What are Indiana Gun Laws?
Indiana gun laws govern the selling, ownership, and usage of guns and ammunition in the United States state of Indiana.
Local rules governing the use and use of guns, guns, and shooting accessories are forbidden by IC 35–47–11.1–2, with the exception of the provisions mentioned in IC 35–47–11.1–4. (New provisions take effect on July 1, 2011.)
Municipalities can restrict the discharge of weapons, and as a result, firing a weapon inside city limits is usually unlawful. However, it is normally lawful to shoot weapons on one’s own land provided it is situated outside of city limits and has a sufficient backstop.
The city councils of Gary and East Chicago in Northwest Indiana enacted legislation banning the selling and ownership of assault weapons in March 1989. All of these ordinances are declared unconstitutional due to statewide preemption.
All jurisdictions also passed sanctuary resolutions based on the Second Amendment.
In general, Indiana allows a license to possess a weapon, but there are a few variations. The manner of carry, whether open or concealed, is not expressly defined in the code; hence, unless protected by one of the exceptions, the license is provided for concealed, open, or transport inside an automobile.
A license is not necessary if the carrier is carrying on land “occupied, rented, leased, or otherwise legally operated” by the carrier, or if authorization is received to carry on another person’s legally controlled property.
Carrying at a “target exhibition, weapons expo, gun owner’s club or conference, hunting club, shooting club, or training course,” or locations where the carrier receives “firearm related facilities,” would not necessitate a licence.
A license is often not needed while visiting a “shooting range,” taking a “firearms instructional course,” or engaging in “safe hunting activity.” A firearm can be transported in a car without a license if it is “unloaded,” “not readily available,” and “secured in a container.” A breach of is classified as a class A misdemeanor.
But for the following conditions, an Indiana pistol license requires the holder to carry almost anywhere at any time: In or on school property (locked in a vehicle is acceptable), on a school bus, in or on property used by a school for a school function, private school, head start, preschool programs, on commercial or charter aircraft, controlled access areas of an airport, the annual Indiana State Fairgrounds, Indiana Port Commission-controlled shipping ports, riverboat casinos, or some other place. Company prohibitions are not imposed under the colour of law, while management can evict an individual for carrying.
However, there are very clear exceptions to the legal ownership and carrying of weapons and other weapons on school grounds and at school events. For example, under Indiana Code 35-47-9-1, “persons lawfully licensed” to carry a firearm can carry a handgun on their person, concealed or otherwise, on school property or at school functions if said person is “transporting” an individual to or from a school or a school function.
A legally licensed individual may be allowed by a school board to bring on school grounds under Indiana Code 20-26-9-4. There is also an exemption for employees in “federal, state, and municipal” law enforcement agencies.
A firearms, however, is not permitted on school grounds unless actively engaged in transporting a person to or from school or a school event, allowed by the school board, or one is a law enforcement officer, with the exception of the above provision of keeping the weapon locked in a car as contained in Indiana Code 35-47-9-2.
For the License to Carry a Handgun, Indiana is a “must matter” territory. Individuals who are 18 years old or over who fulfill a variety of legal standards will be given a license to hold. There are both short duration and indefinite lifetime licenses valid.
Convictions for felony or minor sexual assault are grounds for disqualification. A license may also be revoked if the individual was convicted for a violent crime and “a judge finds reasonable cause to suspect that the defendant perpetrated the offence alleged.”
Recorded drug misuse over a certain time span, as well as documented proof of any particular person’s “propensity for abusive or mentally disturbed conduct,” is a disqualifier.
Residents of Indiana, as well as non-residents who have a “normal place of operation” in Indiana, must receive an Indiana license. A license must be obtained from the municipal police chief or, in the absence of that, the county police department.
For Indiana citizens, four-year and lifetime licenses are accessible. Except for Active Duty Military posted in Indiana, out-of-state citizens can only be given four-year licenses. Military personnel posted in Indiana may register for lifetime licenses by their local city or county police force.
