California Penal Code 16590 is the state’s master list of generally prohibited weapons. It identifies 25 categories of items that are illegal to possess, manufacture, import, sell, give away, or lend anywhere in California. A violation is a “wobbler,” meaning the prosecutor can file it as a misdemeanor carrying up to a year in county jail or a felony carrying up to three years. Each prohibited item found with you can be charged separately.
What the Statute Prohibits
The 25 categories cross-reference other Penal Code sections, but they fall into a few recognizable groups. The category matters because some items also trigger federal law.
Firearms and Firearm Accessories
Short-barreled rifles and short-barreled shotguns are long guns built or modified below the legal minimum length. Zip guns are improvised firearms made from non-standard parts. Cane guns, wallet guns, and any firearm not immediately recognizable as a firearm are banned because they are designed to avoid detection, and camouflaging firearm containers fall in the same category. Undetectable firearms, built to evade metal detectors or X-ray screening, are separately prohibited. Multiburst trigger activators and unconventional pistols round out the firearm entries.
Large-capacity magazines — ammunition-feeding devices holding more than ten rounds — also remain on the list. The Ninth Circuit upheld the ban in its March 2025 en banc decision in Duncan v. Bonta, so the prohibition stands.
Knives and Edged Weapons
The edged weapons on the list share a theme of concealment or launched blades. Ballistic knives fire a blade using a spring. Air gauge knives, lipstick case knives, belt buckle knives, and writing pen knives are all disguised as ordinary objects. A shobi-zue hides a blade inside a staff or walking stick, and a cane sword does the same inside a cane. Concealed dirks and daggers, meaning fixed-blade knives carried hidden on a person, are also covered.
Two common misconceptions are worth clearing up. Nunchucks are no longer prohibited; California repealed Penal Code 22010, and possessing them is legal. Switchblades are not part of 16590 either; they are regulated separately under Penal Code 21510.
Impact Weapons, Ammunition, and Other Devices
Metal knuckles, leaded canes, blackjacks, sandbags, sandclubs, saps, and slungshots are prohibited. So are shurikens (throwing stars). Metal military practice hand grenades and metal replica hand grenades appear on the list even though they are inert. On the ammunition side, flechette darts and bullets carrying an explosive agent are prohibited, along with concealed explosive substances other than standard ammunition.
What Counts as a Violation
Possession alone is enough. You do not need to carry the item in public or use it against anyone. Keeping a prohibited weapon in a drawer at home or locked in a car trunk still counts.
The statute also criminalizes manufacturing a prohibited weapon or causing someone else to manufacture one. Importing any prohibited weapon into California from another state or country is a separate offense. On the commercial side, it is illegal to sell these items, keep them for sale, offer them for purchase, or display them in a retail setting. Giving or lending a prohibited weapon to another person is its own independent violation. These acts stack. Someone who both possesses and sells a prohibited item faces two distinct charges.
Criminal Penalties
Because 16590 is a wobbler, the prosecutor decides between misdemeanor and felony based on your criminal history, the type of weapon, and whether the weapon was tied to other criminal activity.
Misdemeanor
A misdemeanor conviction carries up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $1,000. First-time offenders often receive probation instead of jail, but probation typically comes with warrantless search terms and a complete prohibition on possessing weapons or firearms.
Felony
A felony conviction is sentenced under Penal Code 1170(h), with a sentencing triad of 16 months, two years, or three years in county jail. Fines can reach $10,000. The court chooses the term based on aggravating and mitigating factors. Each prohibited item found in your possession can be charged separately, so three different banned items can mean three stacked sentences.
Who Is Exempt
Penal Code sections 17700 through 17745 create exemptions, but they are narrow. If you don’t fit one, the general ban applies in full.
- Federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies and officers acting in their official duties, though this does not cover short-barreled rifles or shotguns.
- Federal, state, and local museums and historical societies open to the public, when items are properly secured and unloaded.
- Authorized participants in motion picture, television, video, or entertainment productions during the production, again excluding short-barreled rifles and shotguns.
- Forensic laboratories and their authorized agents when the items are needed for authorized activities.
- Antique firearms, which are exempt from Section 16590.
- Firearms classified as curios or relics under federal regulations, when held by someone federally permitted to possess them.
- Items classified as “any other weapon” under the National Firearms Act, if the possessor has proper federal authorization. Pen guns do not qualify.
There is no general martial arts exemption. Nunchucks are legal now because they were removed from the list, not because schools can be licensed for them.
Where Federal Law Adds Risk
Several items on the state list also fall under the federal National Firearms Act. Cane guns, wallet guns, and pen guns are classified as “any other weapons” federally, and short-barreled rifles and shotguns are separately regulated NFA items. Possessing any of these without registration in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record is a federal crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
The same weapon can draw both state and federal prosecution. Federal cases are typically reserved for repeat offenders or situations tied to drug trafficking or violence, but the possibility exists for anyone caught with an NFA-regulated item. Federal sentencing tends to be significantly harsher, and federal convictions are not eligible for California state expungement.
Consequences Beyond the Sentence
Loss of Firearm Rights
Under federal law, anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison is permanently barred from possessing firearms or ammunition. A felony conviction under 16590 triggers that ban. A misdemeanor wobbler that could have been charged as a felony may still cause problems, because the federal standard looks at the maximum possible punishment rather than the sentence actually imposed.
Immigration Consequences
For non-citizens, a prohibited weapons conviction can be devastating. Federal immigration law treats firearms offenses as a ground for deportation. Because 16590 specifically excludes antique firearms, immigration attorneys cannot use the “overbreadth” argument that defeats removal under some other California firearms statutes. A conviction for an item that meets the federal definition of a firearm can directly trigger removal proceedings.
Prohibited weapons that are not firearms, such as metal knuckles or shurikens, can still trigger deportation through other grounds, including crimes involving moral turpitude or crimes of violence. A firearm-related conviction of any kind is an automatic bar to DACA eligibility and can block asylum, withholding of removal, and cancellation of removal. Any non-citizen facing a 16590 charge should talk to an immigration attorney before accepting a plea.
If You Already Own a Prohibited Item
Every day you keep the item is technically a continuing crime, so the timing problem is real. California law enforcement agencies accept voluntary surrenders. Call your local police department or sheriff’s office before transporting anything, explain that you want to surrender a prohibited item, and follow their instructions for bringing it in safely. The weapon will be held and eventually destroyed.
Large-capacity magazines have four lawful options: remove the magazine from California, sell it to a licensed firearms dealer, surrender it to law enforcement for destruction, or permanently modify it so it cannot hold more than ten rounds.
If you are unsure whether an item qualifies as prohibited, talk to a criminal defense attorney before you call law enforcement. An attorney can evaluate the item, check whether an exemption applies, and, if a surrender is the right path, coordinate it in a way that limits your exposure.