Lord Herbert
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I promised my niece I would buy her a little canister of Pepper Spray or similar for her handbag - not that she had asked me. She's often alone in the Big City, and I worry about her. If it's not men, then it could be vicious dogs off their leash. I put in my order at the Amazon website, and was at the Checkout with my Visa Card when a notice came up saying 'There is a Problem' ... Australia is the problem - not the US where it is freely available. WA is okay though as long as you don't carry your spray can beyond its borders ... or there's a max 14 years in jail ... And so I'm now looking for the Black Market 'option'. The criminals have guns, and mace, and tasers, and butterfly-knives, and christ-knows-what-else ... but the poor sucker Honest Citizen is left relying on ... zero to protect him/herself. *** "I found that pepper spray is legal in Western Australia. In 2003, Justice Christine Wheeler had ruled that those who feared they were at risk of attack could use it in self-defence. She even singled out women walking alone at night as the kind of people who might want it.
But in New South Wales, it falls under the same category of offence as carrying nunchucks, bombs, swords and yes, cross-bows. The Courts have decided that there is no right to carry weapons for self-defence in the absence of imminent harm, which means then that there is no way women can prepare to defend themselves other than at the immediate moment of their being attacked.
So the short answer is no, you cannot carry pepper spray or mace to protect yourself in NSW. This list also covers many more items that you are not permitted to carry to protect yourself. For example, flick knives, kung-dam you sticks, batons, Tasers, and even light-emitting anti-personnel devices that are designed to cause temporary incapacity are also classed as prohibited weapons.
The penalties for using pepper spray or mace
Unauthorised possession or use of pepper spray or mace is a serious offence. It can be prosecuted on indictment, which means you can face a jury trial in the district court. If you are charged on indictment, then the maximum penalty is up to 14 years in prison.
The offence does, however, tend to be prosecuted summarily in the local court, unless the prosecutor elects otherwise. The maximum penalty if this offence is prosecuted in the local court is two years’ imprisonment.linklinklinkAnd so! GREGGORY ~ I want YOU to post me TWO of these pressure-cans of Mace or Pepper-Spray to a numbered Post Office Box near a suburb near me. There'll be a modest commission in it for you.
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