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Summary Offences Act 1981

Intimidation, obstruction, and hindering Police

22: Obstructing public way

You could also call this:

"Blocking a public path or road without a good reason can get you a fine"

Illustration for Summary Offences Act 1981

You can get a fine of up to $1,000 if you block a public way without a good reason. If a police officer tells you to stop blocking the way and you keep doing it, you can get a fine. You can also get a fine if you stop blocking the way but then block it again in the same area. You block a public way if you unreasonably stop people from walking along it. A public way is a road, street, path, or other area where people can walk. You can block a public way by doing something that stops people from passing through. If you block a public way and a police officer warns you to stop, you should stop blocking the way. If you block the way again in the same area, you can still get a fine, even if you stopped blocking the way the first time.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM53571.

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"Don't stop police or officers from doing their job"

22Obstructing public way

  1. Every person is liable to a fine not exceeding $1,000 who, without reasonable excuse, obstructs any public way and, having been warned by a constable to desist,—

  2. continues with that obstruction; or
    1. does desist from that obstruction but subsequently obstructs that public way again, or some other public way in the same vicinity, in circumstances in which it is reasonable to deem the warning to have applied to the new obstruction as well as the original one.

      1. In this section—

        obstructs, in relation to a public way, means unreasonably impedes normal passage along that way

          public way means every road, street, path, mall, arcade, or other way over which the public has the right to pass and repass.

          Compare
          • 1927 No 35 s 3(eee)
          • 1958 No 87 s 2(1)
          Notes
          • Section 22(1): amended, on , by section 7 of the Summary Offences Amendment Act 1997 (1997 No 97).
          • Section 22(1)(b): amended, on , by section 2 of the Summary Offences Amendment Act 1982 (1982 No 102).