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Tasers (i.e. Electrical Control Devices) in California, current status?
Okay, here is a subject I have been wracking my brain trying to get a straight answer on. Everyone has a conflicting opinion, and I wanted to ask outright.
Are tasers, NOT STUN GUNS, but TASERS (i.e. Electronic Control Devices, ECDs) legal to purchase and carry under the Penal Code without a permit?
I ask because I purchased a TASER C2 for myself and after doing some in-depth reading into the CA Penal Code, there seems to be a gray area regarding it's legality.
Under the current Penal Code, when people talk about ECDs (usually marketed under the TASER brand name), they say they are perfectly legal and refer to section 22610 about stun guns which says:
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any person may
purchase, possess, or use a stun gun, subject to the following
requirements:
(a) No person convicted of a felony or any crime involving an
assault under the laws of the United States, the State of California,
or any other state, government, or country, or convicted of misuse
of a stun gun under Section 244.5, shall purchase, possess, or use
any stun gun.
(b) No person addicted to any narcotic drug shall purchase,
possess, or use a stun gun.
(c) (1) No person shall sell or furnish any stun gun to a minor
unless the minor is at least 16 years of age and has the written
consent of the minor's parent or legal guardian.
(2) Violation of this subdivision shall be a public offense
punishable by a fifty-dollar ($50) fine for the first offense. Any
subsequent violation of this subdivision is a misdemeanor.
(d) No minor shall possess any stun gun unless the minor is at
least 16 years of age and has the written consent of the minor's
parent or legal guardian.
However, a "stun gun" and "ECD" are not necessarily the same thing. A stun gun is a contact stun device and does not fire any projectile. An ECD does. The Penal Code actually says that stun guns do not include ECDs in Section 17230:
except a less lethal weapon, used or intended to be used as either an offensive or defensive weapon that is capable of temporarily immobilizing a person by the infliction of an electrical charge.
The California Penal Code appears to classify ECD under the term "less lethal weapon" in section 16770 and 16780:
As used in this part, "less lethal ammunition" means any
ammunition that satisfies both of the following requirements:
(a) It is designed to be used in any less lethal weapon or any
other kind of weapon (including, but not limited to, any firearm,
pistol, revolver, shotgun, rifle, or spring, compressed air, or
compressed gas weapon).
(b) When used in a less lethal weapon or other weapon, it is
designed to immobilize, incapacitate, or stun a human being through
the infliction of any less than lethal impairment of physical
condition, function, or senses, including physical pain or
discomfort.
As used in this part:
(a) "Less lethal weapon" means any device that is designed to or
that has been converted to expel or propel less lethal ammunition by
any action, mechanism, or process for the purpose of incapacitating,
immobilizing, or stunning a human being through the infliction of any
less than lethal impairment of physical condition, function, or
senses, including physical pain or discomfort. It is not necessary
that a weapon leave any lasting or permanent incapacitation,
discomfort, pain, or other injury or disability in order to qualify
as a less lethal weapon.
The definition of a "firearm" is in section 16520:
(a)As used in this part, "firearm" means a device, designed
to be used as a weapon, from which is expelled through a barrel, a
projectile by the force of an explosion or other form of combustion.
Now the old ECDs used smokeless powder to propel the darts, that would make them fall under the definition of a "firearm" because it uses an "explosion or other form of combustion" to propel the darts. But the current ECDs such as the TASER X26 used by law enforcement and the civilian C2 model use compressed nitrogen gas to propel the darts (like an airsoft gun).
So if the current TASER (trademark brand) models do not qualify as "firearms" but instead as "less lethal weapons," then what is required in order to purchase and carry them? The only sections I can find that mention sale and carry of less lethal weapons are 19400 and 19405:
19400. A person who is a peace officer or a custodial officer, as
defined in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of
Part 2, may, if authorized by and under the terms and conditions as
are specified by the person's employing agency, purchase, possess, or
transport any less lethal weapon or ammunition for any less lethal
weapon, for official use in the discharge of the person's duties.
19405. Any person who sells a less lethal weapon to a person under
the age of 18 years is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by
imprisonment in the county jail for up to six months or by a fine of
not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that
imprisonment and fine.
Other than those sections, the Penal Code is relatively silent about ECDs. So if they don't qualify as a "firearm" because there is no explosion or combustion to launch the darts, does that mean they are totally unregulated when it comes to purchasing and carrying them? Or are buyers subject to the same restrictions as gun purchases (DROS transaction, 10-day wait, CCW permit required to carry, etc)?
It seems to me that the Penal Code hasn't quite caught up with ECD technology. And carrying them MAY or MAY NOT be legal, depending on which cop, prosecutor, or judge you ask. Any thoughts or advice here would be appreciated. Cause if mine is not legal to carry, I just shelled out $200 for nothing.
