Pepper
Spray Laws and Restrictions by States
BELOW ARE PEPPER SPRAY LAWS AND RESTRICTIONS THAT WE ARE AWARE OF. YOU SHOULD CHECK LOCALLY IF YOU BELIEVE PEPPER SPRAYS MAY BE RESTRICTED IN YOUR AREA.DISCLAIMER: I AM NOT A LAWYER!
ALABAMA:
law only involves the criminal use of a noxious substance.
ALASKA:
Legal with restrictions. Prohibits the sale of a defensive weapon to
a person under 18 years
of age. Such a defensive weapon cannot be possessed in a school
without permission of certain school
authorities, unless the person is 21 years of age or older.
ARIZONA:
Legal. There is nothing that appears to regulate or prohibit the
lawful use.
ARKANSAS:
Legal with restrictions. It is legal to possess a small container but
the capacity shall not
exceed (150cc)” (including 4 oz canister not 1 lb) There is
also a specific prohibition against using
and spray against the law enforcement officer.
CALIFORNIA:
Legal with restrictions. …any person may purchase, possess or use.
The restrictions include
selling to a minor, and a provision limiting the size to 2.5
ounces by weight. The misuse in
California comes with state penalties of up to a $1000 fine and/or up
to three years in prison, not to mention
a possible felony conviction on record. Some examples of misuse
include; spraying on people
in
anger, as a joke, possession of by prohibited persons; minors,
drug addicts or persons convicted of
felonies. To be legally purchased, possessed or used in California,
any canister must have a label that
says "WARNING: The use of this substance or device for any
purpose other than self-defense is a crime
under the law. The contents are dangerous--use with care."
The maximum legal net weight for a
canister
is 2.5 ounces, or 70 grams of OC, CS or CN. CR is not legal for
civilian use.
COLORADO:
Legal.
CONNECTICUT:
Legal.
DELAWARE:
Legal with restrictions. Defines “disabling chemical spray”
However, the only prohibitions
are restricting their possession by minors, and increasing the
penalty for criminal use of
the sprays.
DISTRICT
OF COLUMBIA: Legal with restrictions. lawful if used or possessed
by a person 18 or over
“in the exercise of reasonable force in defense of the person
or the person’s property only if it is propelled
from an aerosol container, labeled with or accompanied by clearly
written instructions as to its
use, and dated to indicate its anticipated useful life.” The buyer
must complete a registration form, and
the vendor must forward the form to the Metropolitan Police
Department.
FLORIDA:
Legal. They are defined as “a device carried solely for purposes of
lawful self-defense that
is compact in size, designed to be carried on or about the person,
and contains not more than two
ounces of chemical”. It is an expressly prohibited to use
Pepper Spray against a law enforcement officer.
GEORGIA:
Legal.
HAWAII:
Legal with restrictions. Only OC products are legal for use by or
sale to persons 18 and over.
There is a ½ ounce size restriction and there are
licensing requirements.
IDAHO:
Legal.
ILLINOIS:
Legal with restrictions. The use of Pepper Spray is legal for
carrying by a person 18 years
of age or older. In the City of Chicago it is illegal.
INDIANA:
Legal.
IOWA:
Legal.
KANSAS:
Legal.
KENTUCKY:
Legal.
LOUISIANA:
Legal.
MAINE:
Legal. The criminal use of chemical mace or a similar substance is a
violation of the law. The use
of such a substance in defending one’s person or property is
authorized.
MARYLAND:
Legal. Allows any person to carry as a reasonable precaution against
danger.
MASSACHUSETTS:
Legal with restrictions. A license is required. Therefore, the
unlicensed sale is illegal
in Massachusetts. Massachusetts residents may only purchased from
licensed Firearms Dealers
in that state. The licensing authority is the local chief of
police or other persons authorized by the
locality. If you live in or plan on visiting Massachusetts and you
want to carry pepper spray legally, their
pepper spray law says you must get a FID (Firearms Identification
Card). All you do is go to your
local
Massachusetts police station, show two forms of ID, fill out a form,
pay $2, and wait a week. When
you get your FID, keep it on your person (and of course, to make the
FID useful, keep your pepper
spray on your person as well).
