Gun Laws in Cyberia

Gun Laws in Cyberia are a joint effort between the Department of Defense and Department of Justice in the regulation of firearms placed in the hands of all denizens. Cyberian gun licenses and gun classifications are required for the selling, usage, and purchase of all guns in the Antarctic State. In the past, licenses and gun classes were determined only by average muzzle energy of the firearm, which was measured in joules. However today it is now determined by power, fittingly enough sometimes referred to as "firepower", which is officially measured in joules per second, otherwise known as watts. This measurement takes into account the weight of the projectile(s), the velocity of the projectile(s), and the rate at which the gun fires.

This is to say, guns are classified by the rate at which they deliver kinetic energy.

Joules are equal to the muzzle energy of the firearm, which is determined by the formula for kinetic energy:

${\displaystyle \color{white}E_k = \frac{1}{2}mv^2}$

where:

${\displaystyle \color{white}E_k}$ is kinetic energy in joules,
${\displaystyle \color{white}m}$ is projectile mass in kilograms,
${\displaystyle \color{white}v}$ is projectile velocity in meters per second.

For the purposes of gun classification, firearm power is calculated with the following formula:

${\displaystyle \color{white}W = \frac{J}{s} = E_k\cdot\frac{R}{60}}$

where:

${\displaystyle \color{white}W}$ is watts,
${\displaystyle \color{white}J}$ is joules,
${\displaystyle \color{white}s}$ is one second,
${\displaystyle \color{white}R}$ is rate of fire in rounds per minute.

Remember, 1 watt (${\displaystyle \color{white}W}$) is equal to 1 joule per second (${\displaystyle \color{white}\frac{J}{s}}$) and vice versa.

A set of example guns and where they fall in the classification system.

Gun licenses are required to buy and own firearms in Cyberia. Those who attempt to purchase a firearm without a license are immediately turned away. Similarly, those who attempt to purchase a firearm that is outside the scope of their license's class are also immediately turned away. Those who are in possession of a firearm while unable to present a proper government-issued license are to be immediately detained.

Carry Permits

Possession of a sufficient class of firearm license permits the open carrying of that class of firearm.

Concealing the firearm on one's person requires the addition of a C to the license class (Example: Class II turns into Class IIC). This permittance requires the passage of an in-depth firearms self-defense class, which clears up common misconceptions about carry-type self-defense on top of training attendees how to properly deal with an attacker.

Class Zero

This class of gun license is a certification that the owner has passed all necessary courses in general firearm safety and firearm education. It is possible for high school students to take an elective gun education course for class zero licenses.

• Passage of general firearm safety class.
• Passage of firearm operations class.

Class Zero license holders are able to:

• Take Class I license courses.

Class I

• Previous ownership of a Class Zero firearms license.
• Physical demonstration of basic safety with and handling of handguns.
• Recurring background checking.

Class I license holders are able to:

• Purchase and own Class I firearms (powers less than 5000 J/s).
• Take Class II license courses.

Class II

• Previous ownership of a Class I firearms license in good standing.
• Physical demonstration of basic safety with and handling of machine pistols and pump-action shotguns.
• Strict recurring background checking.

Class II license holders are able to:

• Purchase and own Class II (powers equal to and greater than 5000 J/s and less than 10,000 J/s) and all preceding class firearms.
• Take Class III license courses.

Class III

• Previous ownership of a Class II firearms license in good standing.
• Physical demonstration of basic safety with and handling of intermediate-cartridge rifles.
• Strict recurring background checking.

Class III license holders are able to:

• Purchase and own Class III (powers equal to and greater than 10,000 J/s and less than 30,000 J/s) and all preceding class firearms.
• Take Class IV license courses.

Class IV

• Previous ownership of a Class III firearms license in good standing.
• Physical demonstration of basic safety with and handling of full-power rifles.
• Most strict recurring background checking.

Class IV license holders are able to:

• Purchase and own Class IV (powers equal to and greater than 30,000 J/s and less than 500,000 J/s) and all preceding class firearms.
• Take Class V license courses.

Class V

• Previous ownership of a Class IV firearms license in good standing.
• Military training, effectively barring civilians from acquisition.
• Most strict recurring background checking.

Class V license holders are able to:

• Purchase and own Class V firearms (powers greater than 500,000 J/s) and all preceding class firearms.

Regulation

The public is affected by gun license and classification laws in the context of possession, transportation, selling, buying, and usage of firearms. These laws apply to non-citizens, citizens, and government personnel in kind.

