The Texas Gun Owner's Guide

Approved by Texas DPS for CHL Training

Covers the information you need to know as a gun owner,
in plain English.

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS
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CHAPTER 1 • THE RIGHT TO BEAR ARMS

Texas State Constitution, Article 1, Section 23 16

Welcome to the State Gun Laws 17

Reasons for Texas’ Gun Laws 17

The Dreaded “§” Section Symbol 18

A Word About Federal Law 18

What Is A Firearm? 19

Who Can Bear Arms in Texas? 20

The Federal Prohibited Possessors List 21

Juveniles 22

Federal Regulation of Juveniles 22

Child Safety Law 23

How Do You Obtain Firearms? 24

In-State Purchase 25

Out-of-State Purchase 26

Gun Shows 27

Carrying Firearms 28

Limits of the Handgun Carrying Restrictions 29

Additional Restrictions and Exemptions 30

Security Guards 32

Traveling 32

Court Precedents on Traveling 34

Guns in Cars 38

Transport and Shipping 38

Interstate Travel 39

Reciprocity Laws in General 41

Reciprocity Lists 44

Common or Contract Carriers 44

Local Ordinances and Preemption 45

Prohibited Places 46

Product Liability Limit 46

Loss of Rights 47

Forfeiture of Rights 47

Forfeiture of Weapons 47

Restoration of Rights 48

Firearms Safety Training 49

 

CHAPTER 2 • THE RIGHT-TO-CARRY LAW

The Concealed-Handgun License (CHL) 56

General Conditions 56

Qualifications for a Concealed-Handgun License 58

Preliminary CHL Application 60

Actual CHL Application 61

Application Background Checks 62

Residency 63

Application Denials 64

Modifying or Replacing a License 65

Duration and Renewal 65

Suspended License 66

Revoked License 67

License Seizure 67

Peace Officer May Disarm License Holder 68

Immunity for State Government and Instructors 68

Records and Privacy 68

Texas Reciprocity Law and Non-Resident License 69

Mandatory Concealed-Handgun Training 70

Minimum Course Requirements 70

Handgun Categories 71

Marksmanship Requirements 71

Instructor Qualifications 72

Miscellaneous 75

Prohibited Places List 76

Private Property and Trespass 79

No-Guns-Allowed Signs 79

Criminal Trespass 81

Bars 81

Federal Facilities 82

Texas Gun-Free School Zones Laws 82

 

CHAPTER 3 • TYPES OF WEAPONS

Prohibited Weapons 88

Defaced Deadly Weapons 88

State Prohibited Weapons 89

Prohibited Weapon Exceptions 89

Illegal Guns 90

Affected Weapons 90

Other Illegal Deadly Weapons 91

Machine Guns 93

Curios, Relics and Antiques 94

 

CHAPTER 4 • WHERE CAN YOU SHOOT?

General Restrictions 100

Illegal Trajectory 100

Discharge in City Limits 100

From Vehicles or Boats 100

Posted Areas 101

Common or Public Nuisance 101

The Land of Texas 101

Texas General Land Office 101

Cities, Towns and Villages 102

Special Cases 103

County Land 103

Indian Country 104

National Forests 104

National Park Service Land 105

Private Land 106

River Authorities 107

Shooting Ranges 108

State and Federal Military Land 109

Certain State Lands 109

Transporting Firearms for Shooting 111

 

CHAPTER 5 • DEADLY FORCE and SELF-DEFENSE

Use of Deadly Physical Force 118

Public Duty 120

Necessity 120

Self-Defense 121

Defense of a Third Person 122

Crime Prevention 122

Law Enforcement 123

Protection of Life or Health 123

Protecting Property 124

Related Laws 126

Aggravated Assault 126

Disorderly Conduct 126

Deadly Conduct 126

Reporting Gunshot Wounds 126

Responsibility 127

Booby Traps 127

Warning Shots 127

Bullet Proof Vests 128

Keeping Control of Your Firearm 128

Disarming a Peace Officer 128

Criminal Mischief 128

Appointing and Arming Deputies 129

 

CHAPTER 6 • HUNTING REGULATIONS

Hunting on Leased Land 136

Hunting on U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Land 137

Public Lands Regulated by Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept. 137

Some Key Hunting Regulations 138

 