MICHIGAN:
Legal with restrictions. Michigan law contains size restrictions (no
more than 35 grams of
CS or no more than 2% OC [different companies can sell
different concentrations]), and no combinations
of CS and OC. There is a prohibition on sales to minors.
MINNESOTA:
Legal. The use of a is permitted “…in the exercise of reasonable
force of the person or the
person’s property only if it is propelled from an aerosol
container, labeled with or accompanied by clearly
written instructions as to its use, and dated to indicate its
anticipated useful life. The law here gives
the right of localities to decide of its legality.
MISSISSIPPI:
Legal.
MISSOURI:
Legal. It allows the use or possession of a device that ejects a
“temporary incapacitating substance”.
MONTANA:
Legal.
NEBRASKA:
Legal.
NEVADA:
Legal with restrictions. Nevada law prohibits possession by minors or
felons. For use by adults
with no more than 2 fluid ounces in the form of an aerosol
spray designed for your protection.
NEW
HAMPSHIRE: Legal.
NEW
MEXICO: Legal.
NEW
JERSEY: Legal with restrictions. Any non-felon 18 or over may
possess for your protection “one
pocket-sized device which contains and releases not more than
three-quarters of an ounce of chemical
substance not capable of lethal use or of inflicting serious bodily
injury, but rather is intended to
produce temporary physical discomfort or disability through being
vaporized or otherwise dispensed
in
the air”.
NEW
YORK: Legal with restrictions. The possession by persons who are
not felons or who have not been
convicted of an assault, 18 or over for the protection of person or
property and its otherwise lawful
use is legal. The definition is “a pocket sized spray device which
contains and releases a chemical
or organic substance which is intended to produce temporary physical
discomfort or disability through
being vaporized or otherwise dispensed in the air. There are certain
labeling requirements.
Sales require both a
seller’s license and the completion by a purchaser of a
registration form. New York residents
may only purchase from licensed Firearms Dealers or licensed
Pharmacists in that state. No more than
two sprays may be sold at any one time to a single purchaser.
NORTH
CAROLINA: Legal with restrictions. Possession and use is lawful
for non felons so long as the
device does not exceed (150cc)
NORTH
DAKOTA: Legal.
OHIO:
Legal.
OKLAHOMA:
Legal.
OREGON:
Legal.
PENNSYLVANIA:
Legal. “Chemical mace” is specifically excluded from the
definition of weapons. There
appears to be no regulation or restriction on their lawful use.
RHODE
ISLAND: Legal w/restrictions. “Any person eighteen (18)
years of age or over may carry on
his or her person and use, unless otherwise prohibited by law, any
non-lethal noxious substance or liquid
for his protection or the protection of others”.
SOUTH
CAROLINA: Legal w/restrictions. It is lawful to possess a
container not exceeding fifty cubic
centimeters (50cc)
SOUTH
DAKOTA: Legal.
TENNESSEE:
Legal.
TEXAS:
Legal. It is permissible to possess a “small chemical dispenser
sold commercially for personal protection.
UTAH:
Legal.
VERMONT:
Legal.
VIRGINIA:
Legal.
WASHINGTON
STATE: Legal with restrictions. Authorizes the sale and use of
Pepper Spray. There is
an age restriction to persons age 18 and older, or 14 with a
parent or guardian’s permission.
WEST
VIRGINIA: Legal.
WISCONSIN:
Legal with restrictions. UV Dye or combination sprays are not
permissible. A “device or
container that contains a combination of oleoresin of capsicum and
inert ingredients” is permissible. By
regulation, OC products with a maximum OC concentration of 10% and
weight range of oleoresin of
capsicum and inert ingredients of 15-60 grams is authorized. Further,
the product can not be
camouflaged,
and must be designed to prevent accidental discharge. In
addition there are certain labeling
requirements...
WYOMING:
Legal.
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