Chapter 9.32 WEAPONS

A. “Air gun” means and includes “air gun,” “air pistol,” “air rifle,” “BB gun” and toy guns of any kind or nature when so designed, contrived, modified and used to propel, by compressed air or spring-loaded plunger, any pellet, dart, hard-tipped arrow, bean, pea, BB, rock or other hard substance a distance of more than 25 feet with sufficient force to break windows or inflict injury upon persons or animals.

B. “Crime of violence” means any of the following crimes or an attempt to commit any of the same: murder, manslaughter, rape, mayhem, first-degree assault, robbery, burglary and kidnapping.

C. “Fugitive from justice” means a person who, having committed a crime, flees from the jurisdiction where it was committed to evade arrest.

D. “Law enforcement officer” means any person who, by virtue of his office or public employment, is vested by law with a duty to maintain public order or to make arrests for offenses.

E. “Machine gun” means any firearm or weapon known as a “machine gun,” “mechanical rifle,” “submachine gun” and/or any other weapon, mechanism or instrument not requiring that the trigger be pressed for each shot and having a reservoir clip, disc, drum, belt or other separable mechanical device for storing, carrying or supplying ammunition which can be loaded into such weapon, mechanism or instrument and fired therefrom at a rate of five or more shots per second.

F. “Pistol” means any firearm or other weapon for the purpose of discharging a projectile by means of compressed air, chemical combustion or otherwise and having a barrel less than 12 inches in length, but shall not include antique pistols or revolvers manufactured prior to 1889 and held as collector’s items. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code §§ 6.08.130, 6.08.160, 6.08.230)

9.32.015 Prohibition on weapons in certain areas of public interest pursuant to adopted state statutes.

In order to protect the public, public welfare, the right to lawful peaceable assembly, and good governance, pursuant to RCW 9.41.290, the following state statutes are adopted as they currently exist, or are thereafter amended, along with their applicable definitions and penalties:

A. RCW 9.41.280, prohibiting weapons upon public or private elementary or secondary school premises, school-provided transportation, areas of facilities while being used exclusively by public or private schools, or areas of facilities while being used for official meetings of a school district board of directors;

B. RCW 9.41.282, prohibiting weapons upon licensed childcare center premises, child care center-provided transportation, or areas of facilities while being used exclusively by a child care center;

C. RCW 9.41.300, prohibiting weapons within those areas of any building which are used in connection with court proceedings, including courtrooms, jury rooms, judge’s chambers, offices, and areas used to conduct court business, waiting areas, and corridors adjacent to areas used in connection with court proceedings;

D. RCW 9.41.305, prohibiting weapons upon the posting of proper signage, prohibiting weapons in any municipal buildings used in connection with meetings of the governing body of the city, or any location of a public meeting or hearing of the governing body of the city during the hearing or meeting; and

E. RCW 70.108.150, prohibiting firearms upon the site of an outdoor music festival. (Ord. 2998 § 1 (Exh. A), 2023)

9.32.020 Prohibited knives, clubs, knuckles, silencers – Weapons possession.

Every person who does any of the following is guilty of a gross misdemeanor:

A. Manufactures, sells or disposes of or has in his possession any instrument or weapon of the kind usually known as a slingshot, sand club or metal knuckles, or spring-blade knife, or any knife the blade of which is automatically released by a spring mechanism or other mechanical device, or any knife having a blade which opens or falls or is ejected into position by the force of gravity, or by an outward, downward or centrifugal thrust or movement; or

B. Furtively carries with intent to conceal any dagger, dirk, pistol or other dangerous weapon; or

C. Uses any contrivance or device for suppressing the noise of any firearm. (Ord. 2846 § 2 (Exh. A), 2014; Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.150)

9.32.030 Carrying or exhibiting weapons – Unlawful display.

A. It is unlawful for anyone to carry, exhibit, display or draw any firearm, dagger, sword, knife or other cutting or stabbing instrument, club or any other weapon apparently capable of producing bodily harm in a manner, under circumstances and at a time and place that either manifests an intent to intimidate another or that warrants alarm for the safety of other persons.

