gun in car in cali

[BlackSportD]

LEOs, just out of curiosity (so save the "just unload it and store it the proper way" lines), what is the consequence of being pulled over with a loaded gun, or if the gun and ammo are near each other in the car?

I've caught myself being lazy driving to the range with the gun in its case and the ammo right there with it, so just curious what I could have gotten myself into.

B.

[TacBlack]

In LA California? The police will probably beat you to death.

In California, the bulk of laws relating to gun control can be found starting at Section 12000 of the state Penal Code. You're going to have to do some searching.

Here's Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_law...ates_(by_state)


California has some of the strictest firearm laws of the United States. The Roberti-Roos Assault Weapons Control Act of 1989, its subsequent augmentation in 1999, and the .50 Caliber BMG Regulation Act of 2004 has led to many restrictions on semi-automatic firearms. In addition to a lengthy list of specific firearms that are banned by name, the following firearms are banned by characteristic:

• (1) A semiautomatic, centerfire rifle that has the capacity to accept a detachable magazine and any one of the following:
  • (A) A pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the weapon.
  • (B) A thumbhole stock.
  • (C) A folding or telescoping stock.
  • (D) A grenade launcher or flare launcher.
  • (E) A flash suppressor.
  • (F) A forward pistol grip.
• (2) A semiautomatic, centerfire rifle that has a fixed magazine with the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds.
• (3) A semiautomatic, centerfire rifle that has an overall length of less than 30 inches.
• (4) A semiautomatic pistol that has the capacity to accept a detachable magazine and any one of the following:
  • (A) A threaded barrel, capable of accepting a flash suppressor, forward handgrip, or silencer.
  • (B) A second handgrip.
  • (C) A shroud that is attached to, or partially or completely encircles, the barrel that allows the bearer to fire the weapon without burning his or her hand, except a slide that encloses the barrel.
  • (D) The capacity to accept a detachable magazine at some location outside of the pistol grip.
• (5) A semiautomatic pistol with a fixed magazine that has the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds.
• (6) A semiautomatic shotgun that has both of the following:
  • (A) A folding or telescoping stock.
  • (B) A pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the weapon, thumbhole stock, or vertical handgrip.
• (7) A semiautomatic shotgun that has the ability to accept a detachable magazine.
• ( Any shotgun with a revolving cylinder.

There are also numerous other laws, such as prohibition on possession of tracer ammunition, handgun armor piercing ammunition, .50 BMG rifles, and the sale or transfer of magazines with a capacity of over 10 rounds. All rifles are normally exempt for the original owner if properly registered at the time of the acts which prohibited them.
In addition, the law states that any weapon that is part of the AR-15 series or AK series is also an assault weapon, regardless of manufacturer; this dates back to 1989 ban, and was confirmed in the Kasler v. Lockyer decision, filed 6/29/2000.[5] However, the California Supreme Court declared the identification of assault weapon by series membership to be too dubious and difficult for the average citizen or even trial court to make without specific and clear model identification guidelines. The court thus set some specific requirements for the "series" identification portion of the law in their ruling of Harrott v. County of Kings, filed 6/28/2001.[6] This decision required banned firearms to be specifically listed by make and model in California Code of Regulations (the "Kasler list"),[7] (it did not address assault weapons defined by features.) Thus, only firearms specifically listed by exact combination of manufacturer and model name, or conforming to explicit exterior characteristics (such as a pistol grip or folding stock in combination with a detachable magazine) can be banned under current legislation.
Once it was realized the California Department of Justice (CA DOJ) has not updated the "Kasler list" in the five years after Harrott decision, many Californians found they could legally purchase and possess AR and AK rifles not yet officially identified as "series" members. As of February 2006, over 10,000 "off-list" receivers (frames) for such rifles have been legally imported to, and purchased within, California. The only requirement for these receivers are that the combination of make and model is not explicitly listed as banned, and as long as the owner does not add certain "characteristic features" turning the firearm into an assault weapon (i.e. pistol grip, flash suppressor, etc). These characteristic features can be used, however, if a nondetachable 10-round (or less) magazine, conforming in the converse to the California Code of Regulations section 978.20 definition of detachable magazine,[8] is affixed to such "off-list" rifles. These off-list rifles can also be used without a pistol grip, folding stock or flash hider, in which case it is legal to own and use them with detachable magazines.
The CA DOJ produced a report from the Ferranto Commission in response,[9] intimating that this list will be updated in early 2006; as of December 2006, it had not done so. On February 1, 2006, the CA DOJ also issued a controversial memorandum about this subject; critics say the described actions are not founded or supported within statutory law in Penal Code 12275-12290. This memo stated that once off-list "series" firearms are declared and registered as assault weapons, they will not be able to have characteristic features added or fixed magazines removed. This is being challenged by pro-gun groups, since there is no criminal violation in the California Penal Code for adding or changing features to a legally-acquired, registered assault weapon.
On November 8, 2005, San Francisco voters enacted Proposition H, a total ban on the manufacture, sale, transfer or distribution of firearms or ammunition in San Francisco, as well as a ban on the possession of handguns within the city by San Francisco residents (excepting peace officers, security guards and the like). The ban did not prohibit possession of weapons other than handguns, nor did it prohibit residents of other cities from possessing handguns in San Francisco. While this measure made San Francisco the third major U.S. city, following Washington, D.C. and Chicago, to enact a ban on handguns, San Francisco's ban extended further, not implementing a grandfather clauses found in Chicago's and Washington D.C.'s laws that protected existing gun owners. Proposition H stated that handgun owners in San Francisco must turn over their handguns to the police by the end of March 2006, have them confiscated, or move outside the city limits. In early 2006, San Francisco Superior Court Judge James Warren struck down the San Francisco handgun ban, asserting that under California law local officials do not have the authority to ban firearms from law-abiding citizens. The National Rifle Association (NRA) opposed the ban from its inception.

