Weapons and Explosive Charges in Arizona: Penalties and Defenses

Arizona weapons and explosives charges run from Class 1 misdemeanors to Class 2 felonies, and the sentence turns on three things: what the item is, who was holding it, and whether a deadly weapon was used, discharged, or threateningly displayed. That last factor, the “dangerous” designation, carries mandatory prison and takes probation off the table. Everything else in the criminal code flows from those variables.

What Counts as a Prohibited Weapon

Arizona’s “prohibited weapon” category is a specific list of items that are generally illegal to make, possess, transport, or sell. It includes bombs, grenades, rockets with a propellant charge over four ounces, and mines that are explosive, incendiary, or contain poison gas. Fully automatic firearms (anything that fires more than one shot per trigger pull) are on the list, as are silencers and suppressors.¹

Short-barreled firearms also qualify: a rifle with a barrel under sixteen inches, a shotgun with a barrel under eighteen inches, or any weapon made from a rifle or shotgun that falls below the minimum overall length. Molotov cocktails (breakable containers of flammable liquid paired with an ignition device) and any combination of parts intended to convert something into one of these items are also prohibited.¹

Possessing a prohibited weapon is a Class 4 felony.

The Federal NFA Exception

Several items on the prohibited list (suppressors, short-barreled rifles, machine guns) can be legally owned if they are properly registered under the federal National Firearms Act. Arizona’s misconduct statute exempts anyone “specifically licensed, authorized or permitted pursuant to a statute of this state or of the United States.”² Register the item through the ATF and comply with federal rules, and Arizona law stops treating it as prohibited.

As of January 2026, the federal tax stamp fee for NFA items dropped from $200 to $0, but applicants still file with the ATF, submit fingerprints, pass a background check, and wait for approval before taking possession.³ Skip that process and the item is a prohibited weapon under state law.

Who Counts as a Prohibited Possessor

A standard, perfectly legal firearm becomes a felony when the wrong person is holding it. Arizona treats you as a prohibited possessor if any of the following applies:

You have a felony conviction (from any state) and your firearm rights have not been restored.
You are serving a sentence in a correctional facility, or you are on probation for a felony or domestic violence offense, parole, community supervision, or home arrest.
You have been court-ordered as a danger to self or others, or found to have a persistent or grave disability, without a later restoration of rights.
You have been found incompetent under criminal court rules and not restored to competency.
You have been found guilty except insane.
You are an undocumented alien or certain nonimmigrant aliens, with narrow exceptions for a valid hunting license, competitive shooting, or diplomatic status.

A prohibited possessor caught with any deadly weapon faces a Class 4 felony, and “deadly weapon” in Arizona covers anything designed for lethal use, including every firearm.¹ It does not matter whether the weapon was in active use; a gun in a vehicle, drawer, or closet is enough.

Misconduct Involving Weapons

The main charging statute is ARS 13-3102, misconduct involving weapons. One section covers conduct ranging from concealed carry violations to terrorism, with penalties scaled to match.

Felony-Level Conduct

Using a deadly weapon to further an act of terrorism is a Class 2 felony, the top of the misconduct range. Two offenses are Class 3 felonies: shooting at an occupied structure to further a criminal street gang or racketeering enterprise, and providing a firearm to someone you know will use it to commit a felony.²

Class 4 felonies include possessing a prohibited weapon, being a prohibited possessor with a deadly weapon, possessing a deadly weapon during a drug offense, and bringing a weapon into a nuclear or hydroelectric generating station.²

Class 6 Felonies and Below

Defacing a firearm’s serial number, possessing a weapon with a defaced serial number, selling a weapon to a prohibited possessor, concealing a weapon while carrying it during a felony, and lying to an officer who asks whether you are carrying concealed are all Class 6 felonies. Concealed carry by someone under 21 is also a Class 6 felony when no defense applies. Arizona allows permitless concealed carry for anyone 21 or older who can legally possess a firearm, so this charge mainly reaches younger adults carrying concealed in public without a permit.²

Exemptions and Defenses

Peace officers, military members on duty, and correctional officers are exempt from most provisions of the statute. Anyone under 21 can still carry a firearm concealed on their own property, in their own business, or visibly in a holster. An unloaded firearm stored in luggage, a case, or a vehicle storage compartment is exempt from the concealed-carry prohibition.²

Where You Cannot Carry

Carrying a deadly weapon onto school grounds is a Class 1 misdemeanor, rising to a Class 6 felony when tied to drug offenses or criminal gang activity. Exceptions exist for an unloaded firearm inside a locked vehicle (as long as it is not visible from outside), firearms used in school-approved programs, and qualified retired law enforcement officers carrying under the federal Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act.²

Carrying a deadly weapon at a polling place on election day is prohibited. Entering a nuclear or hydroelectric generating station armed is a Class 4 felony. A private business or event sponsor can also ask you to disarm, and refusing a reasonable request to do so is a Class 1 misdemeanor.²

Unlawful Discharge

Firing a gun with criminal negligence inside the limits of a city or town is a Class 6 felony. The statute carves out shooting on a supervised range, lawful hunting during an open season, self-defense against an animal attack, blanks, discharge more than a mile from any occupied structure, and discharge authorized by a special police permit.⁴

