Section 171c.

(a) (1) Any person who brings a loaded firearm into, or possesses a loaded firearm within, the State Capitol, any legislative office, any office of the Governor or other constitutional officer, or any hearing room in which any committee of the Senate or Assembly is conducting a hearing, or upon the grounds of the State Capitol, which is bounded by 10th, L, 15th, and N Streets in the City of Sacramento, shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail for a period of not more than one year, a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both such imprisonment and fine, or by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170.

(2) Any person who brings or possesses, within the State Capitol, any legislative office, any hearing room in which any committee of the Senate or Assembly is conducting a hearing, the Legislative Office Building at 1020 N Street in the City of Sacramento, or upon the grounds of the State Capitol, which is bounded by 10th, L, 15th, and N Streets in the City of Sacramento, any of the following, is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for a period not to exceed one year, or by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment, if the area is posted with a statement providing reasonable notice that prosecution may result from possession of any of these items:

(A) Any firearm.

(B) Any deadly weapon described in Section 653k or 12020.

(C) Any knife with a blade length in excess of four inches, the blade of which is fixed or is capable of being fixed in an unguarded position by the use of one or two hands.

(D) Any unauthorized tear gas weapon.

(E) Any stun gun, as defined in Section 244.5.

(F) Any instrument that expels a metallic projectile, such as a BB or pellet, through the force of air pressure, CO2 pressure, or spring action, or any spot marker gun or paint gun.

(G) Any ammunition as defined in Section 12316.

(H) Any explosive as defined in Section 12000 of the Health and Safety Code.

(b) Subdivision (a) shall not apply to, or affect, any of the following:

(1) A duly appointed peace officer as defined in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2, a retired peace officer with authorization to carry concealed weapons as described in subdivision (a) of Section 12027, a full-time paid peace officer of another state or the federal government who is carrying out official duties while in California, or any person summoned by any of these officers to assist in making arrests or preserving the peace while he or she is actually engaged in assisting the officer.

(2) A person holding a valid license to carry the firearm pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section 12050) of Chapter 1 of Title 2 of Part 4, and who has permission granted by the Chief Sergeants at Arms of the State Assembly and the State Senate to possess a concealed weapon upon the premises described in subdivision (a).

(3) A person who has permission granted by the Chief Sergeants at Arms of the State Assembly and the State Senate to possess a weapon upon the premises described in subdivision (a).

(c) (1) Nothing in this section shall preclude prosecution under Sections 12021 and 12021.1, Section 8100 or 8103 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, or any other law with a penalty greater than is set forth in this section.

(2) The provisions of this section are cumulative, and shall not be construed as restricting the application of any other law. However, an act or omission punishable in different ways by different provisions of law shall not be punished under more than one provision.

(Amended by Stats. 2011, Ch. 15, Sec. 268. Effective April 4, 2011. Operative October 1, 2011, by Sec. 636 of Ch. 15, as amended by Stats. 2011, Ch. 39, Sec. 68.)