[TacBlack]

[edit] Issues with the California laws

As with most gun laws, there is much debate about the legality and effectiveness of California's gun laws. However, both sides agree that there are many firearms that are legal in California that are functionally identical to prohibited weapons, and evidence of the effectiveness of such laws is hard to come by. Both sides also agree that the law needs to be revised to make it more clear so ordinary people can understand what constitutes an assault weapon and what does not.
When the act was being debated in the legislature, the Association of California Cities, a prominent supporter of that act, claimed that California law enforcement agencies feared that some groups in large cities might undertake successful rebellions against civil order if armed with modern weapons. In spite of hundreds of thousands of such "assault weapons" in the public hands for some decades, no such events have ever occurred anywhere in the USA. Prominent members of black churches in L.A., as well as Senators Boxer (D-CA) and Feinstein (D-CA), have claimed that the only real purpose of such weapons is to kill large numbers of people, and therefore there is no reason to permit them. Some gun rights advocates argue that the police commonly carry such weapons in their cruisers and that if the only real purpose of such weapons is to kill large numbers of people then the police should not be carrying them either.
Some gun rights advocates claim that the primary uses of these firearms in civilian hands has been, and continues to be the sport of recreational target-shooting (there were no reported deaths or injuries related to the sport of target shooting in 1999, 2000, and 2001). Most gun rights supporters base their authority on the Second Amendment, which declares the necessity for "a well regulated militia", and prohibits infringement of "the right of the people to keep and bear arms".
Based on engineering differences, ease of modification, and their high level of expertise, California Rifle and Pistol Association (CRPA) members see nothing special about assault weapons except their appearance, which is exactly what the gun collectors want, and what the legislature wants to prohibit. The legislature has thus been accused of being paternalistic and somewhat frivolous for creating the Assault Weapons Control Act. Another example of politically based gun laws is the ban of all ammunition with the word "Magnum" in the name by some parts of Los Angeles, when in fact the word Magnum is rather meaningless in ammunition nomenclature, with its reputation largely based on movies, not ballistics.
Gun rights advocates argue that the only real purpose of these "assault weapons" bans is to make the public used to the idea that firearms can be banned by government action and the public simply must accept any bans that the government chooses to impose in the future. According to gun rights advocates, these bans have purely symbolic and propaganda purposes with no chance of reducing violent crime.
Supporters of the ban counter that the banned features of these weapons were designed for military use. Supporters also argue that the features that define an "assault weapon" make it useless for hunting and less effective for target shooting, but more effective in combat. Gun rights advocates counter that this view exhibits an ignorance of what is involved in, e.g., competitive target shooting, and the features which are desirable in a gun intended for that pursuit. They point out that the military design heritage of the banned "assault weapons" may make for a more rugged and durable gun. They assert that some exterior features on some firearms targeted for ban - such as a pistol grip or a folding stock - lend only a cosmetic similarity to military weapons, and that the removal of these features simply restricts law abiding citizens' rights without reducing crime.

