Nevada Revised Statute 202.300 makes it a crime to allow a child under 18 to possess a firearm unless they have the permission of their parent or guardian. There are also limited exceptions if the minor is hunting, training, or in the U.S. military.
Aiding a child to possess a gun is usually a misdemeanor carrying up to six months in jail and/or $1,000 in fines. Though if you knew the child had violent intentions, you face felony charges.
In this article, our Las Vegas criminal defense attorneys discuss the following topics:
1. NRS 202.300 Explained
For you to be convicted of violating Nevada Revised Statute 202.300, prosecutors have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt the following elements of the crime:
- You aided or knowingly permitted
- A child under 18
- To handle, possess, or control a gun
- For any purpose
- Except while the child is accompanied or directed by their parent, guardian, or adult legally authorized to have charge of the child.
In short, it is unlawful to let a child possess a gun without parental permission and supervision.1
Certainly, many Nevada homes have both guns and children. Parents teaching their kids how to hunt or shoot is a frequent pastime. However, crimes occur when parents or guardians fail to supervise and secure the guns adequately.
Example: Tim keeps a gun locked in a gun closet. One day Tim is cleaning the rifle on the front porch when he goes inside to use the bathroom. Henry then goes out on the porch and sits next to the gun. If a police officer were riding by, he could arrest Tim for knowingly permitting Henry to possess the gun without supervision. Merely by leaving the gun out while he went inside, Tim knew – or should have known – that it would be accessible to Henry.
With some exceptions, aiding or allowing minor children to possess guns in Nevada is a crime.
2. When Minors Can Have Guns
NRS 202.300 allows children under 18 to handle guns in Nevada as long as their parent, guardian, or an adult with charge over the child directs or accompanies them. Other “exceptions” where minors may lawfully possess firearms are the following:
Military Exception
It is not a crime in Nevada for people to aid or allow minors who are members of the U.S. Armed Forces to have a gun.
Hunting Exception
In certain situations, children ages 14 and up with a valid hunting license and who have not been legally prohibited from having guns may handle certain firearms while hunting.
Regarding rifles or shotguns, children may handle the guns without being accompanied by a parent or guardian, and the guns cannot be fully automatic.
Regarding concealable firearms, children may handle the guns only with the written permission of their parents or guardians.
Note that if the child is traveling to or from the hunting ground, the firearm must be unloaded.
Training Exception
In certain situations, children ages 14 and up who are learning how to shoot and handle firearms may possess them without their parent or guardian present.
Regarding rifles or shotguns, they cannot be fully automatic, and the children need their parent’s or guardian’s permission to possess the gun.
Regarding firearms that may be concealed, the children need their parent’s or guardian’s written permission to possess the guns for training purposes.
No matter the type of gun, the children cannot be otherwise prohibited by law from handling firearms. In addition, the child must be either:
- attending a course of instruction in the responsibilities of hunters or a course of instruction in the safe use of firearms;
- practicing the use of a firearm at an established firing range or at any other area where the discharge of a firearm is permitted;
- participating in a lawfully organized competition or performance involving the use of a firearm;
- within an area in which the discharge of firearms has not been prohibited by local ordinance or regulation, and the child is engaging in a lawful hunting activity in accordance with Nevada law for which a license is not required;
- traveling to or from any above-described activity, and the firearm is not loaded;
- on real property that is under the control of an adult, and the child has the permission of that adult to possess the firearm on the property; or
- at the child’s residence.2
3. Defenses
Here at Las Vegas Defense Group, we have represented literally thousands of people charged with firearms offenses, including giving guns to minors. In our experience, the following defenses have proven very effective at getting NRS 202.300 charges reduced or dismissed.
- You did not act knowingly. If for example a child trespasses onto your property, breaks into your house and steals your gun from your drawer, you committed no crime. Here, you did nothing to knowingly allow a minor to possess a firearm.
