Zhao Chunhua, a 51-year-old woman who was sentenced to three years and six months in prison for possession of illegal firearms, signed a petition for appeal on Jan. 3. Xu Xin, Zhao’s lawyer, said he would submit the petition to the No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court of Tianjin that afternoon.

Zhao was arrested on Oct. 12, when police came to patrol Zhao's recreational shooting booth in Tianjin. Police discovered nine gun-shaped items, along with accessories and plastic bullets. They judged six of the items to be real guns powered by compressed gas. On Dec. 27, 2016, the Hebei district court of Tianjin Municipality sentenced Zhao to three years and six months in prison.

Xu holds that Zhao is innocent because the "guns" in her possession were intended as toys, and their power is 100 times less than that of a real gun.

According to a 2010 document on firearms identification issued by the Ministry of Public Security, guns able to fire bullets with a kinetic force of over 1.8 joules per square centimeter are considered illegal firearms. But according to Xu, bullets with a kinetic force of 1.8 joules per square centimeter would cause no harm to a human being, even when shot at close range. The lawyer argued that this force is less powerful than even a slingshot.

The criterion has also been questioned by some scholars, who argue that it is too low and unreasonable a standard.

"Zhao Chunhua had no intention of committing a crime," Xu explained, adding that she was unaware the toy guns would be considered real under the law. In addition, Zhao simply operates the booth to make a living; the shooting game does not inflict actual harm on people or property.