CHAPTER 3
FIREARMS AND DANGEROUS WEAPONS
Sections:
§ 4301 Confiscation of Weapons.
§ 4302 Minors – Selling or Giving Weapons To.
§ 4303 Minors – Providing Ammunition To.
§ 4304 Minors – Discharging Weapons.
§ 4307 Discharging Weapons Prohibited.
§ 4309 Carrying Loaded Weapons Prohibited.
§ 4310 Assault Weapons – Sale or Possession Prohibited.
§ 4311 Sellers of Firearm Ammunition.
§ 4312 Requirements for Ammunition Sales.
4300 Permit Required.
No person except a duly elected or appointed peace officer shall carry concealed upon or about his person any revolver, pistol, dagger, dirk, or sling shot, billy or other deadly weapon or instrument without first having obtained a written permit from the Sheriff of Los Angeles County. (Ord. 70-133, § 4300)
4301 Confiscation of Weapons.
All concealed weapons found on persons violating the provisions of this Chapter shall, upon conviction of said person, be confiscated upon order of the court in which said conviction has been made. (Ord. 70-133, § 4301)
4302 Minors – Selling or Giving Weapons To.
Except as otherwise provided in CMC 4305, no person shall sell, give, loan, or in any way furnish, or cause or permit to be sold, given, loaned, or in any way furnished to any person under the age of eighteen (18) years, any gun, revolver, pistol, firearm, spring gun, air gun, sling, sling shot, or device designed to discharge, or capable of discharging, any dangerous missile. (Ord. 70-133, § 4302)
4303 Minors – Providing Ammunition To.
Except as otherwise provided in CMC 4305, no person shall sell, give, loan, or in any way furnish, or cause or permit to be sold, given, loaned, or in any way furnished, to any person under the age of eighteen (18) years, any cartridge, shell, ammunition, or device containing any explosive substance, designed, or intended to be used in, or fired from, any gun, revolver, pistol or firearm. (Ord. 70-133, § 4303)
4304 Minors – Discharging Weapons.
Except as otherwise provided in CMC 4305, no person under the age of eighteen (18) years shall fire, discharge, shoot, or operate, or assist or participate in the firing, discharging, shooting, or operating, or have in his or her possession, care, custody, or control, any gun, revolver, pistol, firearm, spring gun, air gun, sling, sling shot, or device designed, or intended, to discharge, or capable of discharging, any dangerous missile or any cartridge, shell, ammunition, or device containing any explosive substance, designed or intended to be used in or fired from, any gun, revolver, pistol or firearm. (Ord. 70-133, § 4304)
4305 Exception To.
Nothing in this Chapter shall be deemed or construed to prohibit the selling, giving, loaning, or furnishing to any person under the age of eighteen (18) years, upon written consent of the parent or guardian of such person, any article mentioned in CMC 4302 and 4303 hereof; nor to prohibit any such person under the age of eighteen (18) years from having in his or her possession, care, custody or control any article mentioned in CMC 4304 hereof in the event that such possession, care, custody, or control of such article is had with the consent of the parent or guardian of such person and is under the direct supervision and control of some adult person; nor to prohibit any such person under the age of eighteen (18) years from firing, discharging, shooting, or operating any article mentioned in CMC 4304 hereof when such person is accompanied by and under the direct care and control of some adult person and is engaged in hunting any wild game or predatory bird or animal which may be lawfully hunted or killed, or is lawfully engaged in shooting at any inanimate target, or trapshooting device while accompanied by and under the direct care and control of some such adult person. (Ord. 70-133, § 4305)
4306 Discharging Firearms.
Except as otherwise provided in the Carson Municipal Code, a person shall not shoot, fire or discharge, and a person, firm or corporation shall not cause or permit to be shot, fired or discharged, in the City of Carson, any rifle, shotgun, pistol, air powered rifle or pistol, or other firearm of any kind. (Ord. 70-133, § 4306)
4307 Discharging Weapons Prohibited.
Except as otherwise provided in CMC 4308, no person shall, within the territorial limits of the City, fire, discharge, shoot, operate, or use any gun, revolver, pistol, shotgun, rifle, spring gun, air gun, gas-operated gun, sling, sling shot, bow and any other device, instrument or weapon designed to, or capable of:
(a) Discharging, throwing or projecting any missile or projectile a distance of fifty (50) feet or more; or
(b) Discharging or firing any cartridge, shell, ammunition or device containing any explosive substance designed for or intended to be used in or fired from any gun, revolver, pistol, shotgun, rifle or other firearm which cartridge, shell, ammunition or device containing any such explosive substance is designed to or capable of projecting or propelling any missile or projectile for a distance of fifty (50) feet or more. (Ord. 70-133, § 4307)