- The firearm was secured. If your gun was stowed in a securely locked container or in a location where a reasonable person would believe it was secure, you committed no crime if a child still managed to get a hold of the gun. No method of safeguarding guns is foolproof.
- An “exception” applies. As discussed above, it is no crime to let a minor possess a gun if they fall into Nevada’s training, military, or hunting exception. Even if an accident occurs where someone gets hurt, you still may not be criminally liable unless your actions were negligent or reckless.
4. Penalties
Nevada’s penalties for unlawfully allowing a child to possess or handle a gun in violation of 202.300 depend on the circumstances, as this chart shows:
| Aiding a Child to Possess a Gun | Nevada Penalties |
| You did not know (or have reason to know) there was a substantial risk the child would use the gun to commit a violent act | Misdemeanor: Up to 6 months in jail and/or $1,000 |
| You did know (or should have known) there was a substantial risk the child would use the gun to commit a violent act | First offense Category C felony: 1 – 5 years in prison, up to $10,000, and loss of gun rights |
| Second offense Category B felony: 1 – 6 years in prison, up to $5,000, and loss of gun rights |
Note that it is a misdemeanor to negligently store or leave a firearm at a location under your control if you know – or should know – that there is a substantial risk a child may obtain the gun. The penalty is:
- up to 6 months in jail, and/or
- up to $1,000.3
Juvenile Penalties
Minors also face legal consequences for possessing firearms in Nevada. Depending on what they do with the gun, child defendants are subject to:
- delinquency procedures in juvenile court or
- criminal proceedings in adult court.
For information on how minors are prosecuted, defended, and punished for illegally possessing guns, read our article on Juvenile Gun Laws.
You can be charged with violating NRS 202.300 only if a minor comes into possession of a gun.
5. Additional Reading
For more in-depth information, refer to these scholarly articles:
- What’s Going Wrong in Nevada? A Comparative Analysis of California and Nevada Gun Control Laws as They Relate to Gun Violence – Claremont McKenna thesis
- State gun laws and the movement of crime guns between states – International Review of Law and Economics
- Guns in the Sky: Nevada’s Firearm Laws, 1 October, and Next Steps – Nevada Law Journal forum
- In-State and Interstate Associations Between Gun Shows and Firearm Deaths and Injuries – Annals of Internal Medicine
- The relation between state gun laws and the incidence and severity of mass public shootings in the United States, 1976–2018 – Law and Human Behavior
Learn more about Nevada firearms laws.
Legal References
- NRS 202.300 – Use or possession of firearm by child under age of 18 years; unlawful to aid or permit child to commit violation; unlawful to store or leave firearm under certain circumstances; penalties; child 14 years of age or older authorized to possess firearm under certain circumstances.
1. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a child under the age of 18 years shall not handle or have in his or her possession or under his or her control, except while accompanied by or under the immediate charge of his or her parent or guardian or an adult person authorized by his or her parent or guardian to have control or custody of the child, any firearm of any kind for hunting or target practice or for other purposes. A child who violates this subsection commits a delinquent act and the court may order the detention of the child in the same manner as if the child had committed an act that would have been a felony if committed by an adult.
2. A person who aids or knowingly permits a child to violate subsection 1:
(a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b), for the first offense, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
(b) For a first offense, if the person knows or has reason to know that there is a substantial risk that the child will use the firearm to commit a violent act, is guilty of a category C felony and shall be punished as provided in NRS 193.130.
(c) For a second or any subsequent offense, is guilty of a category B felony and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for a minimum term of not less than 1 year and a maximum term of not more than 6 years, and may be further punished by a fine of not more than $5,000.
3. A person does not aid or knowingly permit a child to violate subsection 1 if:
(a) The firearm was stored in a securely locked container or at a location which a reasonable person would have believed to be secure;
(b) The child obtained the firearm as a result of an unlawful entry by any person in or upon the premises where the firearm was stored;
(c) The injury or death resulted from an accident which was incident to target shooting, sport shooting or hunting; or
(d) The child gained possession of the firearm from a member of the military or a law enforcement officer, while the member or officer was performing his or her official duties.
