[Section 9 heading substituted by sections 1 and 15 of the Domestic Violence Amendment Act, 2021 (Act No. 14 of 2021), as per Notice No. 788, GG45824, dated 28 January 2022]
| (1) | The court must order a member of the South African Police Service to seize any weapon in the possession or under the control of a respondent as specified in that order, regardless of the requirements of the respondent’s employment to possess such weapon, if the court is satisfied on the evidence placed before it, including any affidavits supporting an application referred to in section 4(1), that— |
| (a) | the respondent has threatened or expressed the intention to kill or injure themselves, any person in the domestic relationship, a related person, or any other person, whether or not by means of such weapon; or |
| (b) | the possession of such weapon is not in the best interests of the respondent or any other person in a domestic relationship or a related person, as a result of the respondent’s— |
| (i) | state of mind or mental condition; |
| (ii) | inclination to violence; or |
| (iii) | use of or dependence on intoxicating liquor or drugs. |
| (2) | Any weapon contemplated in paragraph (a) of the definition of ‘weapon’ seized in terms of subsection (1) must be kept by the South African Police Service and the court must direct the clerk of the court to refer a copy of the record of the evidence concerned to the relevant station commander for consideration in terms of section 102 of the Firearms Control Act, 2000, and a copy of the record must be submitted to the National Commissioner of the South African Police Service. |
| (3) | Any weapon contemplated in paragraph (b) of the definition of ‘weapon’ seized in terms of subsection (1)— |
| (a) | must be given a distinctive identification mark and retained in police custody for such period of time as the court may determine; and |
| (b) | may only be returned to the respondent or, if the respondent is not the owner of the weapon, to the owner thereof, by order of the court and on such conditions as the court may determine: |
Provided that—
| (i) | if, in the opinion of the court, the value of the weapon so seized is below the amount determined by the Minister in the Gazette from time to time; |
| (ii) | if the return of the weapon has not been ordered within 12 months after it had been so seized; or |
| (iii) | if the court is satisfied that it is in the interest of the safety of any person concerned, |
the court may order that the weapon be forfeited to the State.
(4)
| (a) | When a final protection order has been issued against the respondent in terms of section 6, the clerk of the court must as soon as reasonably possible, in the prescribed manner, inform the relevant station commander and National Commissioner of the South African Police Service thereof. |
| (b) | The relevant station commander must, on receipt of the information contemplated in paragraph (a)— |
| (i) | determine whether the respondent holds a licence, permit, competency certificate or other authorisation in terms of the Firearms Control Act, 2000, for any firearm; |
| (ii) | in terms of section 102 of the Firearms Control Act, 2000, determine whether the person is unfit to possess a firearm; and |
| (iii) | inform the National Commissioner of the South African Police Service of their decision regarding the fitness of the person to possess a firearm. |
[Section 9 substituted by section 15 of the Domestic Violence Amendment Act, 2021 (Act No. 14 of 2021), as per Notice No. 788, GG45824, dated 28 January 2022 - effective 14 April 2023 as the date on which the said Act, with the exception of section 6A, comes into operation, as per Proclamation No. 117, GG48419, dated 14 April 2023]
