Indigenous legal services have raised alarm over new legislation before South Australia's parliament, warning it risks trapping children in the justice system for life.

The Criminal Law Consolidation (Street Gangs) Amendment Bill was introduced earlier this month, with the government arguing it will give police the tools to crack down on gangs and repeat young offenders. The reforms would allow the Commissioner of Police to apply to the Supreme Court to declare a group a "street gang," enabling the court — including the Youth Court — to impose control orders and restrictions on individuals.

The government has likened the laws to those used against Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (OMCGs), saying street gangs commit similar offences.

"No evidence it will work"

Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement (ALRM) chief executive Klynton Wanganeen said the laws were being rushed through without proof they would be effective, and warned they would make communities less safe.

He says the "harmful legislation" risked criminalising children for their friends, appearance and identity, while granting police "extraordinary powers" to surveil and target them.

"We cannot sit by and allow laws to pass that criminalise our children and put them on the express lane to a life of crime," Mr Wanganeen said.

"The control orders and over-surveillance this bill proposes will not make communities safer. They will make communities more dangerous, result in more young people trapped in the justice system and compound the trauma our communities endure."

The Narungga and Ngarrindjeri leader also criticised the government for keeping youth justice reform submissions secret, calling it a "red flag".

"Calling for submissions is a good first step, but those submissions have to be assessed by Aboriginal Leaders, and recommendations made by Aboriginal Leaders should be implemented to reduce these behaviours," he said.

Government: keeping "community safe"

Attorney-General Kyam Maher defended the bill, saying it was drafted in close consultation with SA Police and designed to prevent children from being recruited into gangs.

"No gang member should think they can keep their hands from getting dirty by grooming a child to do their bidding for them," he said. "We are slamming the door shut before the next child is dragged down the wrong path."

Mr Maher added: "Unlike Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs, street gangs tend to have a more fluid composition, structure and hierarchy, as well as a membership which can include youths. This Bill will provide police with another approach to adequately address the risk posed to the community by the criminal activities of street gangs."

"Political point-scoring over safety"

National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services (NATSILS) general manager Melissa Clarke said the government was putting politics ahead of evidence and community safety.

She noted South Australia already has the second-lowest youth crime rate in the country, behind the ACT, with police proceedings against children falling 17 per cent in 2023–24.

"Over the last five years, the rate of young people in detention has also declined. The results have come from solutions that work — diversion, early intervention, and therapeutic supports — not through criminalising children further," she said.

Ms Clarke said Attorney-General Maher had a choice: he could "scapegoat" children or "invest in addressing the root causes of offending".

"The proposed laws will increase racial profiling and disproportionately target Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children — and the Attorney-General knows that," she said.

"The Attorney General needs to take the time to speak with Aboriginal community-controlled organisations and listen. But if he insists on fast-tracking a Bill that will make communities more dangerous, he is choosing to ignore both the evidence and our communities."