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Gun Laws State by State – But do make sure check the DOJ Website just to make sure!

GUN LAWS BY STATE

The Complete Guide – 2018

This guide has everything you need to know about U.S. gun laws by state.
So if you need some information about a state’s gun laws you’re in the right place.
Keep Reading…

State List

U.nited states flag with gavel and gun
STATES WITH

22

DEADLY FORCE LAWS

STATES THAT

7

BAN OPEN CARRY

STATES WITH NICS

18

CHECK-PRIVATE SALES

STATES WITH

8

FIREARM REGISTRY

Select a State

Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • District of Columbia • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana• Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Washington • Wisconsin • Wyoming

Overview of State Gun Laws

Gun laws in the US vary considerably between states. The majority of legislation relating to guns is enacted at the state level and these laws are independent of Federal firearms laws. This has resulted in a broad variation of gun laws in all the US states with each state taking a different approach on issues such as permits, carry laws, sales, and self-defense laws.
In some states the firearms laws can be much less restrictive than federal laws. However, individuals are not exempt from federal laws just because the state laws are less restrictive. In most cases it is left to the discretion of local law enforcement as to whether they will enforce federal laws. The Supreme court has ruled in Printz v United States that local law enforcement are not obligated to enforce federal firearms laws.
There are forty states that have a provision that protects the right to own and bear firearms, similar to the Second Amendment to the US Constitution. Some of the states that do not have this protection are California, Minnesota, Maryland, Iowa, New Jersey and New York.
collage of US state flags

Firearm Carry Laws

There are two ways firearms are carried in the United States, concealed carry and open carry. The names are self descriptive with an open carried firearm being visible to everyone and a concealed carry firearm being hidden from view. No federal law has ever covered the issuance of permits to carry firearms in the United States.
It has been left to all the 50 individual states in the US to determine how they will issue permits or if a permit is even required to openly or conceal carry firearms. All states will allow in theory the carry of firearms. However, there are some states that make the application process so difficult that in practice a regular citizen is banned from having a handgun. These states are usually the ones that have a “May Issue” policy such as Hawaii, California, New York and a few more.

Concealed carry laws are mostly grouped into three categories or issue policies. Up until recently there was four categories but the fourth category “No Issue” has all but been banned from the US by court rulings that it was unconstitutional. The three other categories are;

  • Unrestricted – Does not require a permit to carry a firearm and is often referred to as Constitutional Carry.
  • Shall Issue – Requires a permit to carry a firearm. Applicant only has to meet the requirements set by law such as minimum age, training, background checks etc.
  • May Issue – Again a carry permit is required but laws can be restrictive and in some states impossible to comply with. Often an applicant will be asked to demonstrate a justifiable need for a permit to be issued. It is left to the discretion of law enforcement as to whether a permit to carry will be issued and a few states such as Hawaii will refuse to issue a permit to anyone.

The May Issue states are slowly disappearing with court rulings against their gun policies. Recently (June 2017) the District of Columbia was forced to switch from a May Issue to Shall Issue policy by the federal courts, and that was a final ruling. So the remaining May Issue states days are numbered.

The laws vary greatly for each state with states that do not have an open carry law or require a permit to an outright ban on open carry. In the states that have no open carry law you will often find that the local authorities have ordinances in place to regulate the open carrying of firearms.
There are often exceptions in some states that ban open carry such as Florida which allows open carry while hunting, hiking or fishing. New York and Illinois also have similar exceptions. Then there are other states like Texas that will ban handguns from being openly carried but not long guns.

Firearm Sales & Purchases

Permits to purchase a firearm are required in some states. These permits can just cover handguns or be extended to long guns and ammunition in the more restrictive states. Illinois requires a buyer to have a FOID card to purchase any firearm or ammunition although lately they have allowed concealed carry permits to be used for purchases. But the buyer must still have been issued a FOID card. Other states will also often allow a concealed carry license to be used as a purchase permit. Background checks are required by federal law on all persons purchasing a firearm from a licensed dealer. To facilitate these checks the FBI maintains a database where all requests are processed through called the NICS (National Instant Criminal Background Check System).
gun shop

The background checks do not extend to private sales of firearms. To close this loophole there are currently 18 states that have enacted legislation to extend the background check law to cover private sales. These laws usually require firearm sales to be processed through a licensed dealer or the local police. A number of states only apply these laws to handguns while others cover both handguns and long guns. A more in depth look at private gun saleswith a list of requirements per state can be found on our statistics page.
The states that currently require a background check on private gun sales are;
California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Maryland, New Jersey, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Washington

