What Is a Loaded Gun?

December 10, 2009

Question: In a recent column you discussed loaded guns in a vehicle. Can you clarify what a “loaded gun” is? I know that having cartridges/shotgun shells in the chamber is illegal, but what if the cartridges/shotgun shells are just in the magazine of the rifle or shotgun? Do the restrictions also apply while in or upon a vehicle on a public roadway? (Anonymous, Redding)

Answer: Under the Fish and Game Code, a rifle or shotgun is deemed loaded when there is an unexpended cartridge or shell in the firing chamber, but not when the only cartridges or shells are in the magazine. It is “unlawful to possess a loaded rifle or shotgun in any vehicle or conveyance or its attachments which is standing on or along or is being driven on or along any public highway or other way open to the public (FGC Section 2006).”

The California Penal Code is more restrictive, however, and defines “loaded” as being when ammunition is attached to the weapon (even if all shells or cartridges are only in the magazine portion of the weapon and not in the chamber).

According to Assistant Chief Mike McBride, the consequences may be dependent on circumstances such as location and type of roadway. In other words, a loaded weapon in a vehicle on a dirt road in the boondocks might be viewed differently than one in a vehicle on a paved road that has a lot of traffic. Also, a county sheriff may tend to enforce the Penal Code rather than the Fish and Game Code. A warden could do the same if the circumstances seem to justify that course of action (if this occurs on a major paved road, etc.).

So, it is up to the law enforcement officer to make that call. However, the very safest and most prudent course of action is to have the weapon entirely unloaded.

For more information on loaded guns and to review the California Summary of Firearms Law, contact the California Department of Justice, Bureau of Firearms at http://ag.ca.gov/firearms/.