Texas carry laws in regards to your car w/ no CHL

[Mark-Smith]

What are the Texas laws in regards to keeping a gun in your car if you don't have a CHL?

Trunk and unloaded only?

Parked anywhere, or 'not parked on federal land, hospital, courthouse, school, etc'?

 

[Art Eatman]

The legislature finally changed the law so that if your handgun is concealed while you have it accessible in the car with you when you're driving around town or across the state, you are by definition "travelling". The law now recognizes the long-held and numerous court decisions which declared that a traveller had the right to have a handgun as a means of self defense.

You must take the usual precautions upon exit of the vehicle when not on your own property. No carry, locked away, all that practical stuff.

 

[TexasRifleman]

That's pretty much it, here's the actual law:

Sec. 46.02. UNLAWFUL CARRYING WEAPONS. (a) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly carries on or about his or her person a handgun, illegal knife, or club if the person is not:
(1) on the person's own premises or premises under the person's control; or
(2) inside of or directly en route to a motor vehicle that is owned by the person or under the person's control.
(a-1) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly carries on or about his or her person a handgun in a motor vehicle that is owned by the person or under the person's control at any time in which:
(1) the handgun is in plain view; or
(2) the person is:
(A) engaged in criminal activity, other than a Class C misdemeanor that is a violation of a law or ordinance regulating traffic;
(B) prohibited by law from possessing a firearm; or
(C) a member of a criminal street gang, as defined by Section 71.01.

The law does not care about loaded or unloaded, only "not in plain view'. That only applies to handguns, long guns have no such restrictions placed on them for the most part.

As to where, STATE law says it's OK in parking lots or streets. Federal law may limit some parking lots etc but that's a whole can of worms that has nothing to do with Texas law, you'll have to dig around for those on your own. There are some things to keep in mind for sure.

 

[Mark-Smith]

That's pretty much it, here's the actual law:



The law does not care about loaded or unloaded, only "not in plain view'. That only applies to handguns, long guns have no such restrictions placed on them for the most part.

As to where, STATE law says it's OK in parking lots or streets. Federal law may limit some parking lots etc but that's a whole can of worms that has nothing to do with Texas law, you'll have to dig around for those on your own. There are some things to keep in mind for sure.

So you could have your handgun in your glove box, with a loaded magazine, and park it wherever you go (save the Post Office, or other Federal property) as long as it's not visible?

Even if you park at a school to pick your kids up, etc?

 

[TexasRifleman]

Yes. School parking lots are fine.

Sec. 46.03. PLACES WEAPONS PROHIBITED. (a) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly possesses or goes with a firearm, illegal knife, club, or prohibited weapon listed in Section 46.05(a):
(1) on the physical premises of a school or educational institution, any grounds or building on which an activity sponsored by a school or educational institution is being conducted, or a passenger transportation vehicle of a school or educational institution, whether the school or educational institution is public or private, unless pursuant to written regulations or written authorization of the institution;

(c) In this section:
(1) "Premises" has the meaning assigned by Section 46.035.

46.035
(3) "Premises" means a building or a portion of a building. The term does not include any public or private driveway, street, sidewalk or walkway, parking lot, parking garage, or other parking area.

Now, that's state law.

There is a whole can of worms at a Federal level that has been all the way to the Supreme Court without a clear resolution.

Google "Gun Free School Zones Act of 1990". This was the whole "no guns within 1000 feet of a school" which was later ruled unconstititional. So, Congress wrote it again and changed a couple of words and it came back as the same name "Act of 1995". In this law you will find that it excludes those with a permit.

So, you could argue that it would be legal as far as STATE law goes but a violation of FEDERAL law to have a loaded gun near a school without a permit.

It's a fuzzy area to some, some think it's crystal clear that you can't do it without a permit.

If you want to read it, it's Title 18 U.S.C §922(q).

 

[Mark-Smith]

Yes. School parking lots are fine.





Now, that's state law.

There is a whole can of worms at a Federal level that has been all the way to the Supreme Court without a clear resolution.

Google "Gun Free School Zones Act of 1990". This was the whole "no guns within 1000 feet of a school" which was later ruled unconstititional. So, Congress wrote it again and changed a couple of words and it came back as the same name "Act of 1995". In this law you will find that it excludes those with a permit.

So, you could argue that it would be legal as far as STATE law goes but a violation of FEDERAL law to have a loaded gun near a school without a permit.

It's a fuzzy area to some, some think it's crystal clear that you can't do it without a permit.

If you want to read it, it's Title 18 U.S.C §922(q).

If you are employed by a vocational school, the long and the short of it is that the gun has to stay in the vehicle at all times from what I gather?