Firearm Registration

Most states in the U.S. do not require registration of guns and there is no Federal program to register guns. In fact under Federal law a national gun registry is illegal and eight states also have bans on any gun registry. There are at least four states and one district that have setup a registry for guns, the states are;
California, Hawaii, Maryland, New York and the District of Columbia.
Other states as listed below do not have an official gun registry but collect data on sales.
gun registration stamp

States With Official Gun Registries

  • California – The registry is maintained by the California Department of Justice and keeps information on buyers and sellers plus any firearms imported into the state. Information maintained is serial numbers, fingerprints, names, and addresses. The information is collected on handguns and long guns however if a gun was owned before 1991 there is no requirement to register it.
  • District of Columbia – All handguns and long guns are required to be registered with the Metropolitan Police.
  • Hawaii – All firearms must be registered within a 5 day period from when they are brought into the state or purchased with the county police chief.
  • Maryland – Only applies to handguns and automatic weapons which are required to be registered with the state police.
  • New York – Only applies to handguns which must be registered. There is a fee of $3 for registration and it is an offense to possess an unregistered handgun.

States That Collect Data on Gun Sales

  • Michigan – All sales of handguns must be registered with local law enforcement.
  • New Jersey –  A copy of all purchase permits are sent to the New Jersey state police who maintain a record of all handgun transfers.
  • Washington -Licensed dealers are required to report all sales of handguns to the Department of Licensing and local law enforcement.

Stand Your Ground Laws

Stand Your Ground, commonly known as “Castle Doctrine” laws that permit a person to defend themselves with deadly force and with no duty to retreat have been enacted in 27 states. These laws vary from state to state in the conditions that it may be used such as the degree of retreat, places covered and if there is any non lethal force required before using deadly force. Most of these laws will have some of the following conditions;

  • An attempt to forcibly and unlawfully enter an occupied vehicle, business or residence.
  • The intruder cannot have been provoked by the occupants of the home.
  • There must be a reasonable belief by the occupants of the home the the intruder will cause death or serious bodily harm to them. There are a few states that allow stand your ground laws to be used for less serious felonies such as burglaries or arson.
  • The intruder is required by most of these laws to be acting unlawfully.
  • These laws cannot be used against law enforcement officers who are legally carrying out there duties. Such as when they are forcibly entering a premises to arrest a person.

To use the law occupants must be legally in the building or vehicle. If they are a fugitive or helping another fugitive then they cannot defend themselves with deadly force.

Some states require that a person must first retreat if attacked and only use deadly force in there is no option of retreat or retreat would put the person in danger.If a Castle Doctrine law is in place a threatened person is not required to retreat from a place of work or their own house and in some states this extends to any place a person is legally entitled to be.

State Gun Laws in The USA

 Gun Law Rating – 5 stars is the friendliest.

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes Firearm must be in holster
Background checks on private gun sales required No No

Main article: Alabama gun laws
Alabama laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required No No Policy is Unrestricted
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required
Background checks on private gun sales required No No

Main article: Gun laws in Alaska
Alaska laws rating –     

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required No No
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Arizona gun laws
Arizona laws rating –     

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required No No Policy is Unrestricted “when on a journey” (outside your county of residence)
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No license required
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Arkansas gun laws
Arkansas laws rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required Yes Yes Policy is May Issue.
Purchase permit required Yes Yes
Registration of firearm Yes Yes
Open carry allowed Yes* Yes* *Long guns and handguns can be openly carried in some rural counties.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes Sale must be through licensed dealer
Magazine size restriction Yes Yes Magazine limited to 10 rounds. But Federal Court blocked ban in June 2017 so still unresolved.

Main article: California gun laws
California laws rating – 

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes* Yes* *No permit required. Cannot open carry in posted areas such as Denver
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes Sale must be through licensed dealer and Colorado Bureau of Investigation must approve tansfer.
Magazine size restriction Yes Yes Magazine limited to 15 rounds.

Main article: Colorado gun laws
Colorado laws rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required Yes Yes Policy is Shall Issue due to Court rulings.
Purchase permit required Yes Yes There is a 14 day waiting period to purchase long guns.
Registration of firearm Yes Yes Sales and serial numbers are recorded. Does not apply to out of state sales.
Open carry allowed Yes Partial Requires permit for handgun. There is no law regarding long guns and open carry.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes Sale must be through licensed dealer.
Magazine size restriction Yes Yes Magazine limited to 10 rounds.

Main article: Connecticut gun laws
Connecticut laws rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required Yes No Policy is May Issue. But operates like Shall Issue
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes Sale must be through licensed dealer.
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Delaware gun laws
Delaware laws rating – 

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required Yes N/A Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required Yes Yes
Registration of firearm Yes Yes Must be registered with Metropolitan Police.
Open carry allowed No No
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes Sale must be through licensed dealer.
Magazine size restriction Yes Yes Magazine limited to 10 rounds.