4308 Same – Exceptions.
Nothing contained in this Chapter shall be deemed to prohibit the firing, discharging, shooting, operating or using of any weapon, device or instrument mentioned in CMC 4307 as follows:
(a) By any duly appointed or elected law enforcement officer in the performance of his duties as such officer;
(b) By any member of the armed forces, when on duty in such force;
(c) When necessary to protect life or property, or to destroy or kill any predatory or dangerous animal;
(d) In or upon any licensed shooting gallery or any pistol, rifle or target range; provided, that such gallery or range is so installed, constructed, safeguarded, equipped and used as to adequately prevent any missile or projectile from being propelled beyond the confines of such range or gallery. (Ord. 70-133, § 4308)
4309 Carrying Loaded Weapons Prohibited.
No person except a duly elected or appointed peace officer or member of the armed forces when on duty shall carry on his person or in his immediate custody or control, any weapon, device or instrument mentioned in CMC 4307 while said weapon, device or instrument is loaded with any missile, projectile or any cartridge, shell, ammunition or device containing any explosive substance mentioned in CMC 4307 without first having obtained a written permit from the Sheriff of Los Angeles County. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to prohibit the keeping of any such loaded weapon, device or instrument in or upon any building or structure by the owner or tenant of such building or structure or by the agent, servant or employee of such owner or tenant. (Ord. 70-133, § 4309)
4310 Assault Weapons – Sale or Possession Prohibited.
(a) Subject to subsection (c) of this Section the term “assault weapon,” as used in this Section, shall include:
(1) Any semi-automatic action, center fire rifle or carbine which accepts a detachable magazine with a capacity of twenty (20) rounds or more, including, but not limited to the following firearms or their copies: AR 15 semi-automatic assault rifles, Uzi semi-automatic assault rifles or carbines, Ingram Mac-10 semi-automatic assault carbines, Ingram Mac-11 semi-automatic assault carbines, Heckler and Koch 93 semi-automatic assault rifles, Heckler and Koch 91 semi-automatic assault rifles, AK-47 semi-automatic assault rifles, AKM-47 semi-automatic assault rifles, all Automat Kalashnikov weapons, M1-A semi-automatic assault rifles, M-14 semi-automatic assault rifles, Thompson semi-automatic carbines and any other semiautomatic carbines manufactured by Auto Ordnance;
(2) Any shotgun with a barrel of less than eighteen (18) inches and a folding stock or magazine capacity of more than six (6) rounds;
(3) Any weapon which may be readily restored to an operable assault weapon, as defined above in subsections (a)(1) and (a)(2) of this Section; and
(4) Any part, or combination of parts, designed or intended to convert a weapon into an assault weapon, as defined above in subsections (a)(1) and (a)(2) of this Section, or any combination of parts from which an assault weapon may be readily assembled, if those parts are in the possession or under control of the same person.
(b) As used in this Section, the term “semi-automatic” means a weapon which fires a single projectile for each single pull of the trigger and which employs a magazine.
(c) The term “assault weapon” does not include any of the following:
(1) Any of the above generally and specifically described weapons which is a “machine gun” as that term is defined by Section 12200 of the Penal Code of the State of California; any pistol, revolver or other firearm which is capable of being concealed upon one’s person, as defined and regulated by the provisions of Sections 12021 and 12025 of the Penal Code of the State of California;
(2) Any of the following: weapons which do not use fixed ammunition, weapons which were manufactured prior to 1898, manually operated bolt action weapons, lever action weapons, slide action weapons, single-shot weapons, multiple-barrel weapons, revolving cylinder weapons, semi-automatic weapons which use exclusively Mannlicher-style clips, semi-automatic weapons manufactured prior to 1954, rim-fire weapons that employ a tubular magazine;
(3) Any assault weapon which is an antique or relic firearm or other weapon falling within the specifications of paragraphs (5), (7), and (8) of subsection (b) of Section 12020 of the Penal Code of the State of California;
(4) Any short-barrelled rifle or shotgun as defined in subsection (c) of the Penal Code Section 12020; or
(5) Any assault weapon which has been modified either to render it permanently inoperable or to permanently make it a device no longer defined as an assault weapon.
