Police may use ‘reasonable force’ while policing, including when arresting people or in self-defence. Aboriginal people are disproportionately subject to police use of force.

In New South Wales, police use of force is mainly governed by the Law Enforcement (Powers and Responsibilities) Act 2002 (NSW) (LEPRA) (DOC2988), supported by decisions of courts and internal NSW Police Force guidelines (DOC5463).

Data shows that Aboriginal people are disproportionately affected by police use of force (DOC5461, DOC7198, DOC3692). This is consistent with the over-representation of Aboriginal people in interactions with police (see SUB0421 for more information on the use of discretionary police powers).

What is use of force?

Under LEPRA, police officers may use only ’such force as is reasonably necessary’ to make an arrest, stop someone from escaping custody, to prevent a breach of the peace, in self-defence or in the defence of others, and for the protection of property (DOC2988, DOC5463). On introducing LEPRA to Parliament, the government said that it aims to ‘strike a proper balance between law enforcement and the protection of individual rights’ (DOC7187, DOC3687).

LEPRA does not define the word ‘reasonably’. The police’s publicly available ‘Use of Force Manual’ (2022) describes force as reasonable where it is ’necessary and appropriate to the circumstances’ (DOC5463).

Police officers are expected to use the ‘Tactical Options Model’ to assess a situation and the type of force, if any, which is reasonable. Options in the Model include communication, tactical disengagement, containment & negotiation, and uses of force such as weaponless control (for example, check-drills) and capsicum spray (also known as ‘OC Spray’) (DOC5463, DOC5460).

In 2012, the NSW State Coroner, stressed that police 'do not have a licence to act recklessly, carelessly or dangerously or with excessive force', calling such conduct 'an abuse of police powers' (DOC7177).

Courts have repeatedly emphasised that the necessity and proportionality of any force must be assessed based on what the police officer faced at the time, not with the benefit of hindsight (DOC7207, DOC7206, DOC7208).

Commentators have also raised concerns about the use of tasers and OC spray by police, especially against people already in custody and vulnerable populations (DOC5456). A 2012 Report by the NSW Ombudsman found that Aboriginal people made up 29.3% of people subject to taser use between June-November 2010 (DOC3692).

Contemporary concerns: Law Enforcement Conduct Commission

In 2023, the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission conducted a review of the police’s ‘Use of Force Reporting’. The Commission found ‘widespread inconsistencies’ and ‘under-reporting’ in the recording of use of force incidents. It concluded that these inaccuracies undermine the ‘effectiveness of the potential uses of the data’ by the police itself, and ‘may also suggest that the existing policies and training about use of force recording are unclear or not fit for purpose’ (DOC5460).

The Commission’s report notes the police acknowledged the inconsistencies identified, and in response:

‘[T]he NSWPF [police] said it will develop new policy, guidelines and training on what uses of force must be recorded and how they should be recorded. The NSWPF also developed a Use of Force Manual in response to our review. While this document is primarily about the use of force, it also contains some instructions on recording a use of force’ (DOC5460).

The police formally responded to the Commission’s recommendations in September 2023. By that time it had implemented 8 of the Commission’s 11 recommendations (DOC7199, DOC7271).

Use of force and Aboriginal people

While the law recognises that force may be required in certain circumstances, concerns have been raised regarding disproportionate application of force, particularly against Aboriginal people (DOC5461, DOC7178).

In 2023, data obtained by the Redfern Legal Centre showed that there were 28,826 ‘use of force incidents’ recorded between 2018 and 2022. Of these, 45% involved an Aboriginal person. The data also revealed a rise in ‘use of force incidents’ involving Aboriginal people over that four-year period (DOC5461).

Data released by the police shows that in 2024/25, 51% of use of force events involved people who identified as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander (DOC7198). The most commonly recorded uses of force in both data sets included arm restraints/wrist locks, ground wrestles and takedowns (DOC5461, DOC7198).

In 2024, the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission reported on its analysis of complaints made by or on behalf of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Between 1 Jan 2021 and 30 June 2022, the Commission referred 245 complaints to the police, 34% of which related to the use of force. Police chose to investigate 66 of the total complaints, made up of 147 allegations. 18% of the allegations investigated were sustained (DOC7201, DOC7202). Officers involved were subject to a ‘range of management actions’, including counselling, warning notices, disciplinary transfer, management plans and further training. No instances were recorded of police being removed from duty following a substantiated complaint (DOC7201).

Recent Commission reports have found examples of unreasonable, gratuitous, punitive and unlawful force against Aboriginal people (DOC5450, DOC7204, DOC7205).

Woodley v Boyd [2001] NSWCA 35