Main article: District of Columbia gun laws
District of Columbia laws rating –  

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No Florida law bans any registration of firearms
Open carry allowed No No There are some exceptions such as when hunting or fishing.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Florida gun laws
Florida laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes License required.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Georgia gun laws
Georgia laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required Yes No Policy is May Issue but operates as No Issue state
Purchase permit required Yes Yes
Registration of firearm Yes Yes
Open carry allowed Yes Yes Open carry of long guns allowed and no law against handguns but permits are never issued for handguns
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes Permit required to purchase handgun. Will require background check to obtain permit.
Magazine size restriction Yes No Can not hold more than 10 rounds in handgun.

Main article: Hawaii gun laws
Hawaii laws rating – 

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Permit required No* No *Non-residents require a permit to carry concealed within cities. Policy is Unrestricted.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Idaho gun laws
Idaho laws rating –     

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry Permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required Yes Yes Purchases need a FOID card.
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed No No
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes Seller is required to verify purchasers FOID card.
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Illinois gun laws
Illinois laws rating –  

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes Permit is required.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Indiana gun laws
Indiana laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required Yes No Carry permit can be used to purchase
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes Permit is required.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes No Will need a permit to purchase or carry.
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Iowa gun laws
Iowa laws rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required No No Policy is Unrestricted.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Kansas gun laws
Kansas laws rating –     

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Kentucky gun laws
Kentucky laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required but can be restricted by some local authorities.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Louisiana gun laws
Louisiana laws rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required No No Policy is Unrestricted.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Maine gun laws
Maine laws rating –     

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is May Issue. Permits are difficult to obtain.
Purchase permit required Yes No Requires a handgun qualification license.
Registration of firearm Yes No Handguns and automatic weapons require registration with police.
Open carry allowed Yes Yes Requires carry permit for handgun but not long guns.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes No Sales must go through a licensed dealer or police.
Magazine size restriction Yes Yes Limited to 10 rounds. Possession of higher capacity magazine is legal if purchased out of state.

Main article: Maryland gun laws
Maryland laws rating – 

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is May Issue.
Purchase permit required Yes Yes Carry permit or FID (firearm identification) required.
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes No Permit required for handguns. Open carry of long guns is illegal except when hunting.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes Seller is required to verify the purchasers FID card.
Magazine size restriction Yes Yes Must not exceed 10 rounds.

Main article: Massachusetts gun laws
Massachusetts laws rating –  

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No* No *If purchaser does not have a carry license and sale is not through a licensed dealer then they will need a permit.
Registration of firearm No Yes Must be registered with law enforcement.
Open carry allowed Yes Yes Permit required to open carry in vehicle.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes No You must have a carry permit or handgun purchase license which both require a background check.
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Michigan gun laws
Michigan laws rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes Yes Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required Yes No Residents of Minnesota can use a carry permit to purchase.
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes Permit required to openly carry handgun or long gun.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Minnesota gun laws
Minnesota laws rating –  

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required No No Policy is Unrestricted. No license required if firearm is carried in a purse, handbag, satchel, holsters and sheaths.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Mississippi gun laws
Mississippi laws rating –     

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required No No Policy is Unrestricted. No permit is required however you can still obtain one. A permit will exempt the holder from laws passed by local authorities.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Missouri gun laws
Missouri laws rating –     

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required No* No *You will need a permit if you want to carry a concealed firearm in a city or town. Policy is Unrestricted and Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Montana gun laws
Montana laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required Yes No Carry permit or handgun certificate required.
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes Firearm must be visible in a vehicle. Can be restricted by local authorities.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes No Need a carry permit to purchase which requires a background check.
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Nebraska gun laws
Nebraska laws rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes If in a vehicle cannot be concealed on your person without a permit.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes* Yes* *Voluntary, up to seller if they want to do a background check
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Nevada gun laws
Nevada laws rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required No No Policy is Unrestricted.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required. Long guns in vehicles cannot be loaded.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: New Hampshire gun laws
New Hampshire laws rating –     

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes Yes Policy is May Issue. Permits rarely issued to ordinary citizens.
Purchase permit required Yes Yes Handgun ammunition, rifles and shotguns require a purchaser ID card.
Registration of firearm Yes No Registration of firearms is voluntary.
Open carry allowed No Yes Carry permit is required for handguns.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes No Purchasers of handguns require a permit to purchase. Purchasers of long guns need a firearms purchaser ID card.
Magazine size restriction Yes Yes Limit of 15 rounds for a semi-automatic firearm and 6 rounds for a semi-automatic shotgun.