B. Any person violating the provisions of subsection (A) of this section on carrying or exhibiting firearms and dangerous weapons is guilty of a gross misdemeanor. (Ord. 2846 § 2 (Exh. A), 2014; Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code §§ 6.08.200, 6.08.210)

9.32.040 Carrying or exhibiting weapons – Exceptions.

BMC 9.32.020 on carrying or exhibiting firearms weapons shall not apply to or affect the following:

A. Any act committed by a person while in his place of abode or fixed place of business;

B. Any person who, by virtue of his office of public employment is vested by law with a duty to preserve public safety, maintain public order or to make arrests for offenses, while in the performance of such duty;

C. Any person acting for the purpose of protecting himself against the use of presently threatened unlawful force by another, or for the purpose of protecting another against the use of such unlawful force by a third person;

D. Any person making or assisting in making a lawful arrest for the commission of a felony; or

E. Any person engaged in military activities sponsored by the federal or state governments. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.220)

9.32.050 Discharging weapons within city.

No person within the limits of the city shall use or attempt to use, or discharge or attempt to discharge, any shotgun, rifle, revolver, pistol, firearm, air gun or any other instrument or contrivance commonly known as a slingshot; provided, that the provisions of this section shall not be deemed to apply to trap shooting by any regularly organized gun club, which has first obtained a written permit to shoot from the city council. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.270)

Article II. Pistols

9.32.060 Carrying concealed or in vehicle – Prohibited.

No person shall carry a pistol concealed on his person or in a vehicle without a license as provided for in this chapter and no person shall carry a pistol in any vehicle unless it is unloaded. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.020)

9.32.070 Carrying concealed or in vehicle – Exemptions.

BMC 9.32.060 shall not apply to:

A. Marshals, sheriffs, prison or jail wardens or their deputies, policemen or other law enforcement officers; or

B. Members of the United States Army, Navy or Marine Corps or of the National Guard or organized reserves when on duty; or

C. Regularly enrolled members of any organization duly authorized to purchase or receive such weapons from the United States or this state; or

D. Regularly enrolled members of clubs organized for the purpose of target shooting or modern and antique firearm collecting or to individual hunters; provided, that such members are at, or are going to or from, their places of target practice, or their collector’s gun shows and exhibits or are on a hunting, camping or fishing trip; or

E. Officers or employees of the United States duly authorized to carry a concealed pistol; or

F. Any person engaged in the business of manufacturing, repairing or dealing in firearms or the agent or representative of any such person having in his possession, using or carrying a pistol in the usual and ordinary course of such business; or

G. Any person while carrying a pistol unloaded and in a secure wrapper from the place of purchase to his home or place of business, or to a place of repair and back to his home or place of business, or in moving from one place of abode or business to another. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.030)

9.32.080 Carrying concealed or in vehicle – License.

A. The chief of police shall, upon application of any person, issue a license to such person to carry a pistol in a vehicle or concealed on his person within this state for two years from the date of issue, for the purposes of protection or while engaged in business, sport or while traveling. Such person shall not be denied such license unless he is ineligible to own a pistol under the provisions of BMC 9.32.090 and RCW 9.41.040 as it exists as of the adoption of the ordinance codified in this title or is thereafter amended; provided, that such permit shall be revoked immediately upon conviction of a crime which makes such person ineligible to own a pistol.

B. The license contemplated in subsection A of this section shall be in triplicate, in a form to be prescribed by the Director of the state Department of Licensing, and shall bear the name, address and description, fingerprints and signature of the licensee and the reason given for desiring a license. The original thereof shall be delivered to the licensee, the duplicate shall, within seven days, be sent by registered mail to the Director of Licensing, and the triplicate shall be preserved for six years by the chief of police. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.040)

9.32.090 Delivery to those under 21 years.

No person shall deliver a pistol to any person under the age of 21 or to one whom he has reasonable cause to believe has been convicted of a crime of violence or of drug addiction or of habitual drunkenness or has been confined to a mental institution. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.050)

9.32.100 Sales – Identification and report.

It is unlawful for any merchant or secondhand dealer, or any clerk, agent or employee of any merchant or secondhand dealer, to sell, give away or dispose of any pistol to any person at retail, unless such person is personally known to the seller or presents clear evidence of his identity, nor without completing a true record in triplicate of every pistol sold or disposed of. Such record shall be personally signed by the purchaser and by the person effecting the sale, each in the presence of the other, and shall, contain the date of sale, the caliber, make, model and manufacturer’s number of the weapon, the name, address, occupation and place of birth of the purchaser, and a statement signed by the purchaser that he has never been convicted in this state or elsewhere of a crime of violence, or of drug addiction or habitual drunkenness, and has never been confined to a mental institution. One copy shall, within six hours, be sent by registered mail to the chief of police of the city who shall, within 72 hours, exclusive of Sundays and holidays, investigate the information contained in the record and report his findings to the merchant or secondhand dealer. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.240)

