Stalking Protection Act 2019 (c. 9)

General

13 Procedure

(1) An application to a magistrates’ court under any provision of this Act is to be by complaint.

(2) Section 127 of the Magistrates’ Courts Act 1980 (time limits) does not apply to a complaint under any provision of this Act.

14 Interpretation

(1) In this Act—

• “acts” includes omissions;

• “chief officer of police” means—

  (a)

  the chief constable of a police force maintained under section 2 of the Police Act 1996 (police forces in England and Wales outside London);

  (b)

  the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis;

  (c)

  the Commissioner of Police for the City of London;

  (d)

  the chief constable of the British Transport Police;

  (e)

  the chief constable of the Ministry of Defence Police;

• “defendant” has the meaning given by section 1(1);

• “home address”, in relation to a person, means—

  (a)

  the address of the person’s sole or main residence in the United Kingdom, or

  (b)

  if the person has no such residence, the address or location of a place in the United Kingdom where the person can regularly be found and, if there is more than one such place, such of those places as the person may select;

• “interim stalking protection order” has the meaning given by section 5(2);

• “local police area”, in relation to a person, means—

  (a)

  the police area in which the person’s home address is situated,

  (b)

  in the absence of a home address, the police area in which the home address last notified is situated (whether that notification was in accordance with the requirements imposed by section 9 or in accordance with notification requirements under Part 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003), or

  (c)

  in the absence of a home address and of any such notification, the police area in which the magistrates’ court which last made a stalking protection order or an interim stalking protection order in respect of the person is situated;

• “magistrates’ court”, in relation to a defendant under the age of 18, means youth court;

• “photograph” includes any process by means of which an image may be produced;

• “relevant chief officer of police”, in relation to an application for an order under section 4 or to an appeal under section 7, means—

  (a)

  the chief officer of police for the area in which the defendant resides,

  (b)

  a chief officer of police who believes that the defendant is in, or is intending to come to, that chief officer’s police area, and

  (c)

  the chief officer of police who applied for the stalking protection order to which the application or appeal relates;

• “stalking protection order” has the meaning given by section 1(1).

(2) In this Act, references to a “risk associated with stalking” are to be read in accordance with section 1(4).

15 Extent, commencement and short title

(1) This Act extends to England and Wales only.

(2) This section comes into force on the day on which this Act is passed.

(3) The other provisions of this Act come into force on such day as the Secretary of State may by regulations made by statutory instrument appoint.

(4) This Act may be cited as the Stalking Protection Act 2019.