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Armed Forces Discipline Act 1971

Offences - Miscellaneous offences

73: Conduct prejudicial to service discipline

You could also call this:

"Breaking Army Rules that Hurt Discipline"

Illustration for Armed Forces Discipline Act 1971

If you are in the Armed Forces, you must follow the rules. You can get in trouble if you do something that might hurt discipline in the Forces. You can also get in trouble if you do something that might make people lose respect for the Forces. This can include not doing your job properly or doing it carelessly. If you are charged with doing something wrong, the charge must be fair. You cannot be charged with something that is already covered by another rule. If you are found guilty, the decision will still count even if the charge was not done correctly, unless you were treated unfairly. When someone accuses you of doing something wrong, they can say you did one or more of the following things: you behaved in a way that might hurt discipline, you behaved in a way that might make people lose respect for the Forces, you did not do your job properly, or you did your job carelessly.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM402780.

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Part 2Offences
Miscellaneous offences

73Conduct prejudicial to service discipline

  1. Every person subject to this Act commits an offence, and is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years, who—

  2. does or omits any act that is likely to prejudice service discipline; or
    1. does or omits any act that is likely to bring discredit on the service of the Armed Forces to which he belongs or, if he is attached to any such service, either to that service or to the service to which he belongs; or
      1. negligently fails to perform a duty imposed on him or her by service order, training, or custom; or
        1. negligently performs a duty imposed on him or her by service order, training, or custom.

          1. No person shall be charged with an offence against this section in respect of any act or omission that constitutes an offence against sections 23 to 72 or sections 74 to 77: provided that if any person is charged with an offence against this section and is found guilty of the offence, the finding shall not be invalidated by reason only of the charge being in contravention of this subsection, unless it appears that injustice has been done to the person charged by reason of the contravention; but the conduct of the person laying any charge in contravention of this subsection shall not be vindicated by reason of that finding.

          2. Despite anything to the contrary in any enactment or rule of law, if a person is charged with an offence against this section, the statement of offence may allege in the alternative 1 or more of the following:

          3. that the person behaved in a manner that was likely to prejudice service discipline:
            1. that the person behaved in a manner that was likely to bring discredit on the service to which he or she belongs or is attached, as the case may be:
              1. that the person has negligently failed to perform a duty imposed on him or her by service order, training, or custom:
                1. that the person negligently performed a duty imposed on him or her by service order, training, or custom.

                  Notes
                  • Section 73(1)(b): amended, on , by section 19(1) of the Armed Forces Discipline Amendment Act (No 2) 2007 (2007 No 98).
                  • Section 73(1)(c): added, on , by section 19(1) of the Armed Forces Discipline Amendment Act (No 2) 2007 (2007 No 98).
                  • Section 73(1)(d): added, on , by section 19(1) of the Armed Forces Discipline Amendment Act (No 2) 2007 (2007 No 98).
                  • Section 73(3): substituted, on , by section 19(2) of the Armed Forces Discipline Amendment Act (No 2) 2007 (2007 No 98).