Data released under Freedom of Information Laws has shown that more than 120 girls under the age of 18 have been strip-searched by NSW police since 2016.
While the law allows police to strip search children between the ages of 10 and 18 when a parent or guardian is present in regular circumstances, it also lets them search a child without the presence of a parent or guardian as long as they think the circumstances are ‘urgent’.
RLC's head of police accountability, Samantha Lee, says that a law should be implemented to prohibit the use of strip searches on children.