Batons are illegal in California for almost everyone. Penal Code 22210 makes it a crime to possess, manufacture, import, sell, lend, or give away a billy club, blackjack, sandbag, sandclub, sap, slungshot, or leaded cane, and courts read that list to cover expandable, collapsible, fixed-length, and tactical batons alike.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 22210 A small set of professionals is exempt. A federal judge ruled the ban unconstitutional in 2024, but the statute remains enforceable while that decision is on appeal.
What Penal Code 22210 Prohibits
The statute doesn’t sort batons by design. If an object is built for striking and fits the general description of a billy club, California treats it as banned. Batons sit inside the state’s broader “generally prohibited weapons” category alongside brass knuckles, switchblades, and nunchucks — items the legislature considers to have no everyday purpose beyond harming a person.
The prohibited conduct is broad:
- Possessing a baton at home, in a car, or on your person.
- Manufacturing one, or having one made for you.
- Importing one, including ordering from an out-of-state seller.
- Selling, lending, or gifting one, even in a private transaction.
Unlike some weapons whose legality turns on how they’re carried, batons are flatly off-limits. Open carry, concealed carry, and storage in a locked trunk are all illegal. Prosecutors don’t have to show you intended to use the baton as a weapon; possession alone is enough.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 22210
Penalties for Possessing a Baton
A violation of Penal Code 22210 is a wobbler. Prosecutors can charge it as a misdemeanor or a felony, and the choice usually turns on your record, the circumstances of the arrest, and whether the baton was tied to another offense.
Misdemeanor
A misdemeanor conviction carries up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $1,000.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 22210 First-time possession cases with no aggravating facts typically land here. Courts can substitute probation, community service, or other conditions for jail.
Felony
A felony carries 16 months, two years, or three years in county jail under realignment. Felony filings become more likely when the baton was used or displayed in a violent offense, or when the accused has prior convictions. A felony conviction also triggers a lifetime firearm ban under Penal Code 29800.2California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 29800 – Prohibitions on Firearm Access
Non-Citizens
A weapons conviction can trigger deportation proceedings, block asylum, or bar naturalization if it qualifies as an aggravated felony. Even a misdemeanor can complicate visa renewals and green card applications when it’s treated as a crime involving moral turpitude. Anyone without U.S. citizenship should talk to an immigration attorney before entering any plea on a baton charge.
Who Can Legally Carry a Baton
California recognizes a short list of exemptions, and each one is narrower than people tend to assume.
Peace Officers
Police officers, sheriff’s deputies, marshals, and others defined as peace officers under Penal Code 830 may carry batons as standard equipment, on duty and off.3Justia Law. California Penal Code Chapter 4.5 – Peace Officers Out-of-state officers working in California under mutual aid agreements may also be covered.
Licensed Security Guards
Private security guards can carry a baton only while on duty and only if they hold a valid baton permit from the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services. Business and Professions Code 7583.33 requires a registered guard to complete a BSIS-approved baton training course before carrying one on the job.4Bureau of Security and Investigative Services. Security Guard Registration – Fact Sheet The exemption does not extend to off-duty possession. Guards must store their batons at the workplace or return them to the employer at the end of a shift; taking a baton home without authorization can bring criminal charges. Working on duty without the permit on your person carries fines of $100 for a first violation and $200 for each one after that.5Bureau of Security and Investigative Services. Baton Training Manual Student Text The permit also authorizes travel with the baton directly between home and the work site.
Correctional Officers
Officers with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation may use hand-held batons as a less-lethal force option inside institutions, alongside electronic control devices and launchers.6California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Renotice UOF Signed – Changes to Text as Originally Proposed
Outside these categories, there is no civilian permit or license that lets you keep a baton for self-defense at home, in your car, or on your person.
Is the Ban Still Enforceable?
In February 2024, U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez ruled that California’s ban on billy clubs violates the Second Amendment, applying the historical-tradition test from the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen. Judge Benitez found California could not point to any founding-era or Civil War-era prohibition on billy clubs, and he concluded that “every law-abiding responsible individual citizen has a constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms like the billy for lawful purposes.” He entered a permanent injunction against enforcement.
The California Attorney General appealed to the Ninth Circuit, and that appeal appears to remain pending. Penal Code 22210 is still on the books and still being enforced. Treat the ban as fully in effect until an appellate court says otherwise; a person who buys or carries a baton in reliance on the district court ruling is exposed to arrest and prosecution in the meantime.
Legal Self-Defense Alternatives
California allows several other tools that can serve the same personal-protection purpose without the possession risk.
Pepper spray. Legal to carry with no permit as long as the canister is 2.5 ounces or smaller. The usual restrictions on weapons in secured areas like courthouses and airports still apply.
Stun guns and tasers. Adults may buy and carry them for self-defense under Penal Code 22610. You cannot possess one if you’re a convicted felon, addicted to narcotics, under 16, or subject to a court order barring weapons.
Folding knives. Pocket knives, box cutters, and Swiss Army knives are generally legal to carry, provided the blade doesn’t lock open automatically, which would make it a switchblade. Fixed-blade knives can be carried openly but not concealed.
Each of these has its own rules, but none carries the flat possession ban that makes a baton a criminal charge the moment it’s in your hand. For most people looking for a portable option, pepper spray is the simplest choice from a legal standpoint.