[edit] Concealed Carry Laws

California law[10] provides that the Sheriff of a county or a city Police Chief may issue a license to carry a concealed weapon upon proof that the person applying is of good moral character and that good cause exists for the issuance[11]. While it is generally believed to be extremely difficult to obtain a license to carry a concealed weapon (CCW) in California, the difficulty varies greatly by city and county of residence[12]. In some rural counties, qualified applicants are usually successful in obtaining a license, while some cities and counties, such as San Francisco and Los Angeles, are extremely restrictive in what they perceive to be "good cause".
Some argue[13] that the California system for CCW issuance fosters systematic discrimination of applicants, as it has been publicized that numerous celebrities and government officials have been issued CCW licenses in cities and counties where the general public have been consistently denied.

[edit] Open Carry Laws

Open carry of a loaded handgun in a county with population of greater than 200,000 persons is illegal. (needs citation) Although while this is the case, open carry of an unloaded handgun is legal. There is no section of the California penal code that prohibits open carry of an unloaded handgun (except for in certain areas such as state-owned or federal properties). Carrying a legal magazine separate from the handgun is also not banned under the penal code (a definition of a loaded firearm is in Section G of California Penal Code 12031). Also in the case of People vs. Clark (1996) a shotgun shell attached to the shotgun although not chambered or placed in a position where it was able to be fired was declared to be legal under California law and the charge of having a loaded firearm against Clark was dismissed.

[AKpredator]

Deep Kaka!

[BlackSportD]

F'ing A right, whoa.

In summary of my feelings, I think like someone else said here, these hand gun regulations are making criminal's job easy.

I'm still curious, my gun is a legally purchased gun, I'm just curious what is the legal penalty for being pulled over and found having a gun with its ammo in the same compartment of the vehicle which I understand is illegal.

[danp]

Originally Posted by BlackSportD

LEOs, just out of curiosity (so save the "just unload it and store it the proper way" lines), what is the consequence of being pulled over with a loaded gun, or if the gun and ammo are near each other in the car?

I've caught myself being lazy driving to the range with the gun in its case and the ammo right there with it, so just curious what I could have gotten myself into.

B.

Maybe nothing. But then again, maybe you'll go to jail, your gun(s) would get confiscated and your car would get towed.

If I were you I'd either get my CCW or just transport everything in the trunk so its all out of sight.

ETA: I'll narrow your search down a little. Check out 12031 PC.

[BlackSportD]

It seems that they could take it as far as a felony... very un-fun.

I'd love to try and get a CCW, but in Cali from what I understand I have no chance. I do not have a job that warrants one, and though my record is squeeky clean, this state blows. I think just for sh*ts and giggles I'll apply for one any ways haha.

When I drive my car, its not a problem putting it in the trunk, but when I drive my truck its an issue. I guess I could strap it down in the bed if I'm really worried.

Reading up on some of the links, and in google, it looks as though as long as the gun is not loaded, its all good. I had thought that the gun needs to be in the cabin and the ammo in the trunk, or vica-versa. Off to more research.

[Tdah]

from what i've been told, you're allowed to keep it in the cab of the truck with you, so long as it's locked in a case, unloaded, and the ammo isn't stored with the gun. it doesn't need to be in the trunk of the car. the glove compartment doesn't count as a locked container, either.

a CCW in CA is very tough to come by where you or i live (SF or LA areas), but very easy to do in some of the smaller communities. it's up to the county sheriff. the odd thing is if you live in the boonies, you can pretty easily get your CCW - and legally carry anywhere in the state. so the only people who can't carry around here? residents. the politicians and lawmakers are just plain jacked up.

[rogerxd45]

i would say its not worth it to be lazy in this case

[dfalcon217]

In many cases LEO have given some of the worst advice many of us have heard. I recently called my local PD and spoke with the watch commander. I asked him a gun related question that most would think should be easy for him to answer. Long story short, he had no idea and advised me to call the the Attorney Generals office.

I was told by a local sheriff to keep my magazine in the glove box and the pistol locked in a case. Since I have a small electro gun safe I keep it on the seat next to me while driving with my pistol locked securely inside. I also drive a truck.

When I take all the long guns to the range, they are in the back seat on the floor in rifle cases, some paired some single. I keep all the long gun ammo in the bed during travel but I'm not going to have my gun cases bouncing and sliding around back there.