If a license holder’s name or address changes, they must contact the State Police within 60 days.
Non-residents from every other state or out-of-state carry licenses are fully recognized in Indiana. The out-of-state visa is considered the same as it will be in the non-home resident’s state, which means that any conditions imposed by the issuing state would also extend to the non-resident when in Indiana.
To lawfully possess a firearm in Indiana, residents must have a license to carry given by the department.
Licenses will be valid for five years beginning July 1, 2019. There will be no premium for five-year licenses beginning July 1, 2020.
In terms of long-gun carry, Indiana legislation is deafeningly silent. Any Department of Natural Resources (DNR) laws apply, but only on DNR property or to hunters. Long weapons ownership is generally lawful if the gun is on one’s body or in one’s motor car, armed or unloaded, hidden or not. There are additional regulations on the carrying of handguns on ATVs and snowmobiles.
Except for law enforcement officers and approved school resource officers, it is illegal for someone to own a firearm on school property (K-12 and day care) or on a school bus, with the exception that lawful gun owners can have guns in their vehicles on school property provided that the gun is stored out of plain sight in the person’s locked motor vehicle or that the driver is just transporting someone.
It is also unlawful to bring a weapon on a commercial airplane or in an airport managed area, on a riverboat gambling trip, at the Indiana State Fair, courthouses, or the Indiana Statehouse and Government Center. Carrying on Army Corps of Engineers land, such as Brookville Lake, Cagles Mill Lake, Cecil M. Harden Lake, J. Edward Roush Lake, Mississinewa Lake, Monroe Lake, Patoka Lake, and Salamonie Lake, is prohibited by CFR Title 36, Chapter 111, Part 327.
Private businesses can limit or prohibit the use of firearms on their premises. Signs barring concealed firearms in private businesses, on the other hand, may not have legal force in Indiana, though declining to quit such a spot for carrying a firearm if asked by the property owner may constitute trespassing.
However, a 2010 statute bans companies from firing workers for having handguns in their vehicles on company premises. Furthermore, an employer should not inquire into any employee’s ownership of guns and/or weapons.
Firearms vendors or private persons are not permitted to sell firearms to someone under the age of 18, or to someone under the age of 23 whether the customer was “adjudicated a delinquent child for an offense that may be a crime if done by an adult,” or to someone that is psychologically unstable or a substance or alcohol offender. In Indiana, all NFA-regulated firearms and devices are legal.
While Indiana recognizes all other states’ pistol licenses, not all other states recognize Indiana’s authorization. The Indiana State Police does not seek to monitor these details and there is no need for one state to alert another state about any improvement in their gun laws. Illinois citizens may buy and possess weapons and ammunition with an Illinois Firearms Owners Identification (FOID) passport. The FOID is not a permission to possess a weapon, because it is not recognized by Indiana, although the Illinois license to carry a concealed pistol, which was granted in February 2014, is recognized as every other state’s.
Illinois does not recognize Indiana carry permits, and Indiana residents are ineligible for an Illinois non-resident concealed carry card. However, under Illinois concealed carry legislation, a non-resident who is allowed to carry in their state of legal residence can carry a firearm in a vehicle as long as the handgun is kept inside the vehicle. As a result, as of 2014, an Indiana license holder can lawfully travel into Illinois with a firearm hidden in the car.
Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming have made arrangements to recognize or honor permits or licenses issued by the State of Indiana.
The Indiana State Police Firearms Section started releasing quarterly data on the amount of registered handgun licenses owned by Indiana citizens in January 2013. Indiana granted 890,360 active licenses to hold handguns as of January 1, 2019, with females accounting for 27.6 percent of those issued. In 2018, 4.8 percent of all candidates were refused for different causes, with women accounting for 16.6 percent of those denied.
