Criminal Offences in New South Wales

Criminal offences are committed against the state. A person who is charged with a criminal offence may be arrested and bailed or remanded or summonsed to attend court. Criminal offences can be summary offences (which are finalised in the Magistrates Court or Children’s Court) indictble offences (which can be finalised either in the Magistrates Court or in the District Court or Supreme Court) or strictly indictable offences (which must be finalised in District Court or Supreme Court).

A person charged with a criminal offence must choose whether to plead guilty and proceed to be sentenced or to plead not guilty and go through a contested hearing or trial.

When a person is found guilty of criminal offences they will proceed to be sentenced by the court. In deciding on the appropriate sentence, the court will be guided by the maximum and minimum penalties stipulated for the offence in the legislation as well as the circumstances

Criminal offences include violent offences like affray and assault, property offences like larceny and fraud and drug offences. New South Wales also has offences relating to allowing minors to drink alcohol, and firearms and weapons offences. This section of the site contains articles about criminal offences in NSW.