New Jersey legal term
Firearm in New Jersey Criminal Law
Current through 2026 New Jersey legislative session
In New Jersey criminal law, “Firearm” is a term defined by statute rather than by its everyday meaning. Its statutory definition — quoted verbatim below — controls how the term is applied throughout the New Jersey criminal code.
What does “Firearm” mean in New Jersey criminal law?
"Firearm" means any handgun, rifle, shotgun, machine gun, automatic or semi-automatic rifle, or any gun, device, or instrument in the nature of a weapon from which may be fired or ejected any solid projectable ball, slug, pellet, missile, or bullet or any gas, vapor, or other noxious thing, by means of a cartridge or shell or by the action of an explosive or the igniting of flammable or explosive substances. (N.J.S.A. 2C:39-1)
Statutes defining or using this term
Charges using this term
- Assault
- Riot; failure to disperse
- 2nd degree crimes
- Disarming a law enforcement, corrections officer; crime; degrees
- Distribution on or within 1,000 feet of school property
- "Leader of a firearms trafficking network" defined; first degree crime; fines; sentencing
- Manufacture, transport, disposition and defacement of weapons and dangerous instruments and appliances
- Minor's access to a loaded firearm; penalty, conditions
- Penalties for committing certain offenses while released on bail, own recognizance increased
- Possession of weapons for unlawful purposes
- Prohibited areas, carrying, firearms, destructive device
- Rehabilitation program for persons with a substance use disorder
Related terms in the same statutes
This reference is informational and is not legal advice.