18 Pa.C.S. § 907

This is the official text of 18 Pa.C.S. § 907, part of Pennsylvania’s Pa.C.S — part of the compiled statutory law of Pennsylvania, published by the state as "Pa.C.S." Browse the sections below, each linked to its official government source.

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.

Possessing instruments of crime.

Official statutory text

(a) Criminal instruments generally.--A person commits a misdemeanor of the first degree if he possesses any instrument of crime with intent to employ it criminally.

(b) Possession of weapon.--A person commits a misdemeanor of the first degree if he possesses a firearm or other weapon concealed upon his person with intent to employ it criminally.

(c) Unlawful body armor.--A person commits a felony of the third degree if in the course of the commission of a felony or in the attempt to commit a felony he uses or wears body armor or has in his control, custody or possession any body armor.

(d) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this subsection:

"Body armor." Any protective covering for the body, or parts thereof, made of any polyaramid fiber or any resin-treated glass fiber cloth or any material or combination of materials made or designed to prevent, resist, deflect or deter the penetration thereof by ammunition, knife, cutting or piercing instrument or any other weapon.

"Instrument of crime." Any of the following:

(1) Anything specially made or specially adapted for criminal use.

(2) Anything used for criminal purposes and possessed by the actor under circumstances not manifestly appropriate for lawful uses it may have.

"Weapon." Anything readily capable of lethal use and possessed under circumstances not manifestly appropriate for lawful uses which it may have. The term includes a firearm which

is not loaded or lacks a clip or other component to render it immediately operable, and components which can readily be assembled into a weapon. (July 6, 1995, P.L.238, No.27, eff. 60 days; July 11, 1996, P.L.552, No.98, eff. 60 days) 1996 Amendment. Act 98 overlooked the amendment by Act 27 of 1995, but the amendments do not conflict in substance and have both been given effect in setting forth the text of section 907. Cross References. Section 907 is referred to in sections 912, 2718 of this title; section 6102 of Title 23 (Domestic Relations); section 9774.1 of Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure).

Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site

Need a lawyer in Pennsylvania?

Find a Pennsylvania lawyer
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.