Source: https://www.shouselaw.com/pc246-3.html
Timestamp: 2019-04-26 00:50:02+00:00

Document:
After his favorite baseball team wins the World Series, a man fires his gun into the air during a celebration in a park.
A 12-year-old boy finds a loaded gun that belongs to his father and decides to engage in some target practice by shooting at toys in a room where his younger sister is playing.
A woman is showing off a gun she owns at a crowded party. When a man laughingly suggests that she probably doesn't know how to use it, she shows him that she does by firing a shot at a dart board hung on the wall.
Compared to other offenses covered by California gun laws—such as Penal Code 417 PC brandishing a weapon or Penal Code 26100 PC drive-by shootings—negligent discharge of a firearm may seem like a fairly minor matter.
There was no actual danger of death or injury.
The legal definition of negligently discharging a firearm consists of three (3) “elements of the crime.” These are key facts that the prosecutor must prove in order for you to be guilty of this offense.
You commit the crime of negligent discharge when you intentionally fire a gun with gross negligence.
Example: Jerry, a 12-year-old boy, is at his friend Greg's house. The two of them find a gun that belongs to Greg's dad.
Jerry thinks the gun isn't loaded and decides to play with it. He points it at Greg's chest and pulls the trigger. Greg ends up seriously injured.
Example: Maria, a college student, brings a BB gun to a hockey game. When the team she is rooting against scores a point, she shoots the BB gun toward the floor in frustration.
Even though she is firing only a BB gun, and not a real gun, Maria may be prosecuted under California Penal Code 246.3. (See also our article on BB gun laws in California).
In other words, gross negligence has to be something more than ordinary carelessness or mistake in judgment.
You are only guilty under Penal Code 246.3 if you act with "gross negligence."
Example: Rodolfo is hanging out in a strip mall parking lot at two in the morning. Despite the hour, the strip mall is seeing a fair amount of foot traffic from people visiting a 7-Eleven, donut store and liquor store located inside it.
Rodolfo fires two shots into the air from a gun.
Note that this does not mean that it needs to have been likely that the shooting would result in injury or death. As long as it is possible—even if it is highly unlikely—you will be guilty of this offense.
You are only guilty of negligently discharging a firearm if you knew the gun was loaded.
Example: Susan is camping in an isolated campground in a national forest on a weeknight. She is the only person in the campground.
After getting drunk by herself in front of her campfire, Susan takes a hunting rifle she has brought with her to defend against bears and fires it into the air.
A ranger who is patrolling nearby hears the shot and drives to the campsite to see what is going on. He reports Susan to the authorities.
Susan is probably NOT guilty of negligently discharging her firearm. Even though she intentionally fired the gun, the shooting could not have resulted in anyone's injury or death because there was no one else around.
A sentence for California negligent discharge will be served in county jail.
Luckily, several sentencing enhancements that apply to a number of California crimes do not apply if you are convicted under California Penal Code 246.3.
However, defendants charged with negligent discharge often face sentences that include the Penal Code 186.22 PC gang sentencing enhancement.
The gang sentencing enhancement may increase the total sentence for negligently firing a gun.
Like most crimes involving firearms, negligently discharging a gun is a so-called “deportable crime.”28 So if you are not a U.S. citizen, and you are convicted of this offense—or plead guilty to it—you can be deported.
Anyone—citizen or not—should do their best to find a criminal defense law firm with the experience and credentials to effectively fight negligent discharge of a firearm charges.
You are not guilty of negligent discharge if you acted in self-defense.
Example: Pamela, a retired law enforcement officer, is out walking her dog when two large, unleashed dogs approach her. These dogs behave in a threatening manner and seem likely to attack her.
Pamela takes out a loaded pistol she carries with her and fires two warning shots to scare the dogs away. There are other people in the vicinity who could conceivably have been hit by the bullets (but none are).
Depending on the facts of your case, it may not be easy for prosecutors to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you knew the firearm was loaded. Maybe it belonged to a friend or a relative—or maybe it had been in storage for so long that you could have forgotten whether it was loaded.
You are not guilty of negligent discharge if you believed the gun was unloaded.
If this is the case, this could be a promising legal defense to negligent discharge charges.
This depends on the place and time where the incident took place, and how many people were around—all of which are facts that the prosecutor will need to establish.
With a good gun crimes defense attorney on your side, you can find the holes in the prosecution's story and tell your own version—which the jury may find more convincing.
