You're wrong.
There are laws regulating its USE, but it is not an illegal substance. In the US, its perfectly legal to:
a) possess R-12 in a functioning cooling system b) Purchase R-12 to replace refrigerant in a repaired R-12 system provided you have the proper licenses to buy the refrigerant and perform the service. c) Reclaim used R-12, recycle, purify, and re-sell it provided you have the proper licenses d) Possess as much R-12 as you want, regardless of whether you hold a license, if you bought it before the licensing requirements were enacted
It is not legal to:
a) Manufacture new R-12 b) Manufacture new refrigeration systems using R-12 c) vent R-12 (or any other refrigerant, for that matter) to the atmosphere d) Buy R-12 without the correct licenses e) etc.