Shooting in my backyard???

[anymoose]

I just moved to unincorporated Santa Cruz County, I was pretty excited about being able to shoot in my yard, I have a good area to build a berm, my land lord said it was fine with him, my closest neighbor said it was fine with him and that hes surprised i havent heard him shooting in his yard, i hear gun shots all the time from neighbors... but looking into more, im not so sure.

I found this map:

http://gis.co.santa-cruz.ca.us/GIS/Map_Gallery/pdfs/Map%20Gallery/Land%20Use%20and%20General%20Plan/No%20Shoot%20Zones.pdf

and i live in a "white" area, so it looks like discharging a firearm is OK, and the town i live in is considered unincorporated.

but then i found this: (go to title 8 on the left - then section 8.28, "Firearms")

http://www.codepublishing.com/ca/santacruzcounty/

it says:



The exceptions are:



So, does that mean its a no-go, unless i go talk to everyone near me and get permission through a public hearing?

My landlord said he shoots some pretty big guns on his property, one neighbor doesnt like it and has called the cops several times, but they always come out and say that nothing illegal is happening, and theres nothing they can do about it.

[stix213]

I am not a lawyer, but I believe there is a big difference between shooting firearms on private property, and building a shooting range that would need this permit.

[anymoose]

Thanks!

I could have sworn I read somewhere that if there was a structure within 150yrds I just needed permission from the owner of that structure. I have permission from the only neighbor within that distance, but now I'm not sure that it means anything.

[PEZHEAD265]

Do look at the rules for minimum distances from structures on neighboring properties. Unless you are on a parcel that is dozens of acres, these distances are what sets the real limitation. Look at code section 8.28.050: 150 yards from any structure you don't own. In theory, this applies to firewood sheds and barns. So if you had really nasty neighbors with lots of little storage buildings, you would need a 300 x 300 yard parcel, which works out to about 19 acres.



Then you are good to go.



You are already good to go under the provisions of this chapter. You don't need an exception that makes you be not subject to the provisions of this chapter.

These exceptions are there for the case that you want to set up a shooting range in a no-shooting zone: You go to the board of supervisors, file your application, and they give you a permit. But if you are already in the white zone (shooting zone), you simply hang a target on the nearest tree and blast away.


Beware of noise control ordinances, and of pissing off your neighbors with too much noise. We've had a case where someone was shooting big weapons all the time at strange hours, the county sheriff visited them several times asking them to please be more polite, and then they were hauled off for a variety of offenses (including felon in possession, possession stolen vehicle, sawed-off shotgun, drugs in a quantity for sale). Another regular shooter was taken away by four cars with flashing blue lights, on a bench warrant for FTA in an assault and battery case. It seems that those folks who insisted on being rude were also those who would most benefit from not having contact with law enforcement. Probably best to not imitate the manners of that riffraff.

How did you come up with 19 acres??300x300yd is about 25 acres1000 ftx 1000 ft.A acre is 200x200 unles the math changed in the lass 30+ years.22.5 to be exact.

[PEZHEAD265]

I just moved to unincorporated Santa Cruz County, I was pretty excited about being able to shoot in my yard, I have a good area to build a berm, my land lord said it was fine with him, my closest neighbor said it was fine with him and that hes surprised i havent heard him shooting in his yard, i hear gun shots all the time from neighbors... but looking into more, im not so sure.

I found this map:

http://gis.co.santa-cruz.ca.us/GIS/Map_Gallery/pdfs/Map%20Gallery/Land%20Use%20and%20General%20Plan/No%20Shoot%20Zones.pdf

and i live in a "white" area, so it looks like discharging a firearm is OK, and the town i live in is considered unincorporated.

but then i found this: (go to title 8 on the left - then section 8.28, "Firearms")

http://www.codepublishing.com/ca/santacruzcounty/

it says:



The exceptions are:



So, does that mean its a no-go, unless i go talk to everyone near me and get permission through a public hearing?

My landlord said he shoots some pretty big guns on his property, one neighbor doesnt like it and has called the cops several times, but they always come out and say that nothing illegal is happening, and theres nothing they can do about it.

Check out exception D you can discharge a 10 gauge or smaller shotgun.LOL there isn't many larger then that.

[DeanW66]

I just moved to unincorporated Santa Cruz County, I was pretty excited about being able to shoot in my yard, I have a good area to build a berm, my land lord said it was fine with him, my closest neighbor said it was fine with him and that hes surprised i havent heard him shooting in his yard, i hear gun shots all the time from neighbors... but looking into more, im not so sure.

I found this map:

http://gis.co.santa-cruz.ca.us/GIS/Map_Gallery/pdfs/Map%20Gallery/Land%20Use%20and%20General%20Plan/No%20Shoot%20Zones.pdf

and i live in a "white" area, so it looks like discharging a firearm is OK, and the town i live in is considered unincorporated.

Lucky you! And hello from a fellow county resident who does NOT live in a white zone :green-with-envy .

[anymoose]

So all ou need is the "express permission". I don't know what "express permission" means. But certainly, a written letter, or a printout of an e-mail from the owner (or tenant, if the neighbor is a renter) should logically be sufficient. Having something in writing, ready to go in your "range bag", would certainly impress any sheriff's deputy who comes to investigate a noise complaint.

By the way, what the sheriff doesn't hear he can't give you any hassle over. You can practice accuracy just as well with air rifles and air pistols.

Ill only be shooting .22 for a while, and my .22 is really quiet. later after i build a better back stop, im gonna build some sort of sound suppression box to shoot through, hopefully making my AR quiet enough to not make the neighbors mad.

[anymoose]

Lucky you! And hello from a fellow county resident who does NOT live in a white zone :green-with-envy .

It sounds nice and all, but traveling those roads everyday to get to san jose is pretty tiring.

[huntercf]

It looks like the code refers to ranges not shooting. If someone calls the sheriff you can politely tell them you don't have a range you were just shooting.

[DeanW66]

It sounds nice and all, but traveling those roads everyday to get to san jose is pretty tiring.

Ooohhhh Bbboooyyy do I know what you are talking about. Don't know what part of the county you are in, but I used to live in Boulder Creek (nearly 10 years). Commuted at odd hours, often reverse hours (coming home at 6A when all the others are headed out); nearly run off the run off the road or headon multiple times a month. I've since moved up to the Summit Los Gatos area and don't miss that drive even the tiniest fraction.