Cal. PEN § 16770

This is the official text of Cal. PEN § 16770, part of California’s Penal Code — defines crimes and sets criminal procedure in California.

Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.

Official statutory text

As used in this part, “less lethal ammunition” means any ammunition that satisfies both of the following requirements:

(a) It is designed to be used in any less lethal weapon or any other kind of weapon (including, but not limited to, any firearm, pistol, revolver, shotgun, rifle, or spring, compressed air, or compressed gas weapon).

(b) When used in a less lethal weapon or other weapon, it is designed to immobilize, incapacitate, or stun a human being through the infliction of any less than lethal impairment of physical condition, function, or senses, including physical pain or discomfort.

Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site

About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the Open US Law dataset (Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine (Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.