In such conditions, all Indiana and federal statutes prohibit the acquisition and storage of firearms. Federal legislation forbids felons and misdemeanors including sexual abuse from using weapons for the rest of their lives. The following was prohibited by Indiana law:
- Domestic battery offenders are prohibited from keeping weapons or possessing them inside their homes under IC 35-47-2-1.
- Possession of a weapon by an individual convicted of domestic battery is a Class A crime under IC 35-47-4-6.
- The transfer or selling of weapons to those with a criminal record is prohibited by IC 35-47-2-7.
- For convictions with “extreme violent felonies,” IC 35-47-4-5 forbids the ownership of handguns.
Though Indiana legislation generally follows federal law, it does not prohibit non-violent felons from possessing weapons. As a result, while a person with a non-violent offense in Indiana can own a weapon under Indiana law, because federal law forbids ownership in this case, that person may be unable to buy a firearm because possessing a firearm is subject to federal law and a NICS background check.
In December 2019, Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill released an opinion saying that if an individual convicted of a crime later had their conviction expunged from their criminal record, they will be entitled to own a weapon under federal law in addition to getting their privileges returned under state law.
Indiana Code 35-47-4-7 requires anyone disqualified from possession due to a conviction for domestic battery to ask the court for restitution of the right after 5 years from the date of conviction.
Police in Indiana have the authority to temporarily seize weapons from individuals that try to injure themselves or anyone. There is no need for a warrant or the signature of a magistrate. The police must give a formal explanation explaining that the individual whose weapons were confiscated were deemed illegal, and the person has the right to answer at a trial. A court must conclude that probable cause occurs within 14 days, or the person’s arms must be restored.
Cartridges that “may be fired in a weapon” that have a “metal center and a plastic outer covering” are banned. “This section does not refer to nylon coated bullets, plastic shot pellets, or ammunition intended to be used in weapons or shotguns.”
Indiana legislation protects law-abiding suppliers, retailers, and trade groups from third-party theft of weapons. Lawsuits are allowed in situations of property loss or injuries sustained by faulty weapons or ammunition, as well as breaches of contract or warranties.
The rule of self-defense (and the defense of others) in Indiana can be contained in the Indiana Code, Title 35, Article 41, Chapter 3–2.
With the proper provisions and tax stamps to the appropriate federal entities, suppressors are authorized in the state of Indiana and can be used for hunting.
The material in this article is taken directly from the Indiana Code, Title 35, Article 47, Chapters 1–14, Title 34, Article 28, Chapter 7, and Title 34, Article 12, Chapter 3.
Except when performed legally, it is a felony to deliberately aim a pistol at others in a menacing way. Section 35 of the weapons statute allows a law enforcement official to swear an oath to a court of law in order to limit someone’s ownership, storage, purchase, and sale of guns in the state.
This is achieved where the person poses a danger to himself or the community. In Indiana, someone who intentionally injures or poses a danger that may trigger harm to another individual will face criminal recklessness charges.
Summary of Gun Laws in Indiana
The state of Indiana grants a license to carry for the use of handguns.
This licensing allows for the storage, open and concealed carry of weapons in the state.
Indiana is a shall-issue jurisdiction, with the state police department in charge of license collection.
Indiana does not need a permit to purchase weapons in the state, nor does it require you to register a weapon.
You must be at least twenty-one years old and a native of Indiana or a nearby state to buy a long gun in the state.
You must pass a criminal background search if you purchase a weapon from a licensed dealer in the state.
Purchases of handguns are restricted to Indiana natives over the age of twenty-one.
To qualify for an Indiana carry license, you must be a native of the state or have a company in the state.
Non-residents who choose to conceal or open carry in Indiana must have a permit from a state with which Indiana has reciprocity.
It is also important that you follow all Indiana license application criteria before submitting.
Hello there, it’s Michael here. A gun lover since young, served the country for the last 20 years. I started the blog to share my experience and gun-related knowledge accumulated throughout the years. Hopefully, you will find something useful over here or just have fun! You can learn more about me here.