Criminal defense
Robbery and firearm charges
Norwalk Superior Court
Not-guilty verdict
Criminal defense
Long Beach Weapons Charges Defense Lawyer
California weapons law is a web of overlapping sections, and people are routinely charged for conduct they believed was lawful. Where the firearm was, how it was stored, and who the person is decide almost everything. The consultation is free.
Patrick S. AguirreCriminal defense attorney · Long BeachCallback request
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The charges
Carrying, concealed and loaded
Penal Code 25400 makes it an offense to carry a firearm capable of being concealed, concealed on the person or within a vehicle under your control. Penal Code 25850 covers carrying a loaded firearm in a public place or vehicle. Both are generally wobblers, but both become straight felonies in defined circumstances, including where the person is prohibited from possessing firearms, where the firearm is stolen, or where the person is an active gang participant.
The lawful way to transport a handgun in a vehicle is unloaded and in a locked container, which the Penal Code defines and which does not include the glove compartment or the utility compartment. A great many charges arise from someone transporting a legally owned firearm in a way they thought was fine. The trunk qualifies; the glove box does not.
Sources: Penal Code 25400 — carrying a concealed firearm; Penal Code 25850 — carrying a loaded firearm in public; Penal Code 26350 — openly carrying an unloaded handgun; Penal Code 16850 — “locked container” defined.
Prohibited persons
Who may not possess a firearm at all
Penal Code 29800 makes it a felony for anyone convicted of any felony to own or possess a firearm, for life. Penal Code 29805 imposes a ten-year prohibition following conviction for a long list of specified misdemeanors, including many assault, battery, and threat offenses. A domestic violence conviction carries a lifetime federal prohibition independent of state law, which is why a misdemeanor domestic battery plea has consequences far beyond its sentence.
Protective orders, both criminal and civil, prohibit possession while they are in force, and gun violence restraining orders operate separately. A person who becomes prohibited must relinquish firearms they already own; continuing to keep them at home is itself the offense.
Sources: Penal Code 29800(a)(1) — felons, and those addicted to narcotics; Penal Code 29805 — the ten-year misdemeanor prohibition; Penal Code 29825 — possession in violation of a protective order.
Regulated weapons
Assault weapons, magazines, and untraceable firearms
California defines assault weapons by a combination of enumerated models and feature tests, and possession of an unregistered one is charged under Penal Code 30605. Whether a particular configuration meets the feature test is a genuinely technical question, and it is frequently the whole case: a firearm lawfully configured can become an assault weapon through a single part.
Large-capacity magazines and self-manufactured or unserialised firearms each have their own sections. Several California firearm statutes have been the subject of continuing constitutional litigation in the federal courts since the Supreme Court’s decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen in 2022, and the enforceability of particular provisions has changed more than once during that litigation. Anyone relying on the current state of a specific restriction should get advice on it rather than on a general impression, because it is genuinely in motion.
Sources: Penal Code 30605 — possession of an assault weapon; Penal Code 30510 — assault weapons listed by make and model; Penal Code 32310 — large-capacity magazines; Penal Code 29180 — serialisation requirements for self-manufactured firearms.
The defense
How weapons cases are defended
The search is first, as in most possession cases. A firearm found during an unlawful stop, an unlawful vehicle search, or a warrantless home entry is excludable under Penal Code 1538.5, and excluding it usually ends the case.
Then possession itself. Knowledge and control must be proved, and a firearm found in a shared car, a shared residence, or a bag belonging to someone else is not automatically the client’s. Constructive possession requires more than proximity.
Then the elements specific to the section: whether the firearm was concealed as the statute means it, whether it was loaded within the statutory definition, whether the container met the locked-container definition, and whether the firearm is operable where the section requires it. And for regulated weapons, whether the configuration actually meets the statutory test, which often needs an expert rather than an officer’s opinion.
Because a felony conviction ends firearm rights permanently and a non-citizen faces serious immigration consequences from a firearm conviction, reduction to a misdemeanor under Penal Code 17(b) or to a non-firearm offense is frequently worth more than a shorter sentence.
The office
How the Law Offices of Patrick S. Aguirre defends weapons cases
The office has defended criminal cases in Long Beach and across Los Angeles County for nearly three decades. Weapons cases are taken apart in two places: how the firearm was found, and whether the specific statutory elements are actually met for the section charged, which in this area is far more often arguable than it appears.
Nothing here predicts an outcome. The firm has offices in Long Beach and Downey and speaks Spanish.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions
I have a legally registered gun. How can I be charged?
Registration is not a carry permit. Most California weapons charges are about how and where a firearm was carried or stored, not about whether it was lawfully owned. Transporting a handgun in a glove compartment rather than a locked container, or carrying it loaded in public without a licence, is chargeable even though the firearm is entirely legal and yours.
Can I keep my guns after a misdemeanor conviction?
Often not. Penal Code 29805 imposes a ten-year prohibition after conviction for a long list of specified misdemeanors, and a domestic violence conviction carries a lifetime federal prohibition regardless of state law. Any felony conviction is a lifetime bar under Penal Code 29800.
The gun was in the car but it was not mine.
Then the prosecution has to prove you knew it was there and had control over it. Presence in a car containing a firearm is not possession, and where several people had access the evidence often does not establish which of them it belonged to. This is among the most commonly successful defenses in these cases.
Are California’s gun laws still valid after the Bruen decision?
Many California firearm statutes have been challenged in federal court since 2022, and the status of particular provisions has shifted during that litigation. What is enforceable at a given moment is a specific question rather than a general one, and it is worth asking about the exact section you are concerned with rather than relying on a general impression.
Selected case results
Criminal defense results
A selection from 55 documented results
Criminal defense
Serious felony charges
Riverside Superior Court
Not guilty on all charges after three years in custody
Criminal defense
Domestic violence charge
Westminster Superior Court
Charge dismissed at trial
Client experiences
What clients say
★★★★★
“12 counts 2 felony charges DISMISSED … he got him out of jail FAST.”
★★★★★
“I just walked out of court a free man after getting my case dismissed.”
“From the beginning to the end, Patrick and his professional office staff kept us informed on any updates, concluding the case with a dismissal!”
“Best defense attorney in town. … He cares about his clients and takes every case seriously. The staff is friendly and caring.”
Meet your attorney
Law Offices of Patrick S. Aguirre
A Professional Law Corporation
The future of your case may depend on a successful outcome. It can be stressful to go through the legal process alone—but thankfully, you don’t have to.
The Law Offices of Patrick S. Aguirre will stand up for clients’ interests and rights, providing high-quality representation in personal injury cases and criminal defense matters throughout California from its Long Beach office.
We work with you and for your best interests. Our legal team is compassionate, hard-working, and tenacious—fighting to get the job done right when it matters most. No case is too complicated or insignificant for our full attention. Our clients may move forward into a brighter future free from worry about past mistakes.
We’re the legal team that never gives up. When you need an attorney who will fight for what’s right, turn to us, and we’ll do everything in our power to help. No matter how challenging your situation may seem, there is hope.
“Courage is the most important attribute of a lawyer.”
Robert F. Kennedy
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Talk with our office
Leave your contact information and, if helpful, a short general summary. The office will follow up.
Thank you.
The office received your contact request. If your matter is urgent, call 562-904-4337.