In 2012, Trevon Penn started the small business Minutemen Paintball, setting up an obstacle course at Prospect Reef where groups could play games such as capture the flag using carbon dioxide-powered guns that shoot balls of paint.

 

Mr. Penn would invest some $45,000 over the next two-plus years, leasing and maintaining land for his course and buying dozens of paintball guns, masks, vests and other protective gear.

Last month, legislators amended the Firearms and Air Guns Act, which now recommends minimum sentences for firearms offences. It also bans a variety of weapons, including machine guns, sawed-off shotguns, Tasers and paintball guns.

If Governor John Duncan assents to the bill, Mr. Penn’s business could become illegal and he could be subject to a minimum of five years imprisonment.

This was news to the Virgin Islander, who has since moved his business to Belle Vue, when this reporter contacted him last week for comment on the impending law.

“If what you say is true, my only recourse would be to comply,” he said. “I have no intention to have a business that’s not compliant with the law.”

Licensing issues

Mr. Penn said he hopes to have his equipment licensed in order to keep Minutemen Paintball up and running.

It’s unclear whether he’ll be able to do that.

The amended Firearms and Air Guns Act lays out two different penalties for gun possession: one for possessing an unlicensed firearm and one for possessing a “prohibited weapon.”

Paintball guns fall under the prohibited weapon category, and weapons designated as prohibited are strictly outlawed and cannot be licensed, according to an attorney who declined to be named because of the issue’s political nature.

There is a provision in the amendment that allows the Cabinet to “exempt any person or class of persons” from the ban, but Mr. Penn said he hasn’t been contacted by any lawmakers in relation to the legislation.

“I do support the effort of government in mandating sentencing to make the community safer in relation to firearms,” he said. “But it would be a disservice if [paintball guns] are strictly illegal and not allowed under any circumstance.”

The Belle Vue resident added that he hopes to be compensated if he’s forced to close his business, “because I created an industry that did not exist before.”

Police consultation

At a press conference last month, Premier Dr. Orlando Smith was asked why paintball guns were included in the law’s list of prohibited weapons, and he responded that government consulted the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force and the Attorney General’s Chambers in drafting the bill.

Police Information Officer Diane Drayton confirmed that the RVIPF was consulted in drafting the amendment, but said that Police Commissioner David Morris could not comment on the law until he reads the final legislation, which has not been Gazetted.

Attorney General Baba Aziz did not respond to requests for comment about why paintball guns are prohibited in the law and whether people will be able to obtain licenses for them.

Former Police Commissioner Vernon Malone said he has long supported a policy of increasing prison terms for firearms offences, but that only “weapons of war” should be designated as prohibited weapons.

“I don’t think paintball guns or Tasers should be prohibited weapons,” he said. “You should be able to obtain a license for them.”

Rules abroad

Legislation governing paintball guns varies widely by country. In some jurisdictions, the guns are tightly regulated, and can only be obtained with a licence. In others, they are virtually unregulated and can be bought over the counter.

The list of prohibited weapons in the VI amendment is a near verbatim copy of legislation in place in New South Wales, Australia.

Both lists ban specific makes such as “Uberti or Armi-Jager brands” and weapons “made up in the form of a stylographic or propelling pen or pencil.” The only difference between the two lists is that the VI legislation bans Tasers and the NSW law bans replica firearms.

However, it seems that people in NSW can now obtain permits for paintball guns, according to a permit application form on the government’s site dated January 2014.

Amnesty?

If it turns out that Mr. Penn can’t license his paintball guns or obtain permission to continue operating Minutemen Paintball, he might have the opportunity to turn them in without being charged as a criminal.

Education and Culture Minister Myron Walwyn called for a gun amnesty to take place before the law takes effect, where people can turn in their firearms to the police without being sanctioned, and the RVIPF is considering such a programme.

“Discussions are now taking place in relation to a gun amnesty,” Ms. Drayton said.

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