CA: Transportation Legal?

[Avenger29]

Okay, so I am going to Cali on vacation, for several days. We are going to San Francisco and LA.

I would like to carry my 870 with a folding stock. I am not carrying a hard case, as I want this to be very discreet and I don't have the space. I am carrying several duffel bags.

I want to know if putting the shotgun, unloaded, and broken down if necessary, in one bag and ammo in another, and slap some cheap luggage locks on the zippers of each bag. Is this a legal method of transportation? I am not as worried about theft as legality, in this case.

 

[billwiese]

Actually, in CA you can travel with a regular unloaded shotgun or rifle. It generally doesn't have to be locked up.

If a cop stops you and ends up asking you why you have a shotgun, tell him it's because driving with a pistol in the glovebox is illegal.

Now, locking it up is a good idea if you're within 1000 yds of a school, due to that set of laws. But aside from that, it's legal to drive down the freeway with an unloaded 870 under your truck set.

Bill Wiese
San Jose CA

 

[Avenger29]

That is quite weird. I am still going to lock it up, JIC.

Anybody else want to chime in?

 

[Neo-Luddite]

A solid stock might be a better 'sell' for a nervous trooper--but it's still a long gun--and one legal everywhere in the U.S. If it's cased, in the trunk and un-loaded--you should be fine if it is lawfully yours.

 

[Avenger29]

I will be driving a minivan- no trunk to speak of.

And don't forget that duffle bags will be the case of choice- and the folding stock is necessary for compactness.

 

[Neo-Luddite]

Minivan--OK--it has a far back out of your reach. Park your gear there.

I don't know what to tell you--get a bigger duffle. A standard GI duffle will swallow a riot gun with a solid stock on it. Or, as an option, take the stock off altogether and carry the solid and the folder. The big 'if' is if it will be a handgun with the folder or an 'assault weapon'. Get a junky old 870 stock and chop it down a bit. To me, the big reason for packing a shotgun is vesatility in pratical and legal terms all over the map and even into Canada.

Unless you plan on 'sticking out' in the crowd of crazies in L.A., why worry so much??? You're driving a minivan--NOT the favored thug vehicle. And your not doing anything wrong.

 

[gunsmith]

Bill knows what he is talking about

Very knowledgeable about CA law as he is an smart guy after all, no need to be paranoid about a shotty in CA.
Despite the rep, CA is a bastion of conservative common sense.
compared to NJ!

My friend carries a mossberg in a gun rack in his pick up truck and drives through Berkeley once in awhile! no problem.

 

[Avenger29]

Unless you plan on 'sticking out' in the crowd of crazies in L.A., why worry so much??? You're driving a minivan--NOT the favored thug vehicle. And your not doing anything wrong

Because not only am I visiting CA, we are going across a large portion of the western states on a 3 week trip. And after what happened in Austin, I don't really want to be without a gun. I am going to be shepherding 4 elderly people, one of them handicapped, and two other people.

I don't plan on sticking out anywhere, but a rest stop at 0200 is not the greatest place to be. I am very worried that having several elderly people will make us a target. On top of that, these people are the very opposite of being worried about security

 

[longeyes]

What is the rule on ammo for the unloaded shotgun? Where and how is that to be carried?

 

[billwiese]

Bill knows what he is talking about - Very knowledgeable about CA law as he is an attorney after all...

Thanks for the kind words, but...

NO!! I AM *NOT* AN ATTORNEY. I write software for digital cameras.

I just dig into this stuff and I do talk with gun attorneys esp w/regards to AW stuff in CA. It's kinda a fun change of pace for me from the other tech stuff I have to deal with.

Most attorneys will not discuss matters of law in forums like this, due to risk of malpractice, etc - "You said X and Y but you didn't warn me about Z and now I am in trouble..."


Bill Wiese
San Jose CA

 

[nobody_special]

Longeyes -- IIRC, California sometimes has a very strange definitions of "loaded" and "unloaded." You can see the law for yourself here.

It is unlawful to carry a loaded firearm on one’s person or in a vehicle while in any public place, on any public street, or in any place where it is unlawful to discharge a firearm.(Penal Code §12031(a)(1).)

A firearm is deemed loaded when there is a live cartridge or shell in, or attached in any manner to, the firearm, including, but not limited to, the firing chamber, magazine, or clip thereof attached to the firearm. A muzzle-loading firearm is deemed loaded when it is capped or primed and has a powder charge and ball or shot in the barrel or cylinder. (Penal Code § 12031(g).)

For the purposes of Penal Code section 12023 (commission or attempted commission of a felony while armed with a loaded firearm), a firearm is deemed loaded when both the firearm and the unexpended ammunition capable of being discharged from the firearm are in the immediate possession of the same person.

So, if you're peaceably transporting a shotgun, just make sure there is no ammo in or attached to the gun.

 

[[FH]K96]

When I travel with my shotguns they are placed in the trunk* ( I have a Bronco, they are in a rifle bag in rear stowage area). I keep the ammunition separate in a surplus ammo box on floorboard of front passenger seat.

As observed by CA law. Close friend of mine, an officer in San Diego PD, has not mentioned anything when we go to the range together.

Direct link to CA DOJ

 

[NC_CE]

Anyone know what an unloaded firearm is?
A club.

 

[jselvy]

Does that mean a cartridge taped to a shoelace is a loaded machine gun?
BATFE has declared a shoelace a machine gun
&

attached in any manner to, the firearm,

could include adhesive tape.
What are we to do when the laws stop making sense?

Jefferson

 

[gunsmith]

sorry Bill

fixed my post!

 

[Young gun]

Considering that you must travel with the 870 unloaded, maybe you could get a used SxS as I can load and "cock" one in a couple of seconds less then it takes me to put to rounds in my 870 and rack it.

Or better yet a pump with a detachable magazine,

 

[Neo-Luddite]

"I don't really want to be without a gun."

You miss my point--yes, by all means--BRING THE *&^%$ shotgun!!!!

DON'T feel like you're some kind of criminal because you are doing so!!!![/B]


Now.....Have a safe trip.


-Mike (neo-luddite)

 

[Neo-Luddite]

"I don't really want to be without a gun."

You miss my point--yes, by all means--BRING THE *&^%$ shotgun!!!!

DON'T feel like you're some kind of criminal because you are doing so!!!


Now.....Have a safe trip.


-Mike (neo-luddite)