Legality

[paulidis]

Hi all. I bought some airsoft guns from wall mart. the ones that are clear and orange plastic. Police took them away from me after receiving a call that I was shooting off an apartment balcony (stupid idea on my part). So the police told me that it was a warning and if i am caught with airsoft toys again I will be charged.

On one hand I side with the law - you shouldn't be irresponsible when handling these toys.

On the other hand, I have a right to own toy guns if I want to.

I am thinking of getting a pardon so I can own toy guns again.

I love guns for their engineering and for sport target shooting.

I am a prompt tax payer and loyal citizen - I make a lot of money per year and give almost half of it to the government.

I deserve to own toy guns if I wish.

I took up paintballing and now own a tiberius 8 paintball pistol and Im concerned I may be found with it while going to a paintball meet.

What can I do? Speak to a lawyer?

[fantastix]

It's not an airsoft issue, it's a public safety issue. If you ran down the street all Yosemite Sam like with any kind of dangerous device, I'd expect them to be confiscated. You lose the rights to possession by being a jackass.

I'd consider yourself lucky you got away without charges and move on to a different hobby. Supersoakers are all the rage this year.

Edit: You weren't shooting at people off the balcony were you? If so, you should be supremely grateful you aren't typing this from a cell.

[Jaelommiss]

Originally Posted by paulidis

Hi all. I bought some airsoft guns from wall mart. the ones that are clear and orange plastic. Police took them away from me after receiving a call that I was shooting off an apartment balcony (stupid idea on my part). So the police told me that it was a warning and if i am caught with airsoft toys again I will be charged.

On one hand I side with the law - you shouldn't be irresponsible when handling these toys.

On the other hand, I have a right to own toy guns if I want to.

I am thinking of getting a pardon so I can own toy guns again.

I love guns for their engineering and for sport target shooting.

I am a prompt tax payer and loyal citizen - I make a lot of money per year and give almost half of it to the government.

I deserve to own toy guns if I wish.

I took up paintballing and now own a tiberius 8 paintball pistol and Im concerned I may be found with it while going to a paintball meet.

What can I do? Speak to a lawyer?

As far as I know, there is no right to own toy guns. Sure, there's nothing wrong with it if used responsibly, however by shooting them somewhere you can be seen (the police wouldn't know if no one saw you do it) you have stopped using them in a responsible fashion and, in my opinion, are no longer fit to own them. I'm not even going to touch the issue of by-laws againt discharging firearms. Some cities have it, others don't, but no matter how you look at it, it's a bad idea.

It's good that you recognize that shooting from a balcony was a bad idea. Just learn from this and move on. Walmart guns aren't anything to lose sleep over.

If I made any mistakes here feel free to correct me. I'm still new myself and would love to learn more on the subject.

[DC_ACU]

If you side with the law, why the hell where you shooting it off your balcony? You're aware those little projectiles comply with the laws of gravity, right?
I don't think you have many options, I have tons of friends that have weapons bans for stupider things than what you claim you did, who would love to be in airsoft events, but simply CAN'T.

[Fuzzy]

You deserve to own an airsoft gun? You should have thought about that before you thought you deserved to shoot them from your balcony.

[PARKINGLOT]

I just want to throw this out there...
Say you had some airsoft gear and guns and you are walking home from a game. The LEO sees you walking and stops you. How will you charged? You're technically not doing anything wrong....

What you did was a dumb-ass idea but at least you learned. Everyone has done at least one stupid thing in their lives.....learning from it is the importent thing.....

[Foxer2373]

Originally Posted by fantastix

If you ran down the street all Yosemite Sam

Hands down best comment of the day!

[JonsM4]

Originally Posted by paulidis

Hi all. I bought some airsoft guns from wall mart. the ones that are clear and orange plastic. Police took them away from me after receiving a call that I was shooting off an apartment balcony (stupid idea on my part). So the police told me that it was a warning and if i am caught with airsoft toys again I will be charged.

On one hand I side with the law - you shouldn't be irresponsible when handling these toys.

On the other hand, I have a right to own toy guns if I want to.

I am thinking of getting a pardon so I can own toy guns again.

I love guns for their engineering and for sport target shooting.

I am a prompt tax payer and loyal citizen - I make a lot of money per year and give almost half of it to the government.

I deserve to own toy guns if I wish.

I took up paintballing and now own a tiberius 8 paintball pistol and Im concerned I may be found with it while going to a paintball meet.

What can I do? Speak to a lawyer?

Stupid of you for shooting off from your balcony. Lesson learned and move on.
Did the cop asked for your ID and record your info?