CHAPTER 7 • NOTES ON FEDERAL LAWS

Federal Firearms Transportation Guarantee 146

The Brady Law, Parts 1 and 2 147

Public Safety and Recreation Firearms Use Protection Act 151

Rifle Practice and Firearms Safety Act 152

Antiterrorism Act 153

Gun-Free School Zones Act 155

Misdemeanor Gun Ban for Domestic Violence 156

Omnibus Federal Gun Laws for 1999 158

 

CHAPTER 8 • GUN SAFETY and SELF-DEFENSE TRAINING

The Gun Owner’s Commandments of Safety 164

Teach Your Children Well 167

School Firearms Safety Program 167

Keeping Children Safe 167

The Eddie Eagle Program 170

How Well Do You Know Your Gun? 171

CHL Training: Study Guide and Self-Test Questions 172

Judgmental Shooting 180

Situational Analysis 181

Appendix A—Glossary of Terms 191

Appendix B—Crime and Punishment Chart 196

Appendix C—The Proper Authorities 199

Appendix D—The Texas Gun Laws 203

State Codes in Alphabetical Order 207

Code of Criminal Procedure 269

About the Authors 280

ILLUSTRATIONS

What Does It All Mean? (Penalties) 50

What Do You Need to Get a Firearm? 52

When Can You Conceal a Firearm? 84

What’s Wrong with This Picture? (Weapons) 96

What’s Wrong with This Picture? (Shooting) 112

There’s Nothing Wrong with This Picture 114

Do You Have to Drag a Crook Inside? 130

Can You Point a Gun at Someone? 132

Growth in Federal Gun Law (Chart) 161

The Noble Uses of Firearms 186

Growth in Texas Gun Law (Chart) 205

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


This book is really the result of all the help we received, great and small, from the good people who shared their thoughts and resources with us. Thank you.

Ron Bertsch, Deputy, National Forests and Grasslands
Dr. James T. “Doc” Brown, Texas State Rifle Association
Susan Carley, Research and Support
Bill Clede, Sysop, Firearms Forum, CompuServe, along with
Jeff Halapin, M. Scott Hammon, Kelley Hughes, John Rich
and Mark Thompson
Larry Cooper, Marksman Indoor Range, Inc.
Candice M. DeBarr, Research and Support
Randy Gibson, Exec. Dir., Texas State Rifle Association
Tom Gresham, Contributing Editor, Sports Afield
Steve Hall, Conservation Ed. Dir., Texas Parks & Wildlife Dept.
Gary Kansteiner, Attorney, Texas Legislative Council
Fred Knot, Research and Support
Marshall Kummel, Research and Support
Cheryl and Tyler Korwin
Jim Lockwood
Jeff Long, Information Coordinator, Texas General Land Office
Joe McBride, President, McBride’s Guns, Inc.
John Molleston, Texas General Land Office
Harold D. Oates, Captain, Texas Parks & Wildlife Dept.
Karl N. Olson, Security Officer, Texas Parks & Wildlife Dept.
The Honorable Senator Jerry Patterson
Linda Paulson, CompuServe Journalism Forum
Terrence Plas, The Pensus Group
E.B. Reddoch, III, Exec. Dir., Texas State Rifle Association
Richard Shaw, The Pensus Group
David Smith, Alpine Range
Ralph Talbot, Texas State Rifle Association
Texas Arms Rights Coalition, Neil Atkins
Texas Gun Dealers Association
Charles H. “Chuck” Thompson,
American Defensive Firearms Institute
Gabriel Torre, Sportsman Shooting Center
Carlos Vaca, Asst. Commander, Texas Parks & Wildlife Dept.
Paul Velte IV, Attorney at Law
Charles Wallace, Coordinator, TSRA Grass Roots
W.L. Don Welch, Chief Ranger, Lower Colorado River Authority
James C. “Jimmy” Williams, Attorney
Karen Ziegler, Red’s Indoor Range
The Texas State Rifle Association
allowed the use of information in their pamphlet,
“Know Your Texas Firearm Laws.”
The National Rifle Association Institute
allowed the use of material in their pamphlet,
“Your State Firearms Laws.”
In their dealings with us we found the Texas Dept. of Public Safety
to be cooperative, professional, hard-working and dedicated to fair
implementation of the complex 1995 Right-to-Carry law.
The Texas River Authorities’ cooperation was greatly appreciated.
Special thanks to Phoenix trial lawyer Michael P. Anthony
Cover design by Ralph Richardson