Are tasers, NOT STUN GUNS, but TASERS (i.e. Electronic Control Devices, ECDs) legal to purchase and carry under the Penal Code without a permit?
I ask because I purchased a TASER C2 for myself and after doing some in-depth reading into the CA Penal Code, there seems to be a gray area regarding it's legality.
Under the current Penal Code, when people talk about ECDs (usually marketed under the TASER brand name), they say they are perfectly legal and refer to section 22610 about stun guns which says:
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any person may
purchase, possess, or use a stun gun, subject to the following
requirements:
(a) No person convicted of a felony or any crime involving an
assault under the laws of the United States, the State of California,
or any other state, government, or country, or convicted of misuse
of a stun gun under Section 244.5, shall purchase, possess, or use
any stun gun.
(b) No person addicted to any narcotic drug shall purchase,
possess, or use a stun gun.
(c) (1) No person shall sell or furnish any stun gun to a minor
unless the minor is at least 16 years of age and has the written
consent of the minor's parent or legal guardian.
(2) Violation of this subdivision shall be a public offense
punishable by a fifty-dollar ($50) fine for the first offense. Any
subsequent violation of this subdivision is a misdemeanor.
(d) No minor shall possess any stun gun unless the minor is at
least 16 years of age and has the written consent of the minor's
parent or legal guardian.
However, a "stun gun" and "ECD" are not necessarily the same thing. A stun gun is a contact stun device and does not fire any projectile. An ECD does. The Penal Code actually says that stun guns do not include ECDs in Section 17230:
except a less lethal weapon, used or intended to be used as either an offensive or defensive weapon that is capable of temporarily immobilizing a person by the infliction of an electrical charge.
The California Penal Code appears to classify ECD under the term "less lethal weapon" in section 16770 and 16780:
As used in this part, "less lethal ammunition" means any
ammunition that satisfies both of the following requirements:
(a) It is designed to be used in any less lethal weapon or any
other kind of weapon (including, but not limited to, any firearm,
pistol, revolver, shotgun, rifle, or spring, compressed air, or
compressed gas weapon).
(b) When used in a less lethal weapon or other weapon, it is
designed to immobilize, incapacitate, or stun a human being through
the infliction of any less than lethal impairment of physical
condition, function, or senses, including physical pain or
discomfort.
As used in this part:
(a) "Less lethal weapon" means any device that is designed to or
that has been converted to expel or propel less lethal ammunition by
any action, mechanism, or process for the purpose of incapacitating,
immobilizing, or stunning a human being through the infliction of any
less than lethal impairment of physical condition, function, or
senses, including physical pain or discomfort. It is not necessary
that a weapon leave any lasting or permanent incapacitation,
discomfort, pain, or other injury or disability in order to qualify
as a less lethal weapon.
The definition of a "firearm" is in section 16520:
(a)As used in this part, "firearm" means a device, designed
to be used as a weapon, from which is expelled through a barrel, a
projectile by the force of an explosion or other form of combustion.
Now the old ECDs used smokeless powder to propel the darts, that would make them fall under the definition of a "firearm" because it uses an "explosion or other form of combustion" to propel the darts. But the current ECDs such as the TASER X26 used by law enforcement and the civilian C2 model use compressed nitrogen gas to propel the darts (like an airsoft gun).
So if the current TASER (trademark brand) models do not qualify as "firearms" but instead as "less lethal weapons," then what is required in order to purchase and carry them? The only sections I can find that mention sale and carry of less lethal weapons are 19400 and 19405:
19400. A person who is a peace officer or a custodial officer, as
defined in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of
Part 2, may, if authorized by and under the terms and conditions as
are specified by the person's employing agency, purchase, possess, or
transport any less lethal weapon or ammunition for any less lethal
weapon, for official use in the discharge of the person's duties.
19405. Any person who sells a less lethal weapon to a person under
the age of 18 years is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by
imprisonment in the county jail for up to six months or by a fine of
not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that
imprisonment and fine.
Other than those sections, the Penal Code is relatively silent about ECDs. So if they don't qualify as a "firearm" because there is no explosion or combustion to launch the darts, does that mean they are totally unregulated when it comes to purchasing and carrying them? Or are buyers subject to the same restrictions as gun purchases (DROS transaction, 10-day wait, CCW permit required to carry, etc)?
It seems to me that the Penal Code hasn't quite caught up with ECD technology. And carrying them MAY or MAY NOT be legal, depending on which cop, prosecutor, or judge you ask. Any thoughts or advice here would be appreciated. Cause if mine is not legal to carry, I just shelled out $200 for nothing.
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