South Australian Consolidated Acts

FIREARMS ACT 1977 - SECT 27

27—Manufacture of firearms or firearm parts

        (1)         Subject to this section, a person who—

            (a)         manufactures a firearm or firearm part; or

            (b)         takes part in the manufacture of a firearm or firearm part,

is guilty of an offence.

        (2)         Subsection (1) does not apply to the manufacture of a firearm or firearm part by a person in the ordinary course of carrying on business as a licensed dealer pursuant to the licence.

        (3)         It is a defence to prosecution for an offence against subsection (1) to prove that, in the case of a firearm part, the firearm part was a firearm part for a firearm registered in the name of, or otherwise in the lawful custody of, the person who manufactured the firearm part.

        (4)         For the purposes of this section, a person takes part in the manufacture of a firearm or firearm part if—

            (a)         the person takes, or participates in, any step, or causes any step to be taken, in the process of manufacture of the firearm or firearm part; or

            (b)         the person provides or arranges finance for any step in that process; or

            (c)         the person provides the premises in which any step in that process is taken, or suffers or permits any step in that process to be taken in premises of which the person is an owner, lessee or occupier or of which the person has care, control or management.

        (5)         Subject to subsection (6), the maximum penalty for an offence against this section is as follows:

            (a)         if the firearm is a prescribed firearm or the firearm part is a firearm part for a prescribed firearm—$75 000 or imprisonment for 15 years;

            (b)         if the firearm is a class C, D or H firearm or the firearm part is a firearm part for a class C, D or H firearm—$50 000 or imprisonment for 10 years;

            (c)         if the firearm or firearm part is any other kind of firearm or firearm part—$35 000 or imprisonment for 7 years.

        (6)         A person who has not previously been found guilty of an offence against this section may, at the discretion of the prosecutor, be prosecuted for a summary offence against this section except where the firearm is a prescribed firearm or the firearm part is a firearm part for a prescribed firearm, but on conviction of a summary offence against this section the maximum penalty is $10 000 or imprisonment for 2 years.