Main article: New Jersey gun laws
New Jersey laws rating – 

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes* No *You only need a permit to conceal carry, open carry is legal with no permit. Policy is Shall Issue but operates as a limited Unrestricted state.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: New Mexico gun laws
New Mexico laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is May Issue. Generally it is harder to obtain a permit closer to big NY cities.
Purchase permit required Yes No Outside New York city, Suffolk and Nassau counties permits to purchase a handgun are issued by County or State Supreme Court Judges.
Registration of firearm Yes No It is illegal to possess an unregistered handgun.
Open carry allowed No Yes Carry permit holders must carry their handgun concealed.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes Must be through a licensed dealer.
Magazine size restriction Yes Yes Limited to 10 rounds.

Main article: New York gun laws
New York laws rating – 

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required Yes No Carry permit or Pistol Purchase permit required.
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes No Will need a carry permit or purchase permit to buy a handgun which require a background check to acquire.
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: North Carolina gun laws
North Carolina rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required Yes No Carry permit or Pistol Purchase permit required.
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes No Will need a carry permit or purchase permit to buy a handgun which require a background check to acquire.
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: North dakota gun laws
North dakota rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required but some restrictions in vehicles and liquor establishments.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Ohio gun laws
Ohio rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes No Requires a carry permit for handguns.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Oklahoma gun laws
Oklahoma rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes Yes Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes Sales must be through a licensed dealer.
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Oregon gun laws
Oregon rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes Yes Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes All places except Philadelphia or in a vehicle.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes No All sales must be made through a licensed dealer or county sheriffs office.
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Pennsylvania gun laws
Pennsylvania rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue and May Issue.
Purchase permit required Yes No Must pass a safety exam and then will be issued a “Blue Card” to purchase.
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes For handguns only if you have a permit issued by the Attorney General. No permit is required for long guns.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Rhode Island gun laws
Rhode Island Laws rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed No Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: South Carolina gun laws
South Carolina laws rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes Firearm must be clearly visible in vehicle.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: South Dakota gun laws
South Dakota laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes Requires a permit for handguns. Long guns must be unloaded if openly carried.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Tennessee gun laws
Tennessee laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Texas gun laws
Texas laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes Yes Policy is Shall Issue. A loaded handgun can be carried in a vehicle without a permit but a permit is required outside the vehicle.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required if gun is two actions from being fired. A permit is required if there is ammunition in the chamber.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Utah gun laws
Utah laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required No No Vermont has never issued or required gun permits.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Vermont gun laws
Vermont laws rating –     

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Virginia gun laws
Virginia laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm Yes No Firearms dealers must report all handgun sales to the police.
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required unless it is a loaded handgun in a vehicle. Long guns must be unloaded to openly carry in a vehicle.
Background checks on private gun sales required Yes Yes Sales must go through a licensed dealer.
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Washington gun laws
Washington laws rating –   

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required No No Policy is Unrestricted.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: West Virginia gun laws
West Virginia laws rating –     

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required Yes No Policy is Shall Issue.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit required to openly carry a handgun or long gun.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Wisconsin gun laws
Wisconsin laws rating –    

Subject Handguns Long Guns Notes
Carry permit required No No Residents do not need a permit to open or conceal carry. Non-residents will require a permit to conceal carry. Policy is Unrestricted.
Purchase permit required No No
Registration of firearm No No
Open carry allowed Yes Yes No permit is required for residents or non-residents.
Background checks on private gun sales required No No
Magazine size restriction No No

Main article: Wyoming gun laws
Wyoming laws rating –     

Categories
Cops

And some Folks wonder why Trump happen

MailOnline US - news, sport, celebrity, science and health stories
  • Roberto Garza Palacios, 28, served no jail time for his role in the December crash and just had to pay a small fine
  • He was charged with negligent driving after killing Deputy Chief State Fire Marshal Sander Cohen and FBI Special Agent Carlos Wolff
  • Wolff and Cohen were standing on the side of the road on I-270 in Montgomery County when they were struck by a Honda Accord driven by Garza Palacios
  • Prosecutors found that while the man drove in a ‘careless and imprudent manner,’ he hadn’t done a ‘gross deviation’ from driving carefully
  • They couldn’t find that Garza Palacios had a ‘reckless disregard’ for human life which would prompt more serious charges

By ASSOCIATED PRESS and DAILYMAIL.COM REPORTER

PUBLISHED: 12:28 EDT, 7 July 2018 | UPDATED: 18:17 EDT, 7 July 2018

Roberto Garza Palacios, 28, who arrived in the US in Guatemala and has overstayed his visa, paid just a $280 fine for killing Deputy Chief State Fire Marshal Sander Cohen and FBI Special Agent Carlos Wolff in December.

