Release of 20 or more balloons prohibited
16 Release of 20 or more balloons prohibited
A person commits an offence if—
the person releases 20 or more balloons at or about the same time; and
20 or more of the balloons are inflated with a gas that causes them to rise.
Maximum penalty: 10 penalty units.
Note A reference to an offence against a territory law includes a reference to a related ancillary offence, eg attempt (see Legislation Act, s 189). This means an offence under this section also covers the offence of inciting the offence or conspiring to commit the offence.
An offence against this section is a strict liability offence.
In a prosecution for an offence against this section—
it is not necessary for the prosecution to establish the exact number of balloons released; and
evidence that a balloon rose after being released is, in the absence of any evidence to the contrary, evidence that the balloon was inflated with a gas that caused it to rise.
This section is subject to the following sections:
section 17 (Balloons—exception if balloons not outside);
section 18 (Balloons—exception for hot-air balloons);
section 19 (Balloons—exception for science).
Note A person charged with an offence against s (1) has the evidential burden of proving anything mentioned in s 17, s 18 or s 19 (see Criminal Code, s 58).
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