BYRON BAY — New South Wales police are appealing a court ruling that limited their ability to use force during strip-searches. A two-day appeal hearing began on Thursday. During the hearing, the state argued that police have the power to forcibly move body parts during a strip-search.
The appeal follows a September ruling by Justice Dina Yehia, who determined that police lack the express power to use reasonable force to move a person's body parts during a strip-search. Justice Yehia also found that police suspicion of possessing a personal quantity of a prohibited drug is insufficient grounds for a strip-search. She awarded lead plaintiff Raya Meredith $93,000 in damages, which included $20,000 in aggravated damages.
The state admitted in May 2025 that police unlawfully strip-searched Meredith. This admission reduced the class action trial from a scheduled 20 days to five days, and police subsequently withdrew 22 witnesses. The search occurred in 2018 upon Meredith's entry to the Splendour in the Grass music festival in Byron Bay. During the search, a female police officer instructed Meredith to remove her clothing, bend over, expose her bottom, drop her breasts, and remove a tampon. A male officer entered the search area during this time without announcement. At the time of the search, Meredith was 27 years old and postpartum.
Perry Herzfield SC argued that Justice Yehia erred in six of her findings. Herzfield contended that section 230 of the Law Enforcement Powers and Responsibilities Act, when read with strip-search provisions, permits police to use force as reasonably necessary. He stated, "The law does not allow an examination with a sense of touch, but an officer could move someone's arm to facilitate a visual inspection." Herzfield clarified that the statutory power to use force does not extend to body cavities.
Justice Kristina Stern asked whether the statutory power allowed an officer to request a person to lift their breast for inspection. She also asked whether the statute gave police the power to direct someone to remove a tampon. Regarding the removal of a tampon, he stated, "We don't seek to justify that."
The class action lawsuit has more than 6,000 members and was brought by Slater and Gordon lawyers and the Redfern Legal Centre, concerning strip-searches at music festivals between 2018 and 2022. The appeal is being heard by Chief Justice Andrew Bell, President Julie Ward, Justice Anthony Payne, Justice Anna Mitchelmore, and Justice Kristina Stern.