If you are charged with negligent discharge, you should be aware of the following related California crimes.
Shooting at an inhabited structure or vehicle is a more serious crime than negligent discharge.
Because shooting at an inhabited dwelling or occupied car carries heavier penalties than negligent discharge, it is very common for defendants to try to get PC 246 charges reduced to PC 246.3 negligent discharge charges.
In most cases, a defendant can only be convicted of murder in California if s/he acted with “malice aforethought.”39 But the California “felony-murder” rule is an exception to that principle.
So if a defendant is accused of negligently discharging a firearm and accidentally killing someone in the process, s/he probably can NOT be convicted of murder—even though an aggressive prosecutor or police officer might try to tell him/her otherwise.
If you are accused of negligently discharging a firearm, and you have a prior felony conviction on your record, you could also face charges under California's “felon with a firearm” law, Penal Code 29800 PC.
And, of course, if you are convicted of negligent discharge as a felony, California's felon with a firearm law will prevent you from lawfully owning or possessing a firearm after you have served your sentence.
For questions about the California crime of negligently discharging a firearm, or to discuss your case confidentially with one of our California criminal defense attorneys, do not hesitate to contact us at Shouse Law Group.
For information on Colorado gun crimes, see our article on on the Colorado crime of illegal discharge of a firearm | 18-12-107.5 C.R.S.
For information on Nevada gun crimes, see our articles on the Nevada crime of discharging a gun in public and the Nevada crime of discharging a firearm from a structure or vehicle.
3 Penal Code 246.3 PC – Discharging firearm or BB device in grossly negligent manner; punishment, endnote 1, above.
5 CALCRIM 970 – Shooting Firearm or BB Device in Grossly Negligent Manner (Pen. Code, § 246.3), endnote 2, above.
10 Penal Code 246.3 PC – Discharging firearm or BB device in grossly negligent manner; punishment, endnote 1, above.
12 CALCRIM 970 – Shooting Firearm or BB Device in Grossly Negligent Manner (Pen. Code, § 246.3), endnote 2, above.
15 Based on the facts of People v. Alonzo (1993) 13 Cal.App.4th 535.
16 CALCRIM 970 – Shooting Firearm or BB Device in Grossly Negligent Manner (Pen. Code, § 246.3), endnote 2, above.
17 See, e.g., People v. Alonzo, endnote 15, above; People v. Lee (2005) 131 Cal.App.4th 1413.
18 Penal Code 246.3 PC – Discharging firearm or BB device in grossly negligent manner; punishment, endnote 1, above.
See also Penal Code 1170(h) PC, endnote 4, above.
23 Penal Code 12022.53 PC – Sentence enhancements for persons convicted of enumerated felonies [not including negligent discharge] who use firearm in commission of the crime; limitations.
28 Immigration & Nationality Act (“INA”) 237, 8 U.S.C. 1227 – Deportable aliens. (“(a) Classes of deportable aliens: Any alien (including an alien crewman) in and admitted to the United States shall, upon the order of the Attorney General, be removed if the alien is within one or more of the following classes of deportable aliens: . . . (2) Criminal offenses . . . (C) Certain firearm offenses. Any alien who at any time after admission is convicted under any law of purchasing, selling, offering for sale, exchanging, using, owning, possessing, or carrying, or of attempting or conspiring to purchase, sell, offer for sale, exchange, use, own, possess, or carry, any weapon, part, or accessory which is a firearm or destructive device (as defined in section 921(a) of Title 18) in violation of any law is deportable.”) Negligent discharge of a firearm counts as “using” a firearm in violation of law.
29 Van Nuys criminal defense attorney David F. Poblete is an energetic young attorney who has devoted his career to defending the civil rights of criminal defendants in all types of cases, including drug and firearm crimes. He is a Filipino-American from a military family who is driven by both a deep sympathy for the “little guy” and a profound respect for the freedoms we are all entitled to in this country. Poblete regularly defends clients accused of theft and other crimes in the Superior Courts of Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego Counties.
30 CALCRIM 970 – Shooting Firearm or BB Device in Grossly Negligent Manner (Pen. Code, § 246.3), endnote 2, above.
32 Based on the facts of People v. Lee (2005) 131 Cal.App.4th 1413.
33 CALCRIM 970 – Shooting Firearm or BB Device in Grossly Negligent Manner (Pen. Code, § 246.3), endnote 2, above.

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