No doubt readers of this blog will have seen the video of a truck being driving in Victoria with emergency warning lights and sirens. For those that haven’t a correspondent has sent this link
and asks
Other than the traffic laws, is there specific laws around impersonation?
(And for a link to just the dash cam video, see http://www.9news.com.au/national/2017/10/17/15/51/teen-arrested-after-truck-used-emergency-lights-in-traffic).
As noted the relevant laws here are the traffic laws, so the driver could be charged with each offence committed whether that’s speeding, failing to give way, proceeding through a red light etc as well as negligent or dangerous driving. What offences can be charged will depend on what can be proved and there is probably limited evidence if all that there is the one dash cam recording. The vehicle could be defected for having the lights and sirens fitted contrary to the Victorian vehicle standards.
As for impersonation, that would be more difficult. The Victoria State Emergency Service Act 2005 (Vic) s 46 says:
A person must not—
(a) use any name, title or description to imply an association with the Service, without the authority of the Chief Executive Officer; or
(b) represent that the person is associated with the Service unless such an association exists; or
(c) impersonate an employee of the Service or a registered member; or
(d) use any insignia described or set out in the regulations in any manner contrary to the manner set out in the regulations without the written authority of the Chief Executive Officer.
Penalty: 20 penalty units.
The Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958 (Vic) s 75, the Country Fire Authority Act 1958 (Vic) s 107A and the Ambulance Services Act 1986 (Vic) s 39 are in similar terms.
The Victoria Police Act 2013 (Vic) s 256 says:
(1) A person who is not a police officer must not, in any way, hold himself or herself out to be a police officer.
Penalty: 120 penalty units or imprisonment for 1 year or both.
(2) A person who is not a protective services officer must not, in any way, hold himself or herself out to be a protective services officer.
Penalty: 120 penalty units or imprisonment for 1 year or both.
(3) A person who is not a police recruit must not, in any way, hold himself or herself out to be a police recruit.
Penalty: 120 penalty units or imprisonment for 1 year or both.
Without seeing what the driver was wearing, there was nothing on the vehicle to suggest it was a police vehicle, an SES vehicle, a CFA vehicle or an MFB vehicle There’s nothing in the video to suggest there was the use of any name, title, description, representation, or insignia to suggest that the vehicle belonged to any particular service that is entitled to operate with lights and sirens so it would be hard if not impossible to say that he was impersonating a member of a particular service. There is no general offence of impersonating a member of the generic emergency services.
Compare that toState Emergency and Rescue Management Act 1989 (NSW) s 63B which says
(2) A person who:
(a) uses or displays emergency services organisation insignia, or
(b) impersonates an emergency services organisation officer,
with the intention to deceive is guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units.
(2A) A person who:
(a) impersonates an emergency services organisation officer with the intention to deceive and purports to exercise a function of such an officer, or
(b) impersonates an emergency services organisation officer with the intention to deceive in order to facilitate the commission of an offence,
is guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.
Emergency services insignia includes (s 63B(4); emphasis added):
any items (being uniforms, insignia, emblems, logos, devices, accoutrements and other things) that are generally recognised as pertaining to an emergency services organisation (other than the NSW Police Force) or as being used by an emergency services organisation officer…
Emergency services organisation officer means (s 63B(4):
… an employee, member, volunteer or any other person who exercises functions on behalf of an emergency services organisation (other than the NSW Police Force).
One could argue that red/blue roof lights and siren are ‘devices’ ‘generally recognised as pertaining to an emergency services organisation’ and that by driving with lights and sirens the driver was intending to deceive other drivers (s 63B(2)).
Alternatively, the use of the insignia might be seen (by a judge or jury) as impersonating a ‘person who exercises functions on behalf of an emergency services organisation’ without specifying which organisation. The driver’s intent must have been that people would think the vehicle belonged to an emergency services organisation and that by proceeding as if to an emergency he was exercising ‘a function of such an officer’ (s 63B(3).
Under the NSW legislation there does not appear to be a need to specify which emergency service organisation the imposter was pretending to be a part of.
Conclusion
If this had happened in NSW I would think there would be a strong argument for a prosecution under the State Emergency and Rescue Management Act 1989 (NSW) s 63B. I can’t see any equivalent offence in Victoria and I can’t see that the evidence (limited to what can be seen on the dash cam video) would be sufficient to sustain a conviction for impersonating a member of Victoria Police, Victoria SES, the CFA, MFB or Ambulance Victoria.
Australian Emergency Law 
I did see this story, very strange, the vehicle was estimated to be worth $100,000. What I find particularly weird is where the 16yo got this money and how his parents didn’t know. I have a separate question similar to this. I have seen people claiming to be from St John Ambulance (NSW) turn up at events or even MVAs and grassfires (where first aiders can’t do much) and they turn up in a fake or mixed uniform. Are there any laws against this? What could the local St John Division do about this?
There’s no specific offence relevant to impersonating a St John member. For the purposes of the State Emergency and Rescue Management Act 1989 (NSW) s 63B, emergency services organisation’ means:
That is not St John Ambulance (NSW). The question then of what offences the person may have committed depends on how they got the uniform or insignia and what they did. If the uniform or insignia is stolen the wearer may be guilty of larceny (Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) s 117) or possession of goods reasonably suspected of being stolen (Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) s 527C). If they use the uniform to try to obtain a financial advantage that would be a fraud (Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) s 192E). If they used the uniform to persuade someone to consent to being touched to gain some sort of sexual gratification what would be an offence, depending on what happened, ranging from indecent assault (s 61L) to sexual assault (s 61I).
There may be issues with misuse of intellectual property that is the design and logos of St John. No doubt that process would be time consuming and unlikely to produce a significant result though it may be a way to obtain an injunction to restrain the person from wearing the uniform in future.
What the local Division should do, if they can identify the person, is report the matter to police so that the police can make inquiries to see if any offences have been committed.
Thanks for the info
I think there are National Laws that prohibit falsely ‘holding out’ to be a Registered Health Care Professional e.g. Doctor or Nurse and these titles are protected. Perhaps the title paramedic will be protected once registration is up and running.
Russell, indeed the Health Practitioner National Law makes it an offence to use any of the protected titles unless a person is a relevantly registered health profession. And it is not the case that ‘perhaps the title paramedic will be protected’ it is definitely the case that the title will be protected – that’s one of the arguments in favour of registration. Only a registered paramedic will be able to use the title paramedic.
But that’s not really relevant to this discussion. This is about using the title ’emergency vehicle’ or the like and so perhaps causing confusion with the emergency services (police, fire, ambulance, ses), not the title of registered health professionals.