Garza Palacios did not appear in court and the case was closed on June 25 when he handed over the financial penalty, according to court documents obtained by the Washington Post.

Roberto Garza Palacios, 28,  served no jail time for his role in the December crash that killed Deputy Chief State Fire Marshal Sander Cohen (pictured) and FBI Special Agent Carlos Wolff

Roberto Garza Palacios, 28,  served no jail time for his role in the December crash that killed Deputy Chief State Fire Marshal Sander Cohen and FBI Special Agent Carlos Wolff (pictured)

Roberto Garza Palacios, 28, served no jail time for his role in the December crash that killed Deputy Chief State Fire Marshal Sander Cohen (left) and FBI Special Agent Carlos Wolff (right)

Wolff and Cohen were standing on the side of the road on I-270 in Montgomery County when they were struck by a Honda Accord driven by Garza Palacios. Wolff had crashed after reaching for his cellphone, and Cohen had stopped to help.

Driving up behind the scene, Garza Palacios told authorities that he couldn’t swerve right and went left – not seeing the two men.

Cohen was hit by another car and died at the scene, while Wolff died at the hospital.

Wolff and Cohen were standing on the side of the road on I-270 in Montgomery County when they were struck by a Honda Accord driven by Garza Palacios

Wolff and Cohen were standing on the side of the road on I-270 in Montgomery County when they were struck by a Honda Accord driven by Garza Palacios

Prosecutors found that while Garza Palacios drove in a ‘careless and imprudent manner,’ he did not do so in a way that was a ‘gross deviation’ from driving carefully.

They couldn’t find that Garza Palacios had a ‘reckless disregard’ for human life which would prompt more serious charges.

‘This case is about an unfortunate accident. Mr. Garza Palacios feels terrible about the situation,’ his attorney, Asim A. Humayun, said.

Prosecutors found that while Garza Palacios drove in a 'careless and imprudent manner,' he did not do so in a way that was a 'gross deviation' from driving carefully. They couldn't find that Garza Palacios had a 'reckless disregard' for human life which would prompt more serious charges 

Prosecutors found that while Garza Palacios drove in a ‘careless and imprudent manner,’ he did not do so in a way that was a ‘gross deviation’ from driving carefully. They couldn’t find that Garza Palacios had a ‘reckless disregard’ for human life which would prompt more serious charges

Garza Palacios, a native of Guatemala, still faces possible deportation.

On May 3, immigration authorities arrested him after the accident and charged him with overstaying a visa that expired in 2009.

In 2015, Garza Palacios was arrested in Montgomery County and ICE asked him to be placed on hold but that request was not honored.

Humayun stated that the immigration case is still ongoing.

Garza Palacios pleaded guilty to driving while impaired in 2015.

He served a four month stint in jail after smashing windows on 16 cars and lighting a sofa on fire near a construction site.

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All About Guns Cops

A Look Back at the Colt Police Positive by Dave Campbell (Nice thing to have around when Bad things come into your world)