[Stealthee]

Originally Posted by PARKINGLOT

I just want to throw this out there...
Say you had some airsoft gear and guns and you are walking home from a game. The LEO sees you walking and stops you. How will you charged? You're technically not doing anything wrong....

What you did was a dumb-ass idea but at least you learned. Everyone has done at least one stupid thing in their lives.....learning from it is the importent thing.....

I don't think they can charge you, but it's recommended that you keep gun cases out of sight. EDIT: Assuming it was in a case in the first place. Guns outside of the case in public is definitely a no-no.

[John Spartan]

Originally Posted by PARKINGLOT

I just want to throw this out there...
Say you had some airsoft gear and guns and you are walking home from a game. The LEO sees you walking and stops you. How will you charged? You're technically not doing anything wrong....

An incident similar to what you are describing actually took place near the TAC11 convention (i.e. a person was walking in the open with uncased airsoft weapons) last year. The end result was that the Toronto ETF were called to respond. You never want that to happen.

You might not be charged but I am willing to bet that your toys will be confiscated as a result of the incident.

[Dynamo]

Originally Posted by paulidis

Hi all. I bought some airsoft guns from wall mart. the ones that are clear and orange plastic. Police took them away from me after receiving a call that I was shooting off an apartment balcony (stupid idea on my part). So the police told me that it was a warning and if i am caught with airsoft toys again I will be charged.

you are lucky they didn't storm your apartment guns drawn, and arrest everyone in it.

Originally Posted by paulidis

On one hand I side with the law - you shouldn't be irresponsible when handling these toys.

On the other hand, I have a right to own toy guns if I want to.

it is not a right to own anything in Canada, it's a privilege. abuse it and you loose it.

Originally Posted by paulidis

I am thinking of getting a pardon so I can own toy guns again.

I love guns for their engineering and for sport target shooting.

I am a prompt tax payer and loyal citizen - I make a lot of money per year and give almost half of it to the government.

I deserve to own toy guns if I wish.

entitled brat much? you lost your ownership privileges the second you stepped out onto your balcony and fired. (discharging an uncontrolled/replica firearm is illegal within city limits) be thankful all you got was a warning and your toys taken from your irresponsible hands.

Originally Posted by paulidis

I took up paintballing and now own a tiberius 8 paintball pistol and Im concerned I may be found with it while going to a paintball meet.

What can I do? Speak to a lawyer?

being as they specifically told you to stay away from airsoft, i think you should be fine with paintball.. so long as you don't do anything stupid/illegal with it.

[ThunderCactus]

To answer your question, yes it's legal to own airsoft guns, but treat them like real firearms.
Because as far as the police are concerned, if they LOOK real, then they ARE real.

If they want to charge you with something, you'll be charged with something, whether or not you're guilty is up to the courts.

[Freeze]

"A smart man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others."
Keep this in mind and be responsible with your own actions.
I mean, if you were seen walking around with a kitchen knife in your hand, people would call the police in 2.4 seconds. They aren't illegal, but they are certainly dangerous. It is all about responsible use. Kind of like safe sex.

And ThunderCactus, aren't airsoft guns already classified as firearms? Unregulated firearms, but firearms nonetheless. So saying you should treat them like real firearms is kind of redundant since they are technically firearms.

[Brian McIlmoyle]

Originally Posted by paulidis

. So the police told me that it was a warning and if i am caught with airsoft toys again I will be charged.

you were not charged..

"if caught again...... with airsoft guns"

here is the part they left out.. but implied in that warning.

"being a fucking idiot"

it is not illegal to own airsoft guns...

but you may be to much of a "fucking idiot" to manage it without being arrested.

you only need a pardon if you were charged and convicted..

so not only are you " a fucking idiot" but it also appears you are also as "dumb as a stone"

maybe it's best you stick with paintball


looks like I tee'd off in the noob tank.... where stupid questions are tolerated.. and even welcomed... but... there are limits no?

I apologize in advance if my post seems harsh..

[Pinard]

Originally Posted by Brian McIlmoyle

you were not charged..

"if caught again...... with airsoft guns"

here is the part they left out.. but implied in that warning.

"being a fucking idiot"

it is not illegal to own airsoft guns...

but you may be to much of a "fucking idiot" to manage it without being arrested.

you only need a pardon if you were charged and convicted..

so not only are you " a fucking idiot" but it also appears you are also as "dumb as a stone"

maybe it's best you stick with paintball


looks like I tee'd off in the noob tank.... where stupid questions are tolerated.. and even welcomed... but... there are limits no?

I apologize in advance if my post seems harsh..

stupid questions yes... but being a dickhead is not welcome... that was one heck of a stupid move LMAO