4. The provisions of subsection 1 do not apply to a child who is a member of the Armed Forces of the United States.
5. Unless a greater penalty is provided by law, a person is guilty of a misdemeanor who:
(a) Negligently stores or leaves a firearm at a location under his or her control; and
(b) Knows or has reason to know that there is a substantial risk that a child prohibited from handling or having in his or her possession or under his or her control any firearm pursuant to this section may obtain such a firearm.
6. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 9, a child who is 14 years of age or older, who has in his or her possession a valid license to hunt, may handle or have in his or her possession or under his or her control, without being accompanied by his or her parent or guardian or an adult person authorized by his or her parent or guardian to have control or custody of the child:
(a) A rifle or shotgun that is not a fully automatic firearm, if the child is not otherwise prohibited by law from possessing the rifle or shotgun and the child has the permission of his or her parent or guardian to handle or have in his or her possession or under his or her control the rifle or shotgun; or
(b) A firearm capable of being concealed upon the person, if the child has the written permission of his or her parent or guardian to handle or have in his or her possession or under his or her control such a firearm and the child is not otherwise prohibited by law from possessing such a firearm,
and the child is traveling to the area in which the child will be hunting or returning from that area and the firearm is not loaded, or the child is hunting pursuant to that license.
7. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 9, a child who is 14 years of age or older may handle or have in his or her possession or under his or her control a rifle or shotgun that is not a fully automatic firearm if the child is not otherwise prohibited by law from possessing the rifle or shotgun, without being accompanied by his or her parent or guardian or an adult person authorized by his or her parent or guardian to have control or custody of the child, if the child has the permission of his or her parent or guardian to handle or have in his or her possession or under his or her control the rifle or shotgun and the child is:
(a) Attending a course of instruction in the responsibilities of hunters or a course of instruction in the safe use of firearms;
(b) Practicing the use of a firearm at an established firing range or at any other area where the discharge of a firearm is permitted;
(c) Participating in a lawfully organized competition or performance involving the use of a firearm;
(d) Within an area in which the discharge of firearms has not been prohibited by local ordinance or regulation and the child is engaging in a lawful hunting activity in accordance with chapter 502 of NRS for which a license is not required;
(e) Traveling to or from any activity described in paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d), and the firearm is not loaded;
(f) On real property that is under the control of an adult, and the child has the permission of that adult to possess the firearm on the real property; or
(g) At his or her residence.
8. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 9, a child who is 14 years of age or older may handle or have in his or her possession or under his or her control, for the purpose of engaging in any of the activities listed in paragraphs (a) to (g), inclusive, of subsection 7, a firearm capable of being concealed upon the person, without being accompanied by his or her parent or guardian or an adult person authorized by his or her parent or guardian to have control or custody of the child, if the child:
(a) Has the written permission of his or her parent or guardian to handle or have in his or her possession or under his or her control such a firearm for the purpose of engaging in such an activity; and
(b) Is not otherwise prohibited by law from possessing such a firearm.
9. A child shall not handle or have in his or her possession or under his or her control a loaded firearm if the child is:
(a) An occupant of a motor vehicle;
(b) Within any residence, including his or her residence, or any building other than a facility licensed for target practice, unless possession of the firearm is necessary for the immediate defense of the child or another person; or
(c) Within an area designated by a county or municipal ordinance as a populated area for the purpose of prohibiting the discharge of weapons, unless the child is within a facility licensed for target practice.
10. For the purposes of this section, a firearm is loaded if:
(a) There is a cartridge in the chamber of the firearm;
(b) There is a cartridge in the cylinder of the firearm, if the firearm is a revolver; or
(c) There is a cartridge in the magazine and the magazine is in the firearm or there is a cartridge in the chamber, if the firearm is a semiautomatic firearm. - Same.
- Same.