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12 1990

FIREARMS AND OFFENSIVE WEAPONS ACT, 1990

PART II

Amendments to Firearms Acts

Collective citation and construction.

3. —(1) The Firearms Acts, 1925 to 1971, and this Part may be cited together as the Firearms Acts, 1925 to 1990.

(2) The Firearms Acts, 1925 to 1971 (other than the Firearms (Proofing) Act, 1968) and this Part shall be construed together as one.

Extension of Firearms Acts to crossbows and stun guns.

4. —(1) In the Firearms Acts, 1925 to 1990, “firearm” means—

(a) a lethal firearm or other lethal weapon of any description from which any shot, bullet or other missile can be discharged;

(b) an air gun (which expression includes an air rifle and an air pistol) or any other weapon incorporating a barrel from which metal or other slugs can be discharged;

(c) a crossbow;

(d) any type of stun gun or other weapon for causing any shock or other disablement to a person by means of electricity or any other kind of energy emission;

(e) a prohibited weapon as defined in section 1 (1) of the Firearms Act, 1925 ;

(f) any article which would be a firearm under any of the foregoing paragraphs but for the fact that, owing to the lack of a necessary component part or parts, or to any other defect or condition, it is incapable of discharging a shot, bullet or other missile or of causing a shock or other disablement (as the case may be);

(g) save where the context otherwise requires, any component part of any article referred to in any of the foregoing paragraphs and, for the purposes of this definition, the following articles shall be deemed to be such component parts as aforesaid:

(i) telescope sights with a light beam, or telescope sights with an electronic light amplification device or an infra-red device, designed to be fitted to a firearm specified in paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (e), and

(ii) a silencer designed to be fitted to a firearm specified in paragraph (a), (b) or (e).

(2) The following provisions are hereby repealed:

(a) the definition of “firearm” in section 1 (1) of the Firearms Act, 1925 , and in section 1 of the Firearms (Proofing) Act, 1968 , and

(b) section 2 of the Firearms Act, 1964 , and section 2 of the Firearms Act, 1971 .

Amendment of section 10 of Firearms Act, 1925 .

5. —The Firearms Act, 1925 , is hereby amended by the insertion in section 10 after subsection (3) of the following subsection:

“(3A) (a) A person shall not sell, transfer or otherwise dispose of a firearm or ammunition for a firearm to a person who habitually resides, or to a body at an address, in a country that stands prescribed for the time being for the purposes of this section unless the superintendent of the Garda Síochána of the district in which the firearm or ammunition is kept, being satisfied that the transaction is authorised by the competent authorities of that country, also authorises it.

(b) This subsection is without prejudice to the other provisions of this section and to section 16 of this Act but subsection (4) of that section does not apply to a firearm or ammunition for a firearm carried by a person from the State for the purpose of transferring it permanently to such a country as aforesaid.

(c) In this subsection ‘firearm’ does not include a firearm specified in paragraph (c) or (d) (or in paragraph (f) or (g) so far as either of those paragraphs relates to the said paragraph (c) or (d)) of section 4 (1) of the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Act, 1990.”.

Authorisation to hold defective firearm without firearm certificate.

6. —(1) The superintendent of the Garda Síochána of a district may grant an authorisation in writing to a person resident in the district, not being a person disentitled under the Firearms Acts, 1925 to 1990, to hold a firearm certificate, to have in his possession, without a firearm certificate, a firearm where he is satisfied that the firearm would not be a firearm but for section 4 (1) (f) and that the person has a good reason for wishing to keep it and may be permitted to do so without danger to the public safety or the peace.

(2) The superintendent of the district where the holder of an authorisation under this section resides may, at any time, attach to the authorisation any conditions, whether as regards safe custody or otherwise, which he considers necessary and may at any time revoke the authorisation.

Possession, sale, etc., of silencers.

7. —(1) A person shall be guilty of an offence if he has in his possession or sells or transfers to another person a silencer unless the possession, sale or transfer is authorised in writing by the superintendent of the district in which the first-mentioned person resides.

(2) A superintendent shall not grant an authorisation under this section unless he is satisfied that the person who is to have possession of the silencer or to whom it is to be sold or transferred is the holder of a firearm certificate for a firearm to which the silencer can be fitted and that—

(a) having regard to all the circumstances, the possession, sale or transfer concerned will not endanger the public safety or the peace, and

(b) the person has a special need that is, in the opinion of the superintendent, sufficient to justify the granting of the authorisation for the silencer.

(3) The superintendent of the district where the holder of an authorisation under this section resides may, at any time, attach to the authorisation such conditions as he considers necessary for the purpose of preventing danger to the public or to the peace or of ensuring that the silencer is used only to satisfy the special need for which the authorisation was granted.

(4) An authorisation under this section may be granted for such period not exceeding one year as is specified in the authorisation and may be revoked by the superintendent of the district where its holder resides.

(5) A person who contravenes a condition attached to an authorisation under this section shall be guilty of an offence.

(6) A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both, or

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or to both.

(7) This section does not apply in relation to a person specified in paragraph (b), (c) or (d) of subsection (3) of section 2 of the Firearms Act, 1925 , or paragraph (a) or (b) of subsection (4) (inserted by the Firearms Act, 1964) of that section.

(8) In this section—

silencer” means a silencer specified in section 4 (1) (g);

superintendent” means a superintendent of the Garda Síochána.

Reckless discharge of firearm.

8. —A person who discharges a firearm being reckless as to whether any person will be injured or not, shall be guilty of an offence, whether any such injury is caused or not, and shall be liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding twelve months or to both, or

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or to both.