WHAT IS TRESPASS BY LICENSE HOLDER WITH AN OPENLY CARRIED HANDGUN IN TEXAS?
People who are licensed to carry handguns may still be prohibited from carrying firearms or other weapons onto property, as long as owners post signage or otherwise notify license holders that weapons are forbidden.
WHAT IS THE TRESPASS BY LICENSE HOLDER WITH AN OPENLY CARRIED HANDGUN LAW IN TEXAS?
Tex. Penal Code § 30.07. TRESPASS BY LICENSE HOLDER WITH AN OPENLY CARRIED HANDGUN.
(a) A license holder commits an offense if the license holder:
(1) openly carries a handgun under the authority of Subchapter H, Chapter 411, Government Code, on property of another without effective consent; and
(2) received notice that entry on the property by a license holder openly carrying a handgun was forbidden.
(b) For purposes of this section, a person receives notice if the owner of the property or someone with apparent authority to act for the owner provides notice to the person by oral or written communication.
(d) An offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed $200, except that the offense is a Class A misdemeanor if it is shown on the trial of the offense that, after entering the property, the license holder was personally given the notice by oral communication described by Subsection (b) and subsequently failed to depart.
(e) It is an exception to the application of this section that the property on which the license holder openly carries a handgun is owned or leased by a governmental entity and is not a premises or other place on which the license holder is prohibited from carrying the handgun under Section 46.03.
(e-1) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that:
(1) the license holder is:
(A) an owner of an apartment in a condominium regime governed by Chapter 81, Property Code;
(B) an owner of a condominium unit governed by Chapter 82, Property Code;
(C) a tenant or guest of an owner described by Paragraph (A) or (B); or
(D) a guest of a tenant of an owner described by Paragraph (A) or (B); and
(2) the license holder:
(A) carries or stores a handgun in the condominium apartment or unit owner’s apartment or unit;
(B) carries a handgun directly en route to or from the condominium apartment or unit owner’s apartment or unit;
(C) carries a handgun directly en route to or from the license holder’s vehicle located in a parking area provided for residents or guests of the condominium property; or
(D) carries or stores a handgun in the license holder’s vehicle located in a parking area provided for residents or guests of the condominium property.
(e-2) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that:
(1) the license holder is a tenant of a leased premises governed by Chapter 92, Property Code, or the tenant’s guest; and
(2) the license holder:
(A) carries or stores a handgun in the tenant’s rental unit;
(B) carries a handgun directly en route to or from the tenant’s rental unit;
(C) carries a handgun directly en route to or from the license holder’s vehicle located in a parking area provided for tenants or guests by the landlord of the leased premises; or
(D) carries or stores a handgun in the license holder’s vehicle located in a parking area provided for tenants or guests by the landlord of the leased premises.
(e-3) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that:
(1) the license holder is a tenant of a manufactured home lot governed by Chapter 94, Property Code, or the tenant’s guest; and
(2) the license holder:
(A) carries or stores a handgun in the tenant’s manufactured home;
(B) carries a handgun directly en route to or from the tenant’s manufactured home;
(C) carries a handgun directly en route to or from the license holder’s vehicle located in a parking area provided for tenants or tenants’ guests by the landlord of the leased premises; or
(D) carries or stores a handgun in the license holder’s vehicle located in a parking area provided for tenants or tenants’ guests by the landlord of the leased premises.
(e-4) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that the license holder is a guest of a hotel, and the license holder:
(1) carries or stores a handgun in the license holder’s hotel room;
(2) carries a handgun directly en route to or from the hotel or the license holder’s hotel room;
(3) carries a handgun directly en route to or from the license holder’s vehicle located on the hotel property, including a vehicle in a parking area provided for hotel guests; or
(4) carries or stores a handgun in the license holder’s vehicle located on the hotel property, including a vehicle in a parking area provided for hotel guests.
(f) It is not a defense to prosecution under this section that the handgun was carried in a holster.
(g) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that the license holder is volunteer emergency services personnel.
(g-1) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that the license holder is a first responder who:
(1) holds an unexpired certificate of completion at the time of engaging in the applicable conduct;
(2) was engaged in the actual discharge of the first responder’s duties while carrying the handgun; and
(3) was employed or supervised by a municipality or county.
(g) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that the license holder was personally given notice by oral communication described by Subsection (b) and promptly departed from the property.
WHAT IS THE PENALTY CLASS FOR TRESPASS BY LICENSE HOLDER WITH AN OPENLY CARRIED HANDGUN IN TEXAS?
Trespass by license holder with an openly carried handgun is a Class C misdemeanor, punishable by a maximum fine of $200. It becomes a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in county jail, if the license holder is told to leave, and refuses.
WHAT IS THE PUNISHMENT RANGE FOR TRESPASS BY LICENSE HOLDER WITH AN OPENLY CARRIED HANDGUN IN TEXAS?
A license holder charged with Class C misdemeanor trespass faces a maximum fine of $200. A Class A misdemeanor trespass charge carries up to one year in jail, and a maximum fine of $4,000.
WHAT ARE THE PENALTIES FOR TRESPASS BY LICENSE HOLDER WITH AN OPENLY CARRIED HANDGUN IN TEXAS?
A license holder charged with Class C misdemeanor trespass is eligible for deferred adjudication for a maximum period of 180 days. If convicted, the person will only be required to pay the fine assessed, without being subjected to probation or further conditions.
A license holder charged with a Class A misdemeanor trespass is eligible for probation after a conviction, or deferred adjudication to avoid a conviction, for up to two years.
WHAT ARE THE DEFENSES TO TRESPASS BY LICENSE HOLDER WITH AN OPENLY CARRIED HANDGUN IN TEXAS?
The statute authorizes several defenses for license holders charged with trespassing on property forbidding handguns. One defense absolves license holders who initially ignore a conspicuously posted notice if they immediately depart after being told to do so by the property owner or other person with authority to act on the owner’s behalf.
- Can hotels, apartment and condominium complexes, and manufactured home communities prohibit firearm possession on premises? Yes, but the law creates several defenses for license holders. A license holder who ignores a handgun prohibition may be arrested for a Class C misdemeanor. However, tenants and hotel guests with licenses to carry handguns may attempt to show they merely stored the firearm in their room or unit, were carrying the firearm directly to or from their room or unit to their vehicle, or stored it in their vehicle on the property.
- Can governmental entities prohibit license holders from carrying a handgun on government-owned or leased property? Only in limited circumstances, such as state hospitals, and for the specific places listed in Penal Code Section 46.03. A state agency or political subdivision may be liable for a civil penalty for wrongfully excluding a handgun license holder from most premises, per Government Code Section 411.209.
WHAT IS THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR TRESPASS BY LICENSE HOLDER WITH AN OPENLY CARRIED HANDGUN IN TEXAS?
The limitation period for trespass by a license holder with an openly carried handgun is two years.
TRESPASS BY LICENSE HOLDER WITH AN OPENLY CARRIED HANDGUN IN TEXAS
A license holder may not carry a handgun, either concealed or openly, on another’s property without effective consent when the license holder receives notices that entry with a handgun is forbidden.