(d) Except as specified in subsections (e), (f) and (g) of this Section, no person, including wholesale and retail gun dealers, shall sell, offer or display for sale, give, lend or transfer ownership of, or possess any assault weapon.
(e) Nothing in this Section shall prohibit the acquisition, possession, or disposition by police departments, sheriffs offices, marshals offices, the California Highway Patrol, other local, State and Federal law enforcement agencies, or the military and naval forces of this State or of the United States for use in the discharge of their official duties; nor shall anything in this Section prohibit the possession of assault weapons or magazines therefor by regular, salaried, full-time officers, employees or agents thereof when on duty and the use of assault weapons is within the scope of their duties.
(f) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to the possession of any assault weapon when such possession is prohibited by the provisions of Section 12031 of the Penal Code of the State of California or Section 2010 of the Fish and Game Code of the State of California.
(g) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (d) of this Section:
(1) Any person who obtains title to an assault weapon by request or intestate succession may retain possession for a period of time not to exceed six (6) months, and shall within that time transfer title of the weapon to a dealer licensed pursuant to Article 4 of the State of California Penal Code, commencing at Section 12250, or to the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department or other police agency;
(2) An assault weapon may be maintained in the possession of an entity or establishment engaged in the business of motion picture, television or video production, but only for the purpose of being utilized as a prop during the course of motion picture, television or video production by an authorized participant therein or by an authorized agent or employee of the entity or establishment, and only if the entity or establishment properly secures such assault weapon from unauthorized use; and
(3) An assault weapon may be possessed by any Federal, State or local historical society, museum or institution collection which is open to the public provided any such weapon is properly housed, secured from unauthorized handling, and is unloaded. (Ord. 89-867, § 1)
4311 Sellers of Firearm Ammunition.
(a) Definitions.
1. “Chief of Police” means the Captain of the Carson Sheriff’s Station, of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, or designee.
2. “Firearm ammunition” means any self-contained unit consisting of the case, primer, propellant charge, and projectile for use in pistols, revolvers, rifles, shotguns, or any other device designed to be used as a weapon from which is expelled a projectile by the force of explosion or other form of combustion. “Firearm ammunition” shall not include blank ammunition used solely in the course of motion picture, television, video, or theatrical productions.
3. “Residential neighborhood” means any district of the City zoned for residential use or, if not so zoned, any street segment bounded by intersecting streets wherein over fifty (50) percent of the buildings on that street segment are used for residential purposes.
4. “Vendor” means any person who is engaged in the retail sale of firearm ammunition.
(b) Permit Required. No person shall engage in, manage, conduct, or carry on the business of the sales of firearm ammunition without a written permit from the Chief of Police.
(c) Fixed Location. Each vendor must have a fixed place of business. Sales of ammunition may be made only at said fixed location.
(d) Overlapping Business. If any person engages in, conducts, manages or carries on at the same time more than one (1) business requiring police permits, such person shall comply with all of the provisions affecting each business.
(e) Condition of Issuance. No permit or renewal permit for the sale of firearm ammunition shall be issued unless:
1. The applicant has obtained all other required permits for the operation of the business as proposed and has complied with all other applicable laws;
2. The applicant provides evidence of a possessory interest such as owner, lessee or renter, in the property at which the business is proposed to be conducted;
3. The proposed location of the business is in other than a residential neighborhood;
4. The applicant has obtained a policy of insurance as provided in subsection (f) of this section;
5. The applicant agrees to indemnify, defend and hold harmless the City, its officers, agents and employees, from claims arising from the negligence of the applicant or permittee.
(f) Insurance Requirements. The vendor shall maintain in full force and effect a policy of insurance on file with the Risk Manager. Such policy shall be executed by an insurance company admitted to do business in this state, and shall be in a form that the City deems proper. It shall insure the vendor against liability for damage to property and for injury to or the death of any person as a result of the sale, transfer or lease, or the advertising for sale, transfer or lease, or the offering or exposing for sale, transfer or lease, of any firearm ammunition. The policy shall also name the City and its officers, agents and employees as additional insureds. The minimum liability limit shall not be less than $1,000,000 for damage to or destruction of property in any one (1) incident, and $1,000,000 for the death or injury to any one (1) person; provided, however, that additional amounts may be required by the City if deemed necessary.
