Understanding Gun Crime Laws: When Firearm Possession Becomes a Felony

What is Considered a Firearm in California?

Many laws in the State of California address prohibited firearms, including:

• Carrying firearm

• Disguised firearms

• Storage, sale, manufacture, lease, and transfers

• Special rules relating to particular people

• Special rules relating to specific firearm types

A firearm is considered any of the following:

• Any weapon, including a starter gun, which will, is designed to, or can be converted to eject a bullet by an explosive action

• The frame or receiver of any such weapon

• All firearm mufflers or firearm silencers

• Any destructive device

A person is considered guilty of carrying a concealed firearm when the person is doing so knowingly:

• Within any vehicle under the person’s control or as an occupant

• On the body or capable of being concealed on the body

• Openly in a belt holster that is not concealed

Punishments for concealed weapons possession occur when a person is:

• Previously convicted of any felony

• Active in a criminal street gang

• In unlawful possession of the firearm

• Within a class prohibited from possessing a firearm

• Had knowledge it is stolen or firearm is stolen

• Convicted of crime against a person, narcotics, property, dangerous drug violation or by imprisonment in a county jail for under one year, or by a fine up to $1,000 or by both imprisonment and fine 

What Weapons Are Illegal in California?

Illegal weapons are not limited to guns under the California legislature. The following list explains generally prohibited weapons to possess within the state:

• Firearms:

 – Cane gun

– Short-barreled rifle or shotgun

– Unconventional pistol

–  Wallet gun

– Zip gun

• Knives:

– Ballistic

– Air gauge

– Belt buckle

– Lipstick case

– Writing pen

– Butterfly knife

– Cane sword

• Ammunition:

– Containing flechette dart

– Bullet with an explosive agent

– Large-capacity magazine

– Armor-piercing bullets

• Concealed:

–Camouflage firearm container

– Dirk or dagger

– Explosive substance

– Undetectable firearm

• Other:

–Metal knuckles

– Military practice hand grenade

– Multiburst trigger activator

– Stun guns

– Laser scopes

Who is Legally Allowed to Possess Firearms?

A person must be 21 years of age or older to buy a handgun and at least 18 years of age to buy a shotgun or rifle. The buyer is also required to pass a background check with a licensed dealer, whether it is a private purchase or a gun show sale.

People who are not allowed ever to possess firearms are:

• Convicted felons

• Narcotics addicts

• Having two or more convictions for brandishing a weapon

• Having convictions for certain misdemeanor offenses, such as domestic violence

• Those suffering from a mental illness

• Are under 18 years of age

A ten-year ban may occur with the conviction of misdemeanor crimes that will prevent owning, possessing, receiving, purchasing, or having custody or control over a firearm. These crimes include:

• Sexual battery

• Criminal threats

• Inflicting corporal injury on a spouse or significant other

• Stalking

• Assault

• Assaulting an officer

• Battery

• Assault with a stun gun or taser weapon

• Possessing a deadly weapon with intent to commit assault

• Supplying, selling, or giving firearms to a person for participation in a criminal street gang

It is also a crime to carry a concealed firearm or other concealed weapon unless the person has a lawful concealed carry permit.

State law declares it is illegal to openly carry a gun that is either unloaded or loaded.

You cannot carry a firearm in the following locations:

• Schools

• Public buildings and meetings open to the public

• Government buildings

• The Governor’s mansion

• Airports and passenger vessel terminals

• Public transit facilities

Several convictions will result in the loss of a right to own, purchase, and possess a firearm. When these rights are stripped, you may try to restore your gun rights by:

• Pursuing the reduction of a wobbler offense from a felony to a misdemeanor

• Receiving a pardon from California’s Governor

Additionally, California’s red flag law allows family, roommates, coworkers, employers, and teachers to pursue a restraining order to remove guns from potentially dangerous people.

If you are legally banned from owning a gun, then you are also not permitted to own ammunition.

Miscellaneous prohibitions include any person who is:

• Denied firearm possession as a condition of probation

• A voluntary patient in a mental health facility or under a gravely disabled conservatorship is found to be a danger to self or others

• Addicted to narcotics

• Subject to a protective order or a temporary restraining order

• Any person with an outstanding warrant, if they know of the warrant

Storage With a Prohibited Person

California law recognizes it is against the law to store a loaded gun in a domicile or within an area of your control while knowing or should know that a person who is not allowed to possess a firearm could access it. 

If you know that an adult who cannot legally possess a gun can access the firearm, you should be sure to:

• Ensure that the gun is not loaded, and

• Store the weapon in a place outside of access from the prohibited individual, such as inside a locked container.

Violation of this law is considered a misdemeanor offense and is punishable by up to one year in county jail.

This punishment will increase if the adult uses the weapon and causes:

• Harm

• Great bodily injury

• Death

When this occurs, the crime is considered a felony and may result in up to three years of incarceration in a state prison facility.

Do You Need an Attorney?

If you or a loved one have been convicted of felony firearm possession or have questions about your gun ownership rights in the state, call the Law Office of Scott Henry today at 714-294-0599 or complete a contact form to schedule your free consultation.