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FrozenGate by Avery

2000mW 450nm Blue Laser Pointer Legal/Illegal

buttonnz

buttonnz

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Dec 19, 2012
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At what point will a pointer of this power become illegal, my farther owns a firearms licence and any prosecution within the family will effect this. Obviously shinning it at people eyes/pilots is fairly obvious but what if i was shinning it in the sky and a helicopter was nearby... but i was not shinning near the vehicle?



Any replies appreciated




Regards,
Jack
 





Preface - I don't know about laws in the UK, but I would imagine they are similar to what we have here in the US.

Any time that a pilot sees a laser beam, regardless of them being hit, they are technically supposed to report the event, and it is considered an incident. There is no way to know how many reports are made when a beam does not come anywhere near a pilot though.

100% it is illegal in both the UK and the US to illuminate an aircraft by any means. Technically this means even shining a flashlight at a plane is illegal.

In terms of enforcement, most cops have better (more profitable for the town) things to do, and with lasers being a gray legal area, and unless you are specifically shining at airplanes/helicopters I doubt it would be a problem.

Always check the sky for airplanes and helicopters. If you are very near to an airport, don't use a laser there AT ALL.

If you hear, or see, an airplane of helicopter, turn off your laser! If you're not sure, TURN OFF YOUR LASER.
 
Say for instance i was searched by a police officer in the street for no reason and i complied and they found this, could they confiscate it even though i wasn't using it? is it classed as an offensive weapon?
 
Why dont you call the police dept and ask? Ask a beat cop patrolling the area? Ask a lawyer... Im pretty sure that if I was searched here in the US for looking suspicious, they would take my laser if I had it on me. With the focus lens sticking out the end it does not look like a flashlight. An officer could say you have a concealed weapon if you told him the power output... He might be cool or not, but would depend on why he was asking to search your person to begin with. Once an officer askes to search you it normally means either he is about to arrest you, or is looking for a reason to...
 
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buttonnz said:
Say for instance i was searched by a police officer in the street for no reason and i complied and they found this, could they confiscate it even though i wasn't using it? is it classed as an offensive weapon?
Click to expand...

Depending on the specifics of the situation, yes they could. No way to know know if they actually would though.

I have been frisked by a cop last year on halloween, they were searching everyone coming out of the bar. He looked at my laser, I told him what it was, and what not to do with it. Also told him that it is not illegal (which in the US is true, possession of laser is legal). It helped a great deal that the laser had a key safety, and when he clicked the button, absolutely nothing happened.

He did take a small 2" keychain knife, I had on my keychain... it was also legal, but frankly it wasn't worth the argument over something that's $5.

We talked for a bit, and went out separate ways. Actually gave me his business/police card, said he wanted to know more about lasers. One of the nicer cops I've ever dealt with.

This is a HUGE reason I'm a big fan of the lasers offered by skylasers/laserbtb.

I also wouldn't bother asking a beat cop about legalities. Cops are taught/told, if it looks dangerous take it, let the courts figure it out.

If you keep the laser and the battery separate, your chances of getting in trouble would also be significantly reduced. Also helps if the laser looks relatively innocent, as opposed to say having an assault crown.
 
I live in the uk
I was showing a friend my laser. Not pointing it in the sky or near anyone!
The police see the beam as it was dark and the blue lasers are very visible.
They took the laser and gave me a slip that said they are going to dispose of it!

I was not happy at all.

So as to your question. Id say it depends what your doing with the laser
and what cop catches you with it.



Regards. Richard
 
Cheers Richard,

Seems the usual if the police seem to not like it its illegal.

May i ask howthe police caught you?


Regards,
Jack
 
I was shining the laser towards a wall
The police said they have to take it "incase" i start shining it at people, cars or airoplanes
I kept the batterys as thats the only thing they would let me keep.

I doubt they would arrest you unless you was doing something you shouldnt be doing. Ie. shining it at airoplanes.

And depending on what the officer is like. They my just be impressed by it and leave you with it.
 
I guess i just better be careful and if im in public look out for police :L would any of you see problems with UK customs as im importing it from China?
 
Thanks Ciaran the English laws are a bit hit and miss so wanted to see if anyone had any experience with the law

Speaking of the law the new Dredd film is awesome ( off topic sorry :) )

Thanks for the replies guys!


Regards,
Jack
 
Now I understand better why you hold such a strong position on the safeties Infin. Makes sense.
I personally don't leave my property with them (except for a <5mw greenie pen that if I break/lose etc... would be no big deal). I don't drink and don't really go anywhere that cops might frequent. I am NOT judging anyone so please don't anyone take offense (I was just telling the truth about myself). As we all know, once you fire one of these up (even a <5mw 532nm) it can attract ALOT of attention.
Can't imagine what would happen if I was driving down the road with my cases full of these units and for some reason my vehicle was searched. A cop sees a couple of locked cases and he's not going to let you walk without seeing what's inside. I say this even though I know many police officers personally (a cousin,police chief of the town next to mine, an associate pastor that I see every Sunday and Wednesday, 3 others at church one of which sits right behind me in the pews etc..).
I have never showed or talked to any one of them about lasers. For now I'm into the "don't ask don't tell". I am certainly concerned about idiots ruining things for the rest of us especially as the prices keep dropping on high powered units.
My curiosity says I would like to know more about what happened with this particular incident. Did he actually see it fired up? It sounds like he had not dealt with something like this before.
For sharing the info. with the rest of us. a big :thanks:

Is there a thread about this kind of thing on our forums? Personal experiences and how to deal with a situation that could come up?
 
Had a quick look couldn't find any threads with experiences, might be good to start one up and see how much of the community has had encounters with the law?
 
The law in the UK is a grey area. Lasers are looked upon like hammers or knives. While it isn't illegal to carry them around a certain amount of sense is required.

I get more paranoid about shining them and now save it for when I am visiting my parents (they live in a semi-remote area).

I did have one experience but may just be paranoid. I was waiting to shine my laser and there was a plane coming so obviously did not. After it had passed I was shining the laser to the West and to the East another plane was coming.

I wasn't shining it anywhere near its flight path but switched it off anyway. Now about 2 minutes later a helicopter with a blue light under came straight towards where I was. I put the laser in my pocket and went inside.

As the helicopter went over the blue light was replaced with a white light (search?). I don't know whether I was being paranoid but found it little more than coincidence.

I would never shine at a person, vehicle or plane/helicopter but after that experience I am even now more cautious.

My friend ordered from Lazerpoint - it got stuck in customs but was released in the end. If you have any concerns about importing try http://odicforce.com/shop/catalog/b...xk0X4AXlLtuBOqZu80Lbiyh68zneaVM83&shop_param=
 
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