A Look Back at the Colt Police Positive
 
Then, as today, customers—both civilian and military—pine for a firearm that is light in weight to lessen the burden of carrying it constantly. They also want it to be powerful enough to be effective, and they want it to be easy to shoot and hit the mark.
Those of us who have been around guns for some time know the contradictions, but people still want a 4 oz. gun that hits like a .44 Mag. and is as easy to shoot accurately as a .22 LR target pistol. The companies, alas, continue to try to accommodate this dream.
Colt had already developed the concept of a double-action or trigger-cocking revolver back in 1857. Its first successful double-action revolver was the Model 1887 Lightning. These first revolvers countered Colt’s reputation for ruggedness and were rather fragile. The Model 1887 Thunderer was a similar piece in a heavier caliber, .41 Colt.
Then, utilizing William Mason’s 1865 patent for a swing-out cylinder with simultaneous ejection, Colt brought out the Model 1889 Navy, a.k.a. New Navy DA Model of 1889.
Three years later the less-than-stellar Model 1892 Army debuted, followed by the beefy and robust New Service in 1898. Customers liked the New Service for its performance, but, again, pined for something easier to carry all day long every day.
Smith & Wesson continued to nip at Colt’s heels, spurring the Connecticut gun maker to relentlessly pursue improving its design. Colt responded in 1896 with its New Police Revolver, a relatively small frame double-action revolver with a swing-out cylinder holding six rounds of .32 Colt cartridges.
The frame was derived from Colt’s New Pocket Revolver that was introduced the year before. New York Police Commissioner Theodore Roosevelt chose the New Police Revolver to be the first standard issue revolver to the NYPD in 1896.
After getting its nose bloodied by Smith & Wesson in 1898 with its Hand Ejector Model, Colt hurried to add a device to allow its revolver to be safely carried with all six chambers loaded.
The Police Positive debuted in 1907. “Positive” was derived from Colt’s nomenclature for the internal hammer block safety device.
The marketing guys at Colt had to do something to gin up the enthusiasm beyond a safety device so they latched onto the notion of a clockwise-rotating cylinder, claiming that it was stronger and less wearing on the crane than Smith & Wesson’s counter-clockwise-rotating cylinder.
Never letting a good marketing notion go to waste, they further made the unsubstantiated claim that the clockwise-rotating cylinder was more accurate.
The Police Positive did find a lot of favor, especially with door-rattler cops who shot relatively little but carried daily.
It carried on the .32 Colt chambering but added the .38 Colt New Police (a.k.a. .38 S&W) chambering for added punch. Sights were a fixed groove in the topstrap and a half-moon blade up front. Barrel lengths were 2 1/2″, 4″, 5″ and 6″. Grips were checkered hard rubber until 1924 when checkered walnut became standard.
Finish could be blue or nickel. In 1908 the frame was lengthened a bit to accommodate longer cartridges. Chamberings included .32-20 WCF and .38 Spl.
These were named the Police Positive Special. Colt’s D-frame was further beefed up in 1928, and they began serrating the top strap to reduce glare. These revolvers are known as Police Positive Second Issue.
A target version chambered in .22 LR with adjustable sights became available in 1910. Later iterations of the target model were chambered in .22 WMR, .32 Long (and Short) Colt, and .32 Colt New Police (.32 S&W Long).
Today the target variation carries an 80 percent to 90 percent premium over standard fixed-sight models in the collectors’ world.
In 1926 Colt paired down the D-frame slightly and offered the revolver with a 2″ barrel chambered in .38 Spl. This was the famous Detective Special and became the mainstay for many plainclothesmen police officers throughout much of the 20th century.
Overall during its 88-year run, more than 750,000 Police Positive and Police Positive Special revolvers were made. The paradigm shift from revolvers to semi-automatic pistols fueled its demise in 1995.
The Police Positive is one of the very few Colt revolvers not commanding an extraordinary premium today—except for the aforementioned target version.
Nonetheless, it is a solid, accurate and serviceable revolver that doesn’t wear out the user who carries it daily, and in .38 Spl. still has enough punch to take the fight out of many bad guys.
Image from Wikimedia Commons, Michael E. Cumpston
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Anti Civil Rights ideas & "Friends" Cops

FBI Refusing Appeals on NFA Denials

Ammoland Inc. Posted on  by 

Again and again those of us who simply want to exercise rights supposedly protected by the Constitution find the biggest perpetrators of infringements are its “guardians.”

USA – -(Ammoland.com)- “The FBI has taken the position that it will not allow you to appeal your FBI background check and denial for an NFA [National Firearms Act] Transaction,” attorney Stephen Stamboulieh announced Monday. “Yes, the FBI conducts the background check, denies you, and provides the NTN [NICS Transaction Number] for your denial, but… no appeal for you!”

“[T]he Appeal Services Team (AST) of the FBI Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Division’s NICS [National Instant Criminal Background Check System] Section does not process appeal requests for the NFA background checks,” appellant Kevin Francisco Borquez was told in an unsigned letter from the FBI dated June 12. “We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.”
“A NICS check is not required on the transfer of NFA items,” Historic Arms, LLC President Len Savage advised (See Section B, item 20 on page 2 of ATF Form 4473 and corresponding instructions on page 6).  “However, the FBI does receive fingerprints and does a more extensive background check that includes use of the NICS prior to ATF NFA branch even beginning the transfer process.”

In the case of NICS appeals, a Freedom of Information Act request submitted by Stamboulieh produced the admission that the FBI “stopped processing front-end [appeals] mail on 11/25/2015.”
In Borquez’s NFA case, he maintains he has wrongly been denied a fundamental right by gatekeepers that got it wrong. And based on their response, FBI bureaucrats apologized but won’t do anything about it except return materials he submitted in his inquiry.

Does failure to tell an inquiring citizen who does process such appeal requests mean no one does?

“I didn’t believe it until I saw the document. I’m not sure how this is legal or proper, but we are looking into it,” Stamboulieh responded. “So basically, the FBI is denying you based on its database, and then wholesale refuses to allow you to appeal it. Smells like a due process violation.”

About David Codrea:David Codrea
David Codrea is the winner of multiple journalist awards for investigating / defending the RKBA and a long-time gun owner rights advocate who defiantly challenges the folly of citizen disarmament.
In addition to being a field editor/columnist at GUNS Magazine and associate editor for Oath Keepers, he blogs at “The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance,” and posts on Twitter: @dcodrea and Facebook.

