(a) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally or knowingly possesses, manufactures, transports, repairs, or sells:
(1) any of the following items, unless the item is registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record maintained by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives or otherwise not subject to that registration requirement or unless the item is classified as a curio or relic by the United States Department of Justice:
(A) an explosive weapon;
(B) a machine gun; or
(C) a short-barrel firearm;
(2) armor-piercing ammunition;
(3) a chemical dispensing device;
(4) a zip gun;
(5) a tire deflation device; or
(6) an improvised explosive device.

Attorney's Note

Under the Texas Codes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
State jail felonybetween 180 days and 2 yearsup to $10,000
For details, see Texas Penal Code § 12.35

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Terms Used In Texas Penal Code 46.05

  • Actor: means a person whose criminal responsibility is in issue in a criminal action. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
  • Agency: includes authority, board, bureau, commission, committee, council, department, district, division, and office. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
  • Conduct: means an act or omission and its accompanying mental state. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
  • Correctional facility: means a place designated by law for the confinement of a person arrested for, charged with, or convicted of a criminal offense. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
  • Felony: means an offense so designated by law or punishable by death or confinement in a penitentiary. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
  • Justice: when applied to a magistrate, means justice of the peace. See Texas Government Code 312.011
  • Law: means the constitution or a statute of this state or of the United States, a written opinion of a court of record, a municipal ordinance, an order of a county commissioners court, or a rule authorized by and lawfully adopted under a statute. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
  • Person: means an individual or a corporation, association, limited liability company, or other entity or organization governed by the Business Organizations Code. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
  • Possession: means actual care, custody, control, or management. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
  • United States: includes a department, bureau, or other agency of the United States of America. See Texas Government Code 311.005

(b) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that the actor‘s conduct was incidental to the performance of official duty by the armed forces or national guard, a governmental law enforcement agency, or a correctional facility.
(c) Repealed by Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 69 , Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2015.
(d) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section that the actor’s conduct:
(1) was incidental to dealing with a short-barrel firearm or tire deflation device solely as an antique or curio;
(2) was incidental to dealing with armor-piercing ammunition solely for the purpose of making the ammunition available to an organization, agency, or institution listed in Subsection (b); or
(3) was incidental to dealing with a tire deflation device solely for the purpose of making the device available to an organization, agency, or institution listed in Subsection (b).
(e) Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, an offense under this section is a felony of the third degree. An offense under Subsection (a)(5) is a state jail felony.
(f) It is a defense to prosecution under this section for the possession of a chemical dispensing device that the actor is a security officer and has received training on the use of the chemical dispensing device by a training program that is:
(1) provided by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement; or
(2) approved for the purposes described by this subsection by the Texas Private Security Board of the Department of Public Safety.
(g) In Subsection (f), “security officer” means a commissioned security officer as defined by § 1702.002, Occupations Code, or a noncommissioned security officer registered under § 1702.221, Occupations Code.