Such policy of insurance shall contain an endorsement providing that the policy will be continuous until canceled by a thirty (30) day written notice sent by registered mail to the City Risk Manager thirty (30) days in advance of the cancellation date. Prior to cancellation of any such policy, the vendor shall secure equivalent insurance. Failure to so do is grounds for revocation of the permit.
(g) Denial of Permit. Any applicant who is denied a permit shall be informed of the reasons for denial.
(h) Permit Valid for Issuance. When issued, the permit shall state on its face “Valid for Retail Sale of Firearm Ammunition.”
(i) Consent to Inspection. The acceptance of a permit to engage in the business of a firearms ammunition dealer constitutes consent to inspection of the books, records and business premises in the manner permitted by law and during ordinary business hours.
(j) Permit Assignment. The assignment or attempted assignment of any permit issued pursuant to this section, otherwise than in connection with a bona fide change of ownership, is unlawful and any such assignment or attempted assignment shall render the permit null and void.
(k) Permittee Responsible for the Conduct of Business. No firearm ammunition shall be sold or leased or offered for sale or lease or advertised for sale or lease by the vendor, nor shall the vendor otherwise conduct his or her business, in violation of the Penal Code of the State of California, this section or other applicable law.
(l) Conditions of Employment by Permittee. No officer, employee or agent of the vendor, hereinafter referred to collectively as “employee,” who will have access to or control of firearm ammunition shall:
1. Be under twenty-one (21) years of age;
2. Have had a Federal firearms license revoked or denied within the last year;
3. Be prohibited by law from owning, possessing or having custody or control of any firearm as defined in such law;
4. Have been convicted of any firearms or ammunition related offense within the last five (5) years.
(m) Recording of Information. The vendor shall comply with all requirements related to ammunition sales, as set forth in CMC 4312.
(n) Penalty. Violation of this section shall constitute a misdemeanor. (Ord. 09-1428, § 1)
4312 Requirements for Ammunition Sales.
(a) “Firearm ammunition” means any self-contained unit consisting of the case, primer, propellant charge, and projectile for use in pistols, revolvers, rifles, shotguns, or any other device designed to be used as a weapon from which is expelled a projectile by the force of explosion or other form of combustion.
“Firearm ammunition” shall not include blank ammunition used solely in the course of motion picture, television, video, or theatrical productions.
(b) The term “vendor,” as used in this section, shall mean any person who is engaged in the retail sale of firearm ammunition and retail firearms dealers.
(c) No vendor shall sell or otherwise transfer ownership of any firearm ammunition to any person other than those listed in subsection (g) of this section without at the time of purchase recording the following information on a form to be prescribed by the Chief of Police:
1. The date of the transaction;
2. The name, address and date of birth of the transferee;
3. The transferee’s driver’s license or other identification number and the state in which it was issued;
4. The brand, type and amount of ammunition transferred;
5. The transferee’s signature; and
6. The name of the sales person who processed the transaction.
The vendor shall also at the time of purchase or transfer obtain the right thumbprint of the purchaser or transferee on the above-referenced form.
(d) No vendor shall sell or otherwise transfer ownership of any firearm ammunition without complying with all requirements of subsection (c) of this section in a face-to-face transaction.
(e) The records required by this section shall be maintained on the premises of the vendor for a period of not less than two (2) consecutive calendar years from the date of the recorded transfer. Said records shall be subject to inspection at any time during normal business hours.
(f) No person shall knowingly make a false entry in, or fail to make a required entry in, or fail to obtain the required thumbprint, or fail to maintain in the required manner records prepared in accordance herewith. No person shall refuse to permit a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department employee to examine any record prepared in accordance with this section during any inspection conducted pursuant to this section, or refuse to permit the use of any record or information therefrom by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
(g) The requirements of subsection (c) of this section shall not apply when the purchaser is any of the following:
1. Any person described in Section 12302 or 12322 of the California Penal Code;
2. Any off-duty peace officer who displays proper agency identification which identifies him or her as an active peace officer;
3. Any person who has been issued a permit to carry a concealed weapon under the authority of Section 12050 of the California Penal Code;
4. Any security guard licensed under the authority of Section 12033 of the Penal Code of the State of California;
5. Any firearms dealer who has been issued a Federal Firearms License, or a Certificate of Eligibility by the State of California; and
6. Any firearm ammunition vendor who has been issued a seller of ammunition police permit by the City of Carson.
(h) Violation of this section shall constitute a misdemeanor. (Ord. 09-1428, § 2)