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All About Guns Anti Civil Rights ideas & "Friends" Born again Cynic! California Cops

Some more California dreaming / Gun Laws that work, yeah Sure!

California Authorities Seize 500 Firearms From Convicted Felon

Posted at 4:00 pm on June 20, 2018 by Tom Knighton


When you talk about states with the most strict gun control laws in the country, only a fool would exclude California from that conversation. The state prides itself on its gun control, and firearms are difficult for even the law-abiding citizen to obtain. There’s no way a felon could amass a pile of guns, right?
Right?
Oh, wait, that’s right. Criminals don’t follow any law they don’t want to obey. That includes gun laws, which is probably why this happened.

Authorities in California acting on a tip swept into a rural home and seized more than 500 guns from a convicted felon, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said.

The tip indicated Manuel Fernandez, 60, was “in possession of a large arsenal of firearms,” the department said in a statement. On Thursday, a team of state and local officers raided the house in Agua Dulce, about 45 miles north of Los Angeles. Authorities immediately seized 432 guns, the department said.

…

The next day, another 91 guns were found hidden at the Fernandez’s home, authorities said. Detectives also seized computers, cellphones and hard drives believed to be involved in the illegal purchase of firearms, the department said.

Another 30 guns were found at the home of a female associate of Fernandez.
Needless to say, Fernandez was arrested. He’ll probably spend a whole lot of time behind bars.
While authorities believe Fernandez was involved in the illegal gun trade, it’s important to remember something. This one individual was able to get his hands on more than 500 firearms despite his status as a felon. This despite the numerous laws designed to prevent him from doing so.
In fact, it’s almost like the laws did precisely nothing to keep guns out of Fernandez’s hands.
Nothing at all.
This individual was able to amass a massive arsenal for whatever purpose in spite of the countless laws explicitly meant to prevent just that. But criminals, by their very nature, don’t obey laws. Fernandez went around the law in some way, shape, or form to obtain all those weapons. This should illustrate the fallacy of gun laws keeping firearms out of criminal hands.
However, anti-gunners are experts at ignoring the truth.
They’ll look at this as evidence that more laws are needed. They’ll see this and be absolutely convinced that at least one more law is required. One more measure to pass and all of this could have been prevented.
The thing is, even if we learn precisely how Fernandez got these weapons, there’s little that will stop a determined criminal from getting guns. As noted yesterday, there’s a gun in this country for every man, woman, child, and infant. We have more than enough guns already in circulation that keeping guns out of the hands of criminals is a fool’s errand.
Yes, we should enforce the laws on the books. We should enforce them vigorously. But we should also make sure the law-abiding have the means to defend themselves from predators.
California sucks on that count.
Meanwhile, they can’t stop a felon from amassing a real arsenal of guns regardless of what the law says. Funny that.

Categories
Anti Civil Rights ideas & "Friends" Cops

TSA

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Cops

US Homicide Rates

Image result for US Homicide Rates
I was surprised about how deadly was the Prohibition Period and how quickly the rate dropped off after repeal!

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Cops

Congress Stands With the Blue, Against the Constitution The lopsided House vote for treating assaults on cops as federal crimes is a bipartisan portrait in cowardice. Jacob Sullum | May 23, 2018

Jacob Sullum | May 23, 2018
Last week the House of Representatives, by a margin of more than 10 to 1, approved a completely gratuitous, blatantly unconstitutional bill that would make assaulting a police officer a federal crime. The lopsided vote was a bipartisan portrait in cowardice that vividly showed how readily politicians forsake their oaths of office to keep their hold on power.
The Protect and Serve Act prescribes a prison sentence of up to 10 years for anyone who “knowingly assaults a law enforcement officer,” thereby “causing serious bodily injury,” or “attempts to do so.” Such conduct is, of course, already illegal in all 50 states, and there is no reason to think local law enforcement agencies are reluctant to arrest and prosecute people guilty of it.
Nor does the problem addressed by the bill seem to be on the rise, notwithstanding all the overheated talk of a “war on cops.” The number of law enforcement officers who are feloniously killed each year is small and volatile, but according to the FBI it dropped by 30 percent last year, and the average for the last 15 years (51) is lower than the average for the previous 15 (65).

