# Victoria adopts random knife searches despite expert warnings

> Labor government reverses course to give police sweeping powers to search anyone for knives, ignoring evidence the policy doesn't work.
- Title: Victoria adopts random knife searches despite expert warnings
- Summary: Labor government reverses course to give police sweeping powers to search anyone for knives, ignoring evidence the policy doesn't work. Victoria will allow…
- Keywords: victoria, ben carroll, jack's law, victoria police, protective service officers, knife crime, stop and search, labor party, queensland, jack beasley, human rights, indigenous australians
- Source: the Guardian — https://theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/sep/16/victoria-police-pso-stop-and-search-powers-jacks-law-labor-backflip
- Published: 2026-09-16T05:03:31+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: victoria, ben carroll, jack's law, victoria police, protective service officers, knife crime, stop and search, labor party, queensland, jack beasley, human rights, indigenous australians
## Labor backflips on search powers
Premier Ben Carroll announced Victoria will adopt Jack's Law, giving police power to randomly search anyone for knives with metal detectors starting early next year.

> Anywhere, anytime.
## What is Jack's Law
Named after 17-year-old Jack Beasley who was fatally stabbed in Surfers Paradise in 2019. Police will get 1,200 handheld metal-detecting wands to use on any person in public.
## Studies show it doesn't work
A Griffith University study of Jack's Law on the Gold Coast found no reduction in violence from the searches. Experts say there's no evidence it reduces knife-related violence.

> There's no evidence that it's in any way effective in actually reducing knife related violence, which is the whole premise of the law.
## Human rights concerns raised
The Human Rights Law Centre says the powers give police unchecked authority to harass marginalised groups while doing nothing to keep communities safe.
## Indigenous people disproportionately targeted
In Queensland, 22.6% of people searched were Indigenous, despite making up only 4.6% of the population. Over 160,000 people were scanned in one year.
## Searches rarely find weapons
Two years of Victorian data showed just over 1% of searches in designated areas found illicit items, including weapons.
## Complete reversal from last year
Labor previously resisted expanding search powers under Jacinta Allan. When asked why the change, Carroll simply said 'I'm the new premier.'
## Jack's father welcomes the move
Brett Beasley said it was 'about bloody time' and urged politicians to put politics aside and focus on community safety.

> Put the politics aside and let's focus on the community safety and that's what Jack's Law is all about.
## Key takeaway

Victoria will allow police to randomly search anyone for knives using metal detectors, despite studies showing the policy doesn't reduce violence and disproportionately targets Indigenous people.