Can I shoot on my own land?

[budman93]

Sorry to dissapoint everyone but it is illegal to discharge a firearm on your own property.

The quoted laws only prohibit shooting in close proximity to dwellings without permission and within city limits. The rest of that is just someone claiming it is illegal to do any shooting at all, outside of a range or hunting, in the entire state. No supporting law is cited.

 

[Bullfrog]

Sorry to dissapoint everyone but it is illegal to discharge a firearm on your own property.

Sorry to disappoint, but your source is garbage. The first page reads like a page taken from a bottom of the barrel legal firm trying to drum up business.

"Outside of a gun range, is absolutely illegal."

Absolutely false.

 

[budman93]

Sorry to disappoint, but your source is garbage. The first page reads like a page taken from a bottom of the barrel legal firm trying to drum up business.

"Outside of a gun range, is absolutely illegal."

Absolutely false.

 

[DWN]

Sorry to disappoint, but your source is garbage. The first page reads like a page taken from a bottom of the barrel legal firm trying to drum up business.

"Outside of a gun range, is absolutely illegal."

Absolutely false.

I do not make the laws. This is from the state of Maryland, not me. I don't care if you discharge a firearm on your own property. I am only trying to help, not regulate. Not my job and I wouldn't want it.

 

[308Scout]

I do not make the laws. This is from the state of Maryland, not me. I don't care if you discharge a firearm on your own property. I am only trying to help, not regulate. Not my job and I wouldn't want it.

That's not from the state of MD. It's verbatim language from the first page listed from a random source that pops up if you Google "is it legal to shoot on my own property in Maryland". Being the first listing in google results does not equal the law.

 

[Bullfrog]

I do not make the laws. This is from the state of Maryland, not me. I don't care if you discharge a firearm on your own property. I am only trying to help, not regulate. Not my job and I wouldn't want it.

What you quoted is not from the state of Maryland. You're repeating false statements you found on the internet.

If you don't know, don't make things up or repeat random urban legends you found somewhere.

 

[Mark75H]

Sorry to dissapoint everyone but it is illegal to discharge a firearm on your own property.

I do not make the laws. This is from the state of Maryland, not me. I don't care if you discharge a firearm on your own property. I am only trying to help, not regulate. Not my job and I wouldn't want it.

Did you write that up yourself?

 

[rbird7282]

Sorry to dissapoint everyone but it is illegal to discharge a firearm on your own property.

This is why you don’t get information on laws from a newspaper


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[welder516]

Wow 2 members joined a couple days apart live in the same area. Well just odd

 

[Bullfrog]

@DWN

You claim to be an FFL, but you are getting your incorrect interpretation of 'MD law' on firearms from random internet pages instead of going to the source.

Must be a Maryland thing because I am an FFL and had to go through an on site inspection to show a security system, gun safes, flood lights, cameras and overall security. With that passed, I already comply with Maryland.... I hope.

You need to base your decisions on federal, state, local, and city ordinances directly, not on random web pages that offer their incorrect interpretations of those ordinances. Otherwise you run a considerable risk of getting yourself and your clients on the wrong side of the law.

 

[Trigger Time]

Sorry to dissapoint everyone but it is illegal to discharge a firearm on your own property.

Only if you are shooting into the air.

 

[308Scout]

Sorry to dissapoint everyone but it is illegal to discharge a firearm on your own property.

Your spackling together of Washington County and Hagerstown city ordinances (they are not the same) is misleading at best when trying to extrapolate that one cannot legally target shoot on their own property in Maryland. To dissect the noted codes in your document (the parts after the bad sourcing from a misc. source).

Public Local Laws - Washington County Government 10-102.
Discharging firearm near dwelling. Any person who shoots, fires, or discharges any gun, rifle, pistol or other firearm in such proximity to a house, residence, or other building or camp occupied or frequented by human beings or in such proximity to farm animals and livestock as to endanger the person or property of another, without the express permission of the owner, occupant, or lessee, is guilty of a misdemeanor

The above is from the Washington County Code and is related to shooting near a dwelling without the permission of the owner, occupant, or lessee. I could not find one line in the full WashCo code that would make it illegal to shoot on one's own property that is not near another dwelling without the owner or occupant's permission. The code is freely available online, so feel free to point out where a county ordinance actually prohibits shooting on one's own land in the county. https://www.washco-md.net/wp-content/uploads/coattny-CPLL2019.pdf


§ 173-11 Firearms and other weapons.
A. It shall be unlawful for any person to fire, discharge or shoot a gun, firearm, air gun, blowgun, spring gun, gas-operated gun, blowpipe, slingshot, bean shooter or any other contrivance manufactured and calculated to throw, sling or discharge any shot or other missile within the City limits, and it shall be unlawful for any person, other than a law enforcement officer or a duly licensed person, to possess any such weapon upon the streets, alleys or other public ways of the City except while transporting such weapon from the place of purchase to his home or from his home to a point outside the City boundaries and returning. B. It shall be unlawful for any parent or other person standing in loco parentis is to knowingly permit a minor to do any act in violation of the provisions of Subsection A.

The above is a city ordinance for Hagerstown. It applies within the city limits of Hagerstown, but not the rest of WashCo, but I suspect that you know that. No one in this thread has stated that there are not local ordinances in various places in the state, particularly populous ones, that prohibit discharge of a firearm within their boundaries. The OP in this thread was asking about if he can shoot on his 20 acres in the County, not in Hagerstown.

 

[rseymorejr]

Sorry to dissapoint everyone but it is illegal to discharge a firearm on your own property.

Where did you dig up that horseshit?

 

[Jim12]

True

Many HOA contracts forbid firearm discharges on one's own property. Hagerstown also has a discharge ordinance, that you cant even shoot a bb gun in your own back yard.