In any event, the Constitution does not give Congress the authority to fight local crime, and the interstate angles mentioned by the bill are so oblique that they could justify federal prosecution of pretty much any assault (or attempted assault) on a cop. If the alleged assailant drove on an interstate highway or used a weapon produced in another state, for instance, that would be enough to make a federal case out of it.
“A tenuous connection to economic activity cannot transform a criminal law that has nothing to do with economic activity—and that is explicitly for the purpose of public safety—into a regulation of interstate commerce,” the House Liberty Caucus noted before the vote. “If it could, the Commerce Clause would destroy the Constitution’s design for a very limited federal role in criminal law enforcement, covering only a few crimes that are clearly federal in nature.”
The Protect and Serve Act explicitly allows federal prosecution of someone who is acquitted in state court, or who is convicted but receives a penalty the Justice Department deems too light. According to the Supreme Court’s “dual sovereignty” doctrine, such serial prosecutions do not violate the Fifth Amendment’s ban on double jeopardy, but they clearly offend the principle of fairness embodied in that rule.
These issues should be familiar to anyone who has followed the debate over federal prosecution of hate crimes, which occur when the victim is picked “because of” his “actual or perceived” membership in a protected group. The Senate version of the Protect and Serve Act takes that analogy and runs with it, targeting assaults and attempted assaults committed “because of the actual or perceived status of the [victim] as a law enforcement officer.”
Under that bill, someone who takes a swing at a guy he mistakenly thinks is a cop has committed a federal felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison—even if he misses. This approach, which takes a page from the “Blue Lives Matter” laws that at least four states have adopted in recent years, effectively punishes people not just for their conduct but for their anti-cop attitudes, just as hate crime statutes effectively punish people for their bigoted beliefs.
In addition to these problems, the possibility of federal felony charges based on garden-variety tussles between cops and people they detain, on top of state charges for assault and resisting arrest, gives police more leeway to abuse their powers. The Protect and Serve Act would protect and serve cops who hassle innocent people or use excessive force, giving them a new legal threat to use against their victims.
With 35 brave exceptions, these objections did not faze the House, where “Defend the Constitution” was no match for “Stand With the Blue.”
Jacob Sullum is a senior editor at Reason magazine and a nationally syndicated columnist.
Categories
All About Guns Cops Fieldcraft

Why you need a car gun

Image result for Police officer

Police in miamisburg, Ohio, say Brent Clark, 59, punched Savannah Johnson, 18, because he thought she was driving too slow. Clark attacked the teen during a red light, police say, and Johnson, whose siblings were in the car, suffered a concussion. Ohio Police

He punched, tried to choke teen driver — while her younger siblings watched, Ohio cops say

BY JOSH MAGNESS
Savannah Johnson said she had just picked up her younger siblings from a daycare last Tuesday, so she didn’t want to speed.
Johnson told WLWT5 that she made sure to follow the speed limit as she drove home in Miamisburg, Ohio. That’s when the 18-year-old said she noticed what appeared to be an angry driver closely following her on South Gebhart Church Road.
“I noticed him because he was honking and flipping me off,” she told WLWT5, “and then I looked in my mirror, and that’s how I saw he was riding my rear end.”
It was about 6 p.m., Johnson said, when she stopped at a red light on the road — and heard the man, whom police identified as 59-year-old Brent Clark, get out of his car and approach her vehicle. According to the Dayton Daily News, police say Clark went up to Johnson’s open window and landed punches while the teen’s siblings helplessly watched from the backseat.
Johnson, who said she was trying to roll up her window when Clark allegedly launched his attack, recalled the frightening moment as her younger brother and sister pleaded with him to stop.
“While he was beating me, my siblings kept saying, ‘Please stop hitting my sister,’ ” she told the Dayton Daily News.
Johnson alleged to WLWT5 that the man also tried to choke her and pull her out of the car.
The 18-year-old sped away once the light turned green, she told WLWT5, and then called her mom and 911. Clark sped in front of her after the attack, police say, and Johnson followed behind him so she could get a picture of his license plate.
Police say they used those pictures to arrest Clark, whom Johnson also accused of putting his car into reverse and trying to back into the teen because she was following him, according to WSB-TV2. Clark, who works at West Chester Hospital, faces an assault charge.
He has a $20,000 bail and is set to appear in court on May 21, WSB-TV2 reported. Johnson said she suffered a concussion from the attack and will need physical therapy.
Despite what happened, Johnson said she wasn’t just thinking of herself during the harrowing moments of road rage.
“I was just worried about my siblings,” she told WLWT5, “because they had to watch it all.”

0:31
Suspect rams car into motorcyclist in road rage incident

Another harrowing road rage incident captured on video shows a suspect ramming his vehicle into a motorcyclist in Sarasota, Fla. recently. A witness said that the motorist threw change at the biker, who is recovering from his injuries. Sarasota Sheriff’s Office via YouTube

 

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Cops

This never came up at the Academy!