Laraine Ludwig spent what would have been her son’s birthday demanding answers from the state government after another young man was allegedly fatally stabbed on the Hobart waterfront.
A 20-year-old man died and another was injured after being stabbed in a car park near Salamanca just after midnight on Saturday.
Ludwig’s son Reid was 41 when he was killed in a knife attack in Blackmans Bay in 2019.
Six years later, on what should have been his birthday, she said she was angry more hadn’t been done to prevent further tragedies.
“People are asking me today, weren’t the wands meant to act as a deterrent from carrying knives?” she said.
Reid’s Law, which gives police powers to use metal-detecting wands, passed in May after years of advocacy by Ludwig and community supporters.
“We were told police would be using wands routinely at known hot spots like Salamanca and the docks,” she said.
“If that’s not happening, we deserve to know why.”
Ludwig is demanding the government answer how many wands are available for police statewide, whether wanding was conducted at Salamanca over the weekend and if there is a routine roster for using them in nightlife precincts.
“It’s been six years since my son was killed. Since then, we’ve seen further knife attacks and deaths and still we’re waiting for the government and the police to respond,” she said.
Tasmania Police told Pulse select officers undertook a trial of the use of metal detection wands for three months from December 2024.
“The trial, which comprised of 15 wands statewide, ended in March,” police said.
“Since the end of the trial, the 15 wands have been used periodically across the state.”
Police Minister Felix Ellis said the most recent state election had delayed a broader rollout.
“Unfortunately, Labor’s unnecessary election has meant that funding for a permanent rollout of metal detection wands has not yet occurred,” he said.
“We’re ready to make sure police have these vital tools for community safety as soon as the interim budget passes.”
The interim budget will go before parliament in November.
“If police have the powers and the tools, they need to use them. And if they don’t, then this government must explain why not,” she said.
“We need to do everything we can to stop knife crime and it’s time for the government to act rather than gaslight the community.”