If the HOA forbids it but it's otherwise legal, run for the HOA Board and change it.

 

[chilipeppermaniac]

Get some suppressors, you savage.

True

Many HOA contracts forbid firearm discharges on one's own property. Hagerstown also has a discharge ordinance, that you cant even shoot a bb gun in your own back yard.

^^^This

Caring neighbors shoot suppressed.

No one should care unless he's got a whiney liberal for a neighbor. If that is the case, message me and I'll come over and we can make twice the noise to really get under their skin. Break out the 7mm magnum or 300 WSM so that can hear a real gun. The locals originally from here expect to hear shooting.

The County Popo hates the Saturday after Thanksgiving calls from all the "New" county people that didn't know it was deer season.

He has 20 acres so can't be in the development areas. You're good, be safe and welcome to the neighborhood!

Love every statement here.

Except the BB gun one. I think I saw an article about this for Hoco too.

 

[chilipeppermaniac]

Sorry to dissapoint everyone but it is illegal to discharge a firearm on your own property.

This should be a primer on just how important it is to do one's research to determine Shlt from Shineola Truth from Hearsay, when it comes to the actual laws concerning firearms possession and use.

https://www.mdshooters.com/attachments/unlawful-discharge-of-a-firearm-in-maryland-pdf.367801/

 

[chilipeppermaniac]

I do not make the laws. This is from the state of Maryland, not me. I don't care if you discharge a firearm on your own property. I am only trying to help, not regulate. Not my job and I wouldn't want it.

DWN, I don't think anyone was attacking you or your desire to inform.

Quite simply, I think they may have essentially been making the point that we need to confirm if it is a hearsay source or actual Md code etc. and that the relocated member needs to confirm details for his particular locale b4 shooting.

 

[chilipeppermaniac]

Your spackling together of Washington County and Hagerstown city ordinances (they are not the same) is misleading at best when trying to extrapolate that one cannot legally target shoot on their own property in Maryland. To dissect the noted codes in your document (the parts after the bad sourcing from a misc. source).

Public Local Laws - Washington County Government 10-102.
Discharging firearm near dwelling. Any person who shoots, fires, or discharges any gun, rifle, pistol or other firearm in such proximity to a house, residence, or other building or camp occupied or frequented by human beings or in such proximity to farm animals and livestock as to endanger the person or property of another, without the express permission of the owner, occupant, or lessee, is guilty of a misdemeanor

The above is from the Washington County Code and is related to shooting near a dwelling without the permission of the owner, occupant, or lessee. I could not find one line in the full WashCo code that would make it illegal to shoot on one's own property that is not near another dwelling without the owner or occupant's permission. The code is freely available online, so feel free to point out where a county ordinance actually prohibits shooting on one's own land in the county. https://www.washco-md.net/wp-content/uploads/coattny-CPLL2019.pdf


§ 173-11 Firearms and other weapons.
A. It shall be unlawful for any person to fire, discharge or shoot a gun, firearm, air gun, blowgun, spring gun, gas-operated gun, blowpipe, slingshot, bean shooter or any other contrivance manufactured and calculated to throw, sling or discharge any shot or other missile within the City limits, and it shall be unlawful for any person, other than a law enforcement officer or a duly licensed person, to possess any such weapon upon the streets, alleys or other public ways of the City except while transporting such weapon from the place of purchase to his home or from his home to a point outside the City boundaries and returning. B. It shall be unlawful for any parent or other person standing in loco parentis is to knowingly permit a minor to do any act in violation of the provisions of Subsection A.

The above is a city ordinance for Hagerstown. It applies within the city limits of Hagerstown, but not the rest of WashCo, but I suspect that you know that. No one in this thread has stated that there are not local ordinances in various places in the state, particularly populous ones, that prohibit discharge of a firearm within their boundaries. The OP in this thread was asking about if he can shoot on his 20 acres in the County, not in Hagerstown.

Exactly, and with no butthurt intent.

 

[308Scout]

I just want to know if the OP is finally enjoying getting in some quality shooting time on his land. Washington County is not remotely like where he relocated from in MoCo. Suspect he was one of those ask a question, get some answers, and I'm out members, sadly.

 

[ESP]

I live on MoCO and as long as you are in the little slivers of land considered "outside of urban areas", you can discharge certain weapons in certain scenarios.

Sec. 57-5. Discharge of guns outside the urban area.
(a) Prohibition. Except as provided in subsection (c)(1) through (c)(6), outside the urban area, a person, other than a peace officer or
employee of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources performing official duties, must not:
(1) discharge a gun:
(A) onto, across, or within 50 yards of a public road;
(B) onto or across property located within 50 yards of a public road;
(C) into or within the safety zone (150 yards of a building or camp designed for human occupancy) without the owner or
occupant's written consent; or
(C) from, onto, or across public or private property without the owner or occupant's written consent;
(2) discharge a full metal jacketed bullet of any caliber from a gun; or
(3) except as provided in subsection (b), discharge any fixed ammunition of a caliber higher than .25 caliber from a rifle or pistol.
(b) Exception - High Caliber Ammunition. A person may discharge fixed ammunition of a caliber higher than .25 from a rifle or
pistol at:
(A) legal game or varmints on the ground; or
(B) a target on or near the ground that will not deflect a bullet.
(c) Other Exceptions. Except as provided in Sections 57-7 and 57-11, a person may discharge a gun:
(1) on any indoor or outdoor target, trap, skeet, or shooting range that the Firearm Safety Committee has inspected and approved in
writing;
(2) in a private basement or cellar target range;
(3) when necessary to protect life or property;
(4) to kill a dangerous animal;

On a side note, does anyone have any experience getting the "Firearms Saftey committee" listed in 57-5(C)1 approval for a range on private land for private use only?