In order to purchase a firearm, one must present their gun license physically in the context of gun shops, or have it able to be brought up digitally in the context of online shops. Digital verification of a person's class and status of gun license, whether revoked or in good standing, can be requested from the Identification Bureau.

Selling

Any place that facilitates the selling of physical firearms, whether online or in-person, must be certified to do so by the Cyberian government in order to stand as a legitimate business. These businesses must check each and every customer for the proper licenses necessary in order to purchase firearms of the corresponding class or lower. Again, digital verification of a person's class and status of gun license, whether revoked or in good standing, can be requested from the Identification Bureau.

Transportation

Personal transportation of firearms requires the same license necessary to purchase and own said firearms. Transportation by courier is allowed only if the company which employs the courier is certified by the Cyberian government to handle the transportation of firearms (which includes the company training employees on safe transportation of firearms), and if that courier is on-duty at the time they are transporting the firearms.

Violations and Repercussions

Violations of firearm law in Cyberia is met with perhaps aggressive repercussion even in some subjectively mild cases.

Those who attempt to purchase a firearm outside the scope of their license or lack thereof are often reported by the company selling the product, and subsequently are investigated by various government units, and in some cases visited by police agencies. Further attempts to purchase outside one's license class is met with official revocation of said license, a search warrant being issued, forceful disarmament by Riot Control personnel, and fines imposed as well as possible jail or prison time.

Those who are found to be in possession of a firearm or firearms of a particular class without also being able to physically present their license of sufficient class, are to be temporarily detained and subjected to a short investigation that involves requesting license information from the Identification Bureau. If they are found to be with a proper license of sufficient class, they are released. If they are found to be without a license, or without one of sufficient class, they are to be disarmed immediately, aggressively if needed, and are then given fines and jail or prison time, depending on severity.

Shotguns

• Q: How are shotguns classified?
• A: The standard for shotgun classification is taken with 12 gauge, 00 buckshot, which has an average total projectile weight of 35 grams (9 pellets), an average muzzle velocity of 400 m/s, and thus an average muzzle energy of 2801 J. All that is left is to calculate the rate of fire, which for non-auto shotguns is standardized at 150RPM, giving most non-auto shotguns a power and class of 7003 J/s and Class II, respectively.

Suppressors

• Q: Are external (not integral) suppressors allowed for use?
• A: Yes, as long as the power of the firearm while suppressed does not exceed the gun owner's license class.
• Q: Are integrally suppressed firearms allowed for use?
• A: Yes, as long as the power of the integrally suppressed firearm does not exceed the gun owner's license class.

Open and Concealed Carry

• Q: Is open carry permitted?
• A: Yes, as long as the gun owner's license is of sufficient class to legally own the firearm.
• Q: Is concealed carry permitted?
• A: Yes, only if the gun owner has taken the appropriate self-defense course and has had a C type class addition appended to their license, and the gun does not exceed the owner's gun license class.

Barrel Length

• Q: How long or short does the barrel have to be?
• A: There are no barrel length restrictions; only power restrictions.

Magazine Capacity

• Q: How big of a magazine is legal?
• A: There are no magazine capacity restrictions; only power restrictions.

Special Weapons

• Q: What weapons are not legal to own?
• A: Live grenades, RPGs, grenade launchers, recoilless rifles, and demolition charges are not legal for civilians to own without special permission and in some cases, government supervision.

Semi-Autos and Bolt-Actions

• Q: How is the RPM of semi-auto and bolt-action weapons calculated?
• A: The RPM of semi-autos and bolt-actions are calculated as fast as the common civilian could fire accurately. For AT rifles, this is about 75-120RPM; for most bolt actions, 120RPM; for high-power handguns, 240RPM; for common lower power handguns, 420RPM. This is always above 60RPM.

Same Gun in Two Classes

• Q: How can the same gun be in two different classes?
• A: If a standard gun has its common rate of fire or chamber changed, it may change the power of the gun such that it falls into a different class. For example, the Ruger 10/22 in .22LR can be sold as semi-automatic weapon, in which it will be a Class I firearm; however it is possible to modify it into a fully-automatic firearm that can shoot upwards of 1200RPM, which would then cause it to require a higher class (Class II in this case) of firearms license to sell, purchase, and/or own. Modification like this is allowable, so long as the owner possesses a sufficient class of firearms license for the end product.