"Firearm or firearms" means any handgun, rifle, shotgun, machine gun, assault firearm, automatic or semi-automatic rifle, or any gun, device or instrument in the nature of a weapon from which may be fired or ejected any solid projectile, ball, slug, pellet, missile or bullet, or any gas, vapor or other noxious thing, by means of a cartridge or shell or by the action of an explosive or the igniting of flammable or explosive substances. It shall also include, without limitation, any firearm which is in the nature of an air gun, spring gun or pistol or other weapon of a similar nature in which the propelling force is a spring, elastic band, carbon dioxide, compressed or other gas, or vapor, air or compressed air, or is ignited by compressed air, and ejecting a bullet or missile smaller than three-eighths of an inch in diameter, with sufficient force to injure a person.

YankeeTarheel wrote: Sat Feb 15, 2020 12:14 pm In NJ, a cross-bow, I believe, is considered a firearm:

"Firearm or firearms" means any handgun, rifle, shotgun, machine gun, assault firearm, automatic or semi-automatic rifle, or any gun, device or instrument in the nature of a weapon from which may be fired or ejected any solid projectile, ball, slug, pellet, missile or bullet, or any gas, vapor or other noxious thing, by means of a cartridge or shell or by the action of an explosive or the igniting of flammable or explosive substances. It shall also include, without limitation, any firearm which is in the nature of an air gun, spring gun or pistol or other weapon of a similar nature in which the propelling force is a spring, elastic band, carbon dioxide, compressed or other gas, or vapor, air or compressed air, or is ignited by compressed air, and ejecting a bullet or missile smaller than three-eighths of an inch in diameter, with sufficient force to injure a person.

lurker wrote: Sat Feb 15, 2020 11:18 am next time i see him i'll ask to look at it again. maybe get a better pic.

Yes, a crossbow would be legal. The prohibition is against ownership of a firearm by a convicted felon, and crossbows (along with certain types of antique guns like black powder muzzle=loaders) are not covered by the law or otherwise exempted.

In certain counties in North Carolina, identified by State statute, it is unlawful for any parent or guardian to knowingly permit his child under the age of 12 years to use, possess, or have custody of an air rifle, air pistol, or BB gun.1 Additionally, North Carolina prohibits any person from causing, encouraging, or aiding a minor who is less than 18 years old to possess or carry, whether openly or concealed, any BB gun, stun gun, air rifle, or air pistol.2 North Carolina has no other law regulating non-powder guns.

None of these weapons are firearms, because they do not use gunpowder explosions to propel their projectiles. See G.S. 14-409.39(2) (defining a firearm as a weapon that “expels a projectile by action of an explosion”); G.S. 14-415.1 (defining a firearm as a weapon that “expel(s) a projectile by the action of an explosive”). See also G.S. 14-269.2 (prohibiting the possession of weapons on school grounds, and distinguishing between “any gun, rifle, pistol, or other firearm,” a Class I felony under subsection (b), and a “BB gun . . . air rifle, [or] air pistol,” a Class 1 misdemeanor under subsection (d)). Therefore, possession or use of these weapons cannot support charges such as possession of a firearm by a felon, G.S. 14-415.1, or assault by pointing a gun, G.S. 14-34. See In re N.T., __ N.C. App. __, 715 S.E.2d 183 (2011)

K9s wrote: Sun Feb 16, 2020 10:30 pm

YankeeTarheel wrote: Sat Feb 15, 2020 12:14 pm In NJ, a cross-bow, I believe, is considered a firearm:

"Firearm or firearms" means any handgun, rifle, shotgun, machine gun, assault firearm, automatic or semi-automatic rifle, or any gun, device or instrument in the nature of a weapon from which may be fired or ejected any solid projectile, ball, slug, pellet, missile or bullet, or any gas, vapor or other noxious thing, by means of a cartridge or shell or by the action of an explosive or the igniting of flammable or explosive substances. It shall also include, without limitation, any firearm which is in the nature of an air gun, spring gun or pistol or other weapon of a similar nature in which the propelling force is a spring, elastic band, carbon dioxide, compressed or other gas, or vapor, air or compressed air, or is ignited by compressed air, and ejecting a bullet or missile smaller than three-eighths of an inch in diameter, with sufficient force to injure a person.

"air or compressed air, or is ignited by compressed air, and ejecting a bullet or missile smaller than three-eighths of an inch in diameter, with sufficient force to injure a person"

That definition seems to include spitwads and peashooters. Am I wrong?