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Kentucky Laws and
Various Legal Opinion Relating to Weapons and Self Defense
The following compilation is intended ONLY
as a reference tool and should not in any manner be construed as a
comprehensive library regarding the subject matter. Most of the
following hyperlinks will take you outside the KC3 website to various
sources we consider reliable, predominantly the pages of the Kentucky
Attorney General and those of the Kentucky Legislature. KC3 makes
no warranty that any of the following links will be functional when
activated nor that
the information found at the target page will be accurate or up-to-date.
If you find that any link is faulty or that the information at the
target is no longer relevant to the identified subject matter, or if you
know of other information that should be included on this page, please contact
so that we can take the necessary steps
to correct the error or omission.
For pending legislation see our
2008 Legislative Position Page
Not yet activated
New
Legislation
2006 KY ACTS
Chapter 240
Several beneficial changes went into effect 12 July 2006 thanks to the
General Assembly's
passage of House Bill 290 and the Governor's subsequent signature. The
Kentucky Revised Statutes have now been amended to reflect this
legislation and the particularly relevant sections have been added to the list below.
Kentucky Constitution
[Constitution by Section Title]
BILL OF RIGHTS
-
SECTION
1 -
See the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th articles
-
SECTION
2 - Absolute and arbitrary powers denied
THE KY MILITIA
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS)
Relating to Firearms Possession
[KRS by Chapter Title]
KRS 36.450
ARMED FORCES AUTOMATIC EXTENSION
Special consideration for our service personnel deployed outside the
U.S. They get the renewal date extended 90 days from their date of
return for most ANY license they hold, including a CCDWL.
KRS 65.870 - LOCAL
FIREARMS CONTROL PROHIBITED
We call this statute our "Pre-emption law". With very limited
exceptions regarding CCDW, KY firearms laws are the same statewide.
Note KRS 237.115
for one exception.
CHAPTER 237 -
FIREARMS AND DESTRUCTIVE DEVICES
This entire chapter is devoted to
firearms and other destructive devices, you may want to pay special
attention to the following sections:
-
237.020
Purchasing firearms in contiguous states
-
237.060
Definitions
-
237.070
Prohibition against sale or transfer of firearm to convicted felon.
-
237.104 Rights
to acquire, carry, and use deadly weapons not to be impaired during
disaster or emergency
-
237.106 Right
of employees and other persons to possess firearms in vehicle --
Employer liable for denying right
-
237.110
CCDW licensing
-
237.115
Local government CCDW regulation
-
237.120 thru
.136 License training including penalties
KRS 244.125 -
"LOADED" FIREARMS IN BARS PROHIBITED
The definition of "loaded" can be found
at
KRS 237.060.
KRS 437.030 - DUELS,
ACCEPT OR DELIVER CHALLENGE
This includes anyone who acts as a second and those who carry or
deliver the challenge.
KRS 500.080 -
DEFINITIONS FOR STATUTORY TERMS
Here you will find the meanings of specific terms found throughout the
other statues including "deadly weapon", "possession", "physical injury"
and "serious physical injury".
CHAPTER 527 -
FIREARMS AND WEAPONS OFFENSES
This chapter deals mostly with victimless
crimes involving firearms. They have, for the most part, been
enacted to prevent what one might do with a firearm in his
possession rather than any actual perpetration of otherwise criminal
activity. You should pay close attention to the wording in the
chapter, some crimes described seem rather vague and open to very loose
interpretation. The entire chapter is relevant but you should be
especially wary of the crimes described in the following sections:
-
527.010 Definitions for the chapter
-
527.020
Carrying concealed a deadly weapon
-
527.030
Defacing a firearm (note use of "cover" in definition)
-
527.050
Possessing a defaced firearm
-
527.070
Possession on school property - FELONY!
-
527.110
Providing handgun to a juvenile - FELONY!
