Banned in New South Wales and Victoria but legally declared a toy in Queensland. Legal in South Australia and no regulation whatsoever in Western Australia. Sleek and black gel blasters are next level paintball weapons giving the user a safe way to role play combat with gel balls.
The stink arises because they look like military weapons giving rise to the fear that they can be misused to cause fear of harm. In a time when mass shooting has occurred quite recently in Australia and over the ditch in New Zealand, an additional consideration is that wielding the weapon at the wrong time and place could potentially get a player shot by authorities.
GUNSHY NSW
Just before 10am on 10 October 2010 a young man travelling on a bus in Windang pulled a large black gun from a bag and fired it into a padded seat screen, a second weapon, one resembling a large black machine gun was similarly produced. Intellectually challenged, Jake Lewis Andrew found himself on trial in the District Court for firearms offences. At sentence Judge Haesler SC, found that Under NSW law they came within the definition of firearms despite that members of the public might consider them toys. Although the Judge did not record a conviction on the basis of Andrew’s disability, for anyone else there would likely have been a lengthy term of imprisonment.
ITS ALL FUN UNTIL SOMEONE LOSES AN EYE
In Queensland, gel blasters are toys that are legal to buy and possess. Just recently they have attracted a lot of attention in news and current affairs because of their resemblance to military weapons and misuse by some members of the public. Calls are being made for Queensland to regulate them.
Although a fun sport in Queensland, the look of the weapons still creates unease in the general public seeing a gold coast shop under fire for selling the weapons.
The gel blasters are designed to be less harmful than paint ball guns, there is still the possibility of harm. As in NSW, we are seeing Queenslanders charged with going armed to cause fear, and even assault occasioning actual bodily harm after shooting and injuring passers by with gel blasters.
In the High Court of Australia found that similar replica weapons fall within the meaning “armed” in WA.
In June of this year, two young Queensland boys almost lost their vision after being shot in the face . Police have warned the general public to not bring the lethal looking toys out in public where they can cause fear. In December 2018, a man was charged with being armed to cause fear after producing a gel pistol in public. In Queensland police arrested a man for using a gel blaster to open fire on the general public at a popular lookout. There have been a couple of “school shootings prompting a senior police officer of 30years experience to say he would think someone was armed.
PENALTIES
Legal in South Australia and Queensland. Queensland still provides stiff penalties if the weapons used inappropriately. You can do up to three years goal for openly carrying a gel blaster and up to seven years for shooting someone without their consent.
You really can go to gaol for having, using or selling a gel blaster in NSW. Defined as a firearm in schedule 1 of the Firearms Act 1996, the penalties for having or using gel blasters are identical to those for possessing an actual weapon and not something that is essentially used as a toy and for sport. Merely possessing a gel blaster can carry up to five years imprisonment, more in circumstances of aggravation. More than three gel blasters and you are looking at up to 10 years goal.
There have been a number of mass shootings and school lock downs of late, people are wary of military looking weapons in public places. Gel blasters are for fun and are freely available in Queensland but highly illegal in NSW, unwittingly bringing them across the border can get you into a lot of trouble up to and including gaol.
People are misusing them and are “shooting” others, children as young as four are playing with them and are getting hurt. If you are charged with having a gel blaster or firearms offences you need an experience criminal lawyer to advise you on the law and run your matter or make a plea in mitigation for you call National Criminal Lawyers for the best advice.