Section 23 Penalty for use and possession of firearms or imitation firearms in certain cases
If any person makes or attempts to make any use whatsoever of a firearm or imitation firearm with intent to resist or prevent the lawful apprehension or detention of himself or any other person, he shall be guilty of an offence under this subsection, and on conviction thereof on indictment shall be liable to penal servitude for a term not exceeding fourteen years.
Where any person commits an offence under this subsection in respect of the lawful apprehension or detention of himself for any other offence committed by him, he shall be liable to the penalty provided by this subsection in addition to any penalty to which he may be sentenced for that other offence.
If any person, at the time of his committing, or at the time of his apprehension for, any offence specified in the Third Schedule to this Act, has in his possession any firearm or imitation firearm, he shall, unless he shows that he had it in his possession for a lawful object, be guilty of an offence under this subsection, and on conviction thereof on indictment shall be liable to penal servitude for a term not exceeding seven years in addition to any penalty to which he may be sentenced for the first-mentioned offence.
If on the trial of any person for an offence under subsection (1) of this section the jury are not satisfied that that person is guilty of that offence but are satisfied that he is guilty of an offence under subsection (2) of this section, the jury may find him guilty of the offence under the said subsection (2), and thereupon he shall be liable to be punished accordingly.
Where an adult within the meaning of section twenty-four of the 15 & 16 Geo. 5. c. 86.Criminal Justice Act, 1925, is charged before a court of summary jurisdiction with an offence specified in the Second Schedule to that Act, and is also charged before that court with an offence under subsection (1) or subsection (2) of this section, then, notwithstanding anything in the said section twenty-four, the court shall not have power to deal summarily with the first-mentioned offence if the defendant is committed for trial in respect of the offence under this section.
A firearm or imitation firearm shall, notwithstanding that it is not loaded or is otherwise incapable of discharging any shot, bullet or other missile, be deemed to be an offensive weapon or instrument for the purpose of paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section twenty-three of the 6 & 7 Geo. 5. c. 50.Larceny Act, 1916, and paragraph (1) of section twenty-eight of the said Act.
In this section—
the expression "firearm," means any lethal barrelled weapon of any description from which any shot, bullet or other missile can be discharged, and includes any prohibited weapon, whether it is such a lethal weapon as aforesaid or not; and
the expression - " imitation firearm " means anything which has the appearance of being a firearm within the meaning of this section (other than such a prohibited weapon as is mentioned in paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of section seventeen of this Act), whether it is capable of discharging any shot, bullet or other missile or not.
This section shall not extend to Scotland.