Kentucky Revised Statutes
Specific to Self-Defense
[KRS by Chapter Title]
CHAPTER 503 -
PRINCIPLES
OF JUSTIFICATION
This chapter is devoted to the definitions of justifiable force and
deadly force. Anyone who carries a weapon for self-defense would
benefit from a detailed study of this chapter, paying close attention to
the differences between the following sections:
-
503.010
Definitions for chapter
-
503.050 Using force to protect self
-
503.070 Using force to protect another
-
503.080 Using force to protect property
-
503.100 Using force to prevent suicide or crime
The NICS Exemption
Take this link to the "OPEN
LETTER TO ALL KENTUCKY FEDERAL FIREARMS LICENSEES".
Effective July 12, 2006, a KY license to carry concealed weapons
issued after this date will substitute for a NICS check on a
firearms transfer in KY.
Opinions of the KY Attorney General
Regarding Firearms
OAG 93 - 71
"It is the opinion of [the office of the KY Attorney General] that
current law does not authorize a city of the first class to enact a
local ordinance regulating the registration of firearms and requiring
notification to the local governing body of all firearms sales. KRS
65.870 prohibits local governments from enacting firearms control
ordinances. Specifically, KRS 65.870..."
OAG 94 - 14
"[The Legislative Research Commission] recently requested [the office of
the KY Attorney General] to 'determine whether House Bill 359
restricting possession of handguns by minors is constitutional or
unconstitutional under the Second Amendment to the Constitution of the
United States or Section 1, Seventh, under the Constitution of
Kentucky.' The bill (HB 359) is constitutional under both of these
constitutional provisions."
OAG 96 - 2
"House Bill 81, a proposed house amendment to KRS 211.180, does not
provide any additional power to the Cabinet for Human Resources to
regulate in the areas of firearms or tobacco."
OAG 96 - 39
"A county may not ban or regulate the open or concealed carry of
firearms in public parks it controls, except a fiscal court may by
ordinance prohibit or limit the carrying of concealed firearms in the
buildings, or portions of buildings, the county controls located in such
parks."
OAG 96 - 40
"A public university ban on the possession or storage of a deadly weapon
or destructive device on property owned or occupied by that university
does not violate the right to bear arms secured by Section 1, Seventh of
the Kentucky Constitution."
OAG 97 - 9
"Kentucky circuit and district courts may ban deadly weapons in
courthouse or courthouse annex space provided those courts by county
government in accordance with the express provisions of KRS 26A.100.
Notwithstanding such a ban, peace officers may carry deadly weapons when
necessary for their protection in the discharge of their official
duties."
OAG 98 - 12
"Employers may not prohibit duly licensed employees from keeping
concealed deadly weapons in personally owned vehicles parked on
employer’s premises."
OAG 99 - 10
"Louisville Ordinance 135.05 [regulating concealable firearms] is
invalid under KRS 82.082, because KRS 65.870 expressly prohibits this
legislation."
Opinions of the KY Courts
Regarding Firearms
Holland v
Commonwealth
In our state the legislature is empowered only to deny to citizens the
right to carry concealed weapons. The constitutional provision is an
affirmation of the faith that all men have the inherent right to arm
themselves for the defense of themselves and of the state. The only
limitation concerns the mode of carrying such instruments. We observe,
via obiter dicta, that although a person is granted the right to carry a
weapon openly, a severe penalty is imposed for carrying it concealed. If
the gun is worn outside the jacket or shirt in full view, no one may
question the wearer’s right so to do...
A summary of US Supreme Court Decisions
THE SECOND AMENDMENT IN THE SUPREME COURT:
WHERE IT’S BEEN AND WHERE IT’S GOING
by Stephen P. Halbrook, Attorney at Law, Fairfax,
Virginia; J.D., Georgetown University Law Center; Ph.D. -
Philosophy, Florida State University.
THE PECULIAR
STORY OF UNITED STATES V. MILLER
by Brian L. Frye,
Law Clerk to Judge Andrew J.
Kleinfeld, United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. B.A,
University of California, Berkeley, 1995; M.F.A., San Francisco Art
Institute, 1997; J.D., New York University School of Law, 2005.
Last updated
1 July 2007 |
