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Silencers are legal in Colorado. While they are regulated by federal law, they are not prohibited by it. Meanwhile, Colorado’s state laws do not ban silencers.
As a result, you can legally own a silencer in Colorado. You just have to register it with the federal government. This registration requires you to pay a tax.
A silencer is an accessory to a firearm. You can add one to a gun to suppress the noise the gun makes when it is fired. It can also cover the flash of the gun’s muzzle when it discharges.
Silencers are also known as:
Many silencers are manufactured by large companies. However, silencers can also be assembled from other parts. Both of these types of silencers are regulated by gun laws.
Gun laws that regulate silencers can come from the federal government and the state government.
At the state level, gun laws in Colorado do not ban silencers. This is contrary to popular belief. Colorado’s gun laws seem to indicate otherwise. This has led to confusion.
In Colorado, CRS 18-12-102 makes it illegal to possess dangerous or illegal weapons. “Dangerous weapons” are:
People who knowingly possess these “dangerous weapons” commit a Class 5 felony. Subsequent offenses are Class 4 felonies.2
However, there are 3 defenses to a charge for possessing a dangerous weapon. These are:
In Colorado, though, you do not need a permit to own a silencer. As a result, you can raise the permit defense if you have been accused of possessing a dangerous weapon under CRS 18-12-102.
Guns are also within the scope of federal law. Those federal gun laws, though, do not ban silencers. Instead, they regulate silencers by requiring silencer owners to:
The federal law that regulates silencers is the National Firearm Act, or NFA. The NFA puts firearms and accessories into categories. Silencers fall into Class 3 NFA items.
The NFA regulates Class 3 items at the point of transfer.
In order to buy a silencer, you have to:
That paperwork requires lots of personal information, including:
You will have to send this paperwork to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. You will also have to send a copy to your local law enforcement agency. This additional copy is to notify the local police of your purchase of a Class 3 NFA item.
Federal and state law does not ban silencers. However, their regulations can prohibit you from doing certain things with one:
Silencers are legal to use for any lawful purpose in Colorado. Using a silencer for an unlawful purpose, like a crime, can break the law. This would add criminal charges to your case. You could face federal charges, as well.
Different states have different gun laws. Some states have made silencers illegal. Even if the state has not banned silencers, they may regulate them under state law. In either case, you could face legal problems if you bring your silencer outside of Colorado.
The following states have banned silencers:
Other states may have regulations that you have to comply with before crossing state lines. Unlike for other Class 3 NFA items, federal law does not require you to notify the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives before crossing state lines with a silencer.
A former Los Angeles prosecutor, attorney Neil Shouse graduated with honors from UC Berkeley and Harvard Law School (and completed additional graduate studies at MIT). He has been featured on CNN, Good Morning America, Dr Phil, Court TV, The Today Show and Court TV. Mr Shouse has been recognized by the National Trial Lawyers as one of the Top 100 Criminal and Top 100 Civil Attorneys.
