Two Indigenous mothers have settled a trespass case against New South Wales police after officers attended one of their homes more than 150 times in 20 months to conduct bail checks on her sons. The case, launched in April 2024, was settled on confidential terms three weeks before it was scheduled to go to trial in the supreme court.
Police visits disrupted family life
One complainant, a single mother using the pseudonym Megan for privacy, has two sons who were on bail from the ages of 11 and 13 after being found as passengers in a stolen car. Police attended her home in regional NSW more than 150 times over 20 months, with many visits occurring between midnight and 4am.
NSW legislation allows courts to authorise police to attend a private residence to check bail compliance. However, the Justice and Equity Centre, representing Megan, argued that many checks were done without court authorisation, constituting trespass.
Families report fear and exhaustion
Megan described visits involving police banging on doors, shining torches through windows, and entering through the back gate in the middle of the night. She said the visits were scary and stressful, causing her children to miss school due to exhaustion.
“My eldest is driving around with his head held high now, knowing police can’t just randomly pull him over,” Megan said. “But I know he’s still shaking in fear about what they could do. They’ve already done the damage, and it will take a lot for my boys to start trusting police again.”
The other complainant, a single mother of three using the pseudonym Joanne, said police visited her western Sydney home more than 90 times in 18 months for bail checks on her son. She noted that in one instance, police conducted three checks within a few hours, often on school nights, leaving her youngest daughter too tired to attend school.
Police defend actions, commission finds overreach
NSW police stated that officers acted lawfully during the checks, describing them as an important tool for public safety and managing risks associated with releasing people on bail. However, a 2025 report from the state’s Law Enforcement Conduct Commission found police were stretching their authority by relying on a weak legal principle to conduct checks without court authorisation.
Solicitor Kate Sinclair praised her clients’ bravery in bringing the case. “They did it for their families and their communities and we respect their courage,” she said.
Megan and her sons have separately taken NSW police to the federal court for racial discrimination, arguing the boys were targeted because they are Aboriginal. That case remains ongoing.
