I haven’t said what you should or shouldn’t do in such a situation, nor that you should be punished for someone elses actions. I actually disagree with the concept entirely and wanted to speculate on why the designers went with a method that has the potential to negatively affect innocent bystanders.
Realistically, if I cut through the lock section itself, rather than the rail, I’d avoid the gas and still steal the bike. Alternatively, I cut it, get sick, deal with it and steal the bike anyway. Point being that now the lock is cut, I’m going to go back and get it if I can, meaning that a normal lock would ultimately have achieved the same level of protection, without the gas risk to everybody else.
Did they not consider it affecting the surrounding people (particularly in busy areas)? Have they designed it purely from a ‘get revenge’ perspective from having their own bikes stolen? Their kickstarter says that “the formula that we’ve developed is detectable through even some of the most robust gas masks”, surely this isn’t good for your health, how can it be legal to sell?