AmbergrisCaye.com Home Forums Talk Belize Chat Area Personal Taser

No offense to your (partner in the back office) but that's sort of dubious legal authority! :p what precedent??

In 1974, a NASA scientist named Jack Cover invented the first stun gun, which he named the TASER, or "Thomas A. Swift Electric Rifle," after Tom Swift, a fictional young inventor who was the hero of a series of early 20th century adventure novels. Because it relied on gunpowder, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms classified Tasers as registered firearms. That changed in the early '90s when co-founder Rick Smith became interested in the device. In 1993, with money from Smith's brother Tom, they created Air Taser Inc., which would later become Taser International Inc. When Tasers were re-engineered to work with a nitrogen propellant rather than gunpowder, the weapon was no longer categorized as a firearm.
The Taser premiered in 2000-a model eventually redesigned as the M-26. By the following year, 750 law enforcement agencies had either tested or deployed the weapon. Today, more than 9,500 law enforcement, correctional and military agencies in 43 countries use Taser weaponry. In the past eight years, more than 184,000 Tasers have been sold to law enforcement agencies, with another 115,000 to citizens in the 43 states where it is legal to possess a stun gun. Taser's stun guns are designed to shoot a maximum of 50,000 volts into a person's body through two compressed nitrogen-fueled probes, thereby disrupting the target's electromuscular system. The probes are connected to the Taser gun by insulated wires, and can deliver repeat shocks in quick succession. The probes can pierce clothing and skin from a distance or be directly applied to a person's body-a process known as "dry stunning"-for an ostensibly less-incapacitating, cattle-prod effect.

You asked for MY legal authority? His sister runs the Border Management Agency at the Santa Elena border.

"the weapon was no longer categorized as a firearm."

That's not a gun...........











This is a gun.........

Thats true, Bobber but the clown picture with his mouth open holding a gun is a pretty close third!

Yep SIN - that's a gun.
Seems you and I define legal authority differently. What I was looking for was citation to some portion of Belize law that specifically either includes or excludes Tasers from categorization as firearms. I can't locate any.

In the U.S., the Govt. Accountability Ofc. notes the discrepancy in defination present at state and federal level:
"In reviewing various laws, including statutes, regulations, and ordinances, we found that Tasers were addressed in some federal, state, and local jurisdictions. We also found that these jurisdictions had different requirements for regulating Tasers. In some instances, the extent to which Tasers are regulated in these jurisdictions may depend on whether the Taser is classified as a firearm."

Um, Leah-Ann, I believe the issue of the legality of possession of taser tech instruments in Belize would be based upon Belize law or policy, and we all know that such is not always reduced to writing in Belize.

You make my point exactly, iluvbelize. The law is not settled in US, I'm looking to see if it is in Belize, which is why I wondered if there was any legal authority which could be cited to address the issue!

Belize It!

I guess she would know more than anyone. I would think since it is not a firearm may be the reason it is not in the firearm law, similar to the omittance of spear and nail guns?

umm, well, you did make my point - before you changed your post!