Firearms and Minors

Selling or giving a firearm to a minor without written consent from the minor’s parent or legal guardian is a Class 6 felony. Temporary transfers are allowed when a parent has consented and the minor is in a safety course, competition, hunting, or target shooting supervised by an adult.⁵

An unemancipated person under 18 who is not accompanied by a parent, grandparent, guardian, or certified safety instructor generally cannot carry a firearm in public, on a street, or on anyone else’s property. Minors aged 14 through 17 may still carry unloaded firearms for hunting or target shooting and may use firearms for agricultural work. Violations run through juvenile court and can bring fines up to $500 and suspension of the minor’s driver license until age 18.⁶

Explosives Charges

Arizona splits explosives offenses across three statutes, with very different penalties.

Misconduct Involving Explosives (Class 1 Misdemeanor)

This is a storage-and-labeling offense. It covers storing more than fifty pounds of explosives on any building or property within half a mile of a city or town boundary (unless they are in transport), keeping blasting powder or percussion caps within two hundred feet of other stored explosives, and transporting or selling explosives without clearly marking the package with the name, characteristics, and manufacturing date. A blanket exemption covers anyone whose business legally involves explosives.⁷

Depositing Explosives (Class 4 Felony)

This charge requires criminal intent. It applies when a person knowingly places an explosive near a vehicle, building, or any place where people live, gather, or regularly spend time, with the specific intent to endanger, injure, intimidate, or terrify someone.⁸

Simulated Explosive Devices (Class 5 Felony)

A real bomb is not required. Placing a fake explosive device in a public or private location, or sending one to another person, with the intent to terrify, intimidate, threaten, or harass is a Class 5 felony. If a simulated device lacks a written notice stating it has been rendered inert and is kept for collection or display, the absence of that notice counts as evidence of criminal intent.⁹

The “Dangerous” Designation Changes Everything

The single biggest sentencing lever in weapons cases is whether the offense carries a “dangerous” label. An offense is designated dangerous when it involves the use, discharge, or threatening display of a deadly weapon. The felony class stays the same, but the standard sentencing range is replaced with a harsher mandatory-prison range, and probation disappears as an option.

First-offense dangerous ranges are:

Class 2 felony: 7 years minimum, 10.5 years presumptive, 21 years maximum.
Class 3 felony: 5 years minimum, 7.5 years presumptive, 15 years maximum.
Class 4 felony: 4 years minimum, 6 years presumptive, 8 years maximum.
Class 5 felony: 2 years minimum, 3 years presumptive, 4 years maximum.
Class 6 felony: 1.5 years minimum, 2.25 years presumptive, 3 years maximum.

Prior dangerous felonies push the numbers much higher. A second dangerous Class 4 felony carries an 8-to-12-year range; a third pushes it to 12 to 16 years. For Class 2 and Class 3 felonies with two or more prior dangerous convictions, the maximum reaches 35 and 25 years respectively.¹⁰

Non-dangerous ranges are considerably lighter. A first-offense, non-dangerous Class 4 felony (for example, a prohibited possessor who had a weapon in a closet but never displayed or used it) carries a presumptive sentence of two and a half years, with a range of one to three and three-quarter years under ARS 13-702. A non-dangerous Class 6 felony has a presumptive of one year and a range of four months to two years. Because most weapons charges inherently involve a deadly weapon, non-dangerous sentencing mainly applies when the weapon was merely possessed.

Fines and Losing Your Firearm Rights

Any felony conviction in Arizona can carry a fine of up to $150,000, plus surcharges that increase the final bill.¹¹ A felony conviction also automatically makes you a prohibited possessor, meaning you lose the right to possess any firearm until your rights are restored.

Restoration runs through ARS 13-905. After you complete your sentence or probation, you can petition the court to set aside the conviction, and a successful set-aside restores firearm rights. The court weighs the nature of the original offense, your compliance with sentencing conditions, any later convictions, victim input, the time elapsed since you finished your sentence, and your age at the time of conviction.¹²

Not every conviction qualifies. Dangerous offenses, offenses requiring sex-offender registration, offenses with a finding of sexual motivation, and felonies against a child under fifteen are permanently ineligible. If your weapons conviction carried the dangerous designation, set-aside is closed to you, and the loss of firearm rights is effectively permanent.¹²

1
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-3101 – Definitions
2
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-3102 – Misconduct Involving Weapons; Defenses; Classification; Definitions
3
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. National Firearms Act
4
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-3107 – Unlawful Discharge of Firearms; Exceptions; Classification
5
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-3109 – Sale or Gift of Firearm to Minor
6
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-3111 – Minors Prohibited From Carrying or Possessing Firearms
7
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-3103 – Misconduct Involving Explosives; Classification
8
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-3104 – Depositing Explosives; Classification
9
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-3110 – Misconduct Involving Simulated Explosive Devices; Classification; Definition
10
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-704 – Dangerous Offenders; Sentencing
11
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-801 – Fines for Felonies
12
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-905 – Setting Aside Judgment of Convicted Person; Requirements; Effects