9.32.110 Sales – Delivery.

It is unlawful for any merchant or secondhand dealer to deliver any pistol to any purchaser until the merchant or secondhand dealer has received a report from the chief of police that the purchaser is not a fugitive from justice and that the purchaser has never been convicted in this state or elsewhere of a crime of violence, or of drug addiction or of habitual drunkenness and has never been confined to a mental institution; provided, that if such merchant or secondhand dealer does not receive such report from the chief of police within 72 hours, exclusive of Sundays and holidays, after he has mailed a copy of the record to the chief of police as required by BMC 9.32.100, then such merchant or secondhand dealer may deliver the pistol to the purchaser; provided further, that this section shall not apply to sales at wholesale, or to sales to persons exhibiting a valid license to carry a pistol concealed that is issued pursuant to RCW 9.41.070, or to sales to law enforcement officers. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.250)

9.32.120 Sales – Prohibited purchasers.

It is unlawful for any person who is a fugitive from justice or who has been convicted in this state or elsewhere of a crime of violence, or of drug addiction or of habitual drunkenness, or who has been confined to a mental institution, to purchase a pistol in this city, and it is further unlawful for any such person to fail to disclose such information when applying for the purchase of a pistol. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.260)

9.32.130 Restrictions on the sale and transfer of firearms.

For the purposes of enforcement, the city adopts the state restrictions and prohibitions on the sale and transfer of firearms, specifically those crimes and infractions existing at the time of adoption, or thereafter amended, along with their applicable definitions and penalties, identified within RCW 9.41.113 and 9.41.115. (Ord. 2998 § 1 (Exh. A), 2023)

9.32.140 Sales – License.

No retail dealer shall sell or otherwise transfer, or expose for sale or transfer, or have in his possession with intent to sell or transfer, any pistol without being licensed as provided by law under the requirements of RCW 9.41.110. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.070)

9.32.150 As security for loans.

No person other than a duly licensed dealer shall make any loan secured by a mortgage, deposit or pledge of a pistol. Any licensed dealer receiving a pistol as a deposit or pledge for a loan shall keep such records and make such reports as are provided by law for pawnbrokers and secondhand dealers as provided by Chapter 10.60 RCW. A duly licensed dealer may mortgage any pistol or stock of pistols but shall not deposit or pledge the same with any other person. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.080)

9.32.160 Changing identifying marks.

No person shall change, alter, remove or obliterate the name of the maker, model, manufacturer’s number or other mark of identification of any pistol. Possession of any pistol upon which any such mark has been changed, altered, removed or obliterated shall be prima facie evidence that the possessor has changed, altered, removed or obliterated the same. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.090)

9.32.170 Giving false information.

No person shall, in purchasing or otherwise securing delivery of a pistol, or in applying for a license to carry a pistol, give false information or offer false evidence of his identity. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.100)

9.32.180 Curiosities or ornaments exempted.

This chapter shall not apply to antique pistols unsuitable for use as firearms and possessed as curiosities or ornaments. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.110)

Article III. Machine Guns

9.32.190 Unlawful.

It is unlawful for any person to manufacture, own, buy, sell, loan, furnish, transport, or to have in possession or under control any machine gun or any part thereof capable of use for assembling or repairing any machine gun; provided, however, that such limitation shall not apply to any police officer in the discharge of official duty, or to any officer or member of the Armed Forces of the United States or the state. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.120)

9.32.200 Seizure authorized.

All machine guns, or parts thereof, illegally held or possessed are declared to be contraband, and it is the duty of all police officers to seize the machine gun, or parts thereof, wherever and whenever found. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.140)

Article IV. Air Guns

9.32.210 Possession, use, sale or rental.

Except as provided in BMC 9.32.220, it is unlawful:

A. For any person under 16 years of age to carry or shoot an air gun within the city when not in the presence of his parent or other adult in loco parentis and under the direction and control of such adult;

B. For any person to point or shoot an air gun at any person or property of another, or to aim or discharge such weapon in the direction of the person or residence of another, while within range as to cause or inflict injury to the person or damage the property of another;

C. For any parent or person in loco parentis to allow, give or permit the possession of any air gun, falling within the definition contained in BMC 9.32.010, to any child under the age of 16 years, except under the provisions of subsection A of this section;

D. For any merchant to sell or rent any air guns to minors under 16 years of age, except when such minor is in the presence of his parent or other adult in charge of such child. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.170)

9.32.220 Exceptions.

Repealed by Ord. 2363. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.180)

9.32.230 Penalty for violations.

Any person convicted of a violation of the provisions of this article is guilty of a misdemeanor and, in addition to any other punishment imposed by the court, the court shall direct that the weapon so used in violation of the provisions hereof be confiscated. (Ord. 1558 § 1, 1980; prior code § 6.08.190)