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 in whose area it appears to the person that the defendant lives.

(6) If it appears to the person that the defendant lives in the area of two or more youth offending teams, the obligation in subsection (5) is to consult such of those teams as the person thinks appropriate.