Can I carry in a CA State Park?

[OCResident]

Q: Can a licensed CA CCW holder carry in a CA State Park? What about a off-duty LEO? What is considered a State Park?

Yes and yes.

As for what constitutes a State Park - there are too many to list, but you can browse the list at Find a Park.

Be careful - there are City Parks, County Parks, State Parks, National Parks, National Forests and they have different rules. Then, to make matters worse, there are National Monuments, National Historic Trails, National Historic Sites, National Recreation Areas, and National Memorials. Then of course we have city and state beaches - perhaps some county beaches as well. See the following related threads regarding parks:[List all park FAQ threads]



This question was an area of contention due to some seemingly unclear regulations:

14 CCR s 4313
Cal. Admin. Code tit. 14, s 4313

BARCLAYS OFFICIAL CALIFORNIA CODE OF REGULATIONS
TITLE 14. NATURAL RESOURCES
DIVISION 3. DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION
CHAPTER 1. GENERAL
Weapons and Traps.

(a) No person shall carry, possess or discharge across, in or into any portion of any unit any weapon, firearm, spear, bow and arrow, trap, net, or device capable of injuring, or killing any person or animal, or capturing any animal, or damaging any public or private property, except in underwater parks or designated archery ranges where the Department of Parks and Recreation finds that it is in its best interests.

(b) Nothing herein contained shall be construed in derogation of the use of weapons permitted by law or regulation and to be used for hunting in any unit, or portion thereof, open to hunting.

(c) Firearms not having a cartridge in any portion of the mechanism, other unloaded weapons or devices such as traps, nets, and bows and arrows may be possessed within temporary lodging or mechanical mode of conveyance when such implements are rendered temporarily inoperable or are packed, cased, or stored in a manner that will prevent their ready use.

Note: Authority cited: Section 5003, Public Resources Code. Reference: Sections 5003.1 and 5008, Public Resources Code.

The consensus was that this regulation referred only in the context of hunting, and did not address otherwise lawful carry of a weapon per CCW or LEO/HR218.

Thanks to a member on this board, we now have an opinion via email from Adrian Itaya (AITAY@parks.ca.gov), Superintendent of Public Safety Services, California State Parks, Public Safety Division.

My apologies for the delay-

The California Department of Parks and Recreation through its legal section, has determined that CCR 4313 exempts the following:

1) California Peace Officers who are otherwise permitted to carry firearms
2) Honorably retired California Peace Officers with concealed weapons privileges
3) Citizens with concealed firearms privileges

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Adrian E. Itaya

California State Parks
Public Safety Division

(916) 651-0403

Take note that many park rangers may not properly interpret this law, and in fact the Public Safety Division of California State Parks took several months to respond with a definitive answer. It would be prudent to have a printout of the above text so, at a minimum, they may have a contact person to escalate if you encounter any problems.

Special thanks to Tikifrei, G30 Steve, and CCWInstructor for contribution to this article.

The information in this FAQ post should be considered "as-is" and is not guaranteed to be accurate in any way. The maintainers of this site make an effort, when possible, to try to verify the information, but we are not lawyers and, therefore, we cannot and will not give legal advice. If you need accurate answers, hire an attorney who is licensed in the state in question that specializes in firearms. It is completely up to the reader to verify ALL information contained in this FAQ post.