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Official Code of Georgia Annotated

Title 16. CRIMES AND OFFENSES · Chapter 11. OFFENSES AGAINST PUBLIC ORDER AND SAFETY · Article 4. DANGEROUS INSTRUMENTALITIES AND PRACTICES · Part 3. CARRYING AND POSSESSION OF FIREARMS

16-11-134. Discharging firearm while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Active

Current through: Including Acts of the 2025 Regular Session of the General Assembly.

  1. (a)

    It shall be unlawful for any person to discharge a firearm while:#

    1. (1)

      Under the influence of alcohol or any drug or any combination of alcohol and any drug to the extent that it is unsafe for the person to discharge such firearm except in the defense of life, health, and property;#

    2. (2)

      The person’s alcohol concentration is 0.08 grams or more at any time while discharging such firearm or within three hours after such discharge of such firearm from alcohol consumed before such discharge ended; or#

    3. (3)

      Subject to the provisions of subsection (b) of this Code section, there is any amount of marijuana or a controlled substance, as defined in Code Section 16-13-21, present in the person’s blood or urine, or both, including the metabolites and derivatives of each or both without regard to whether or not any alcohol is present in the person’s breath or blood.#

  2. (b)

    The fact that any person charged with violating this Code section is or has been legally entitled to use a drug shall not constitute a defense against any charge of violating this Code section; provided, however, that such person shall not be in violation of this Code section unless such person is rendered incapable of possessing or discharging a firearm safely as a result of using a drug other than alcohol which such person is legally entitled to use.#

  3. (c)

    Any person convicted of violating subsection (a) of this Code section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature.#

The notes below are printed with the section but are not enacted law (O.C.G.A. § 1-1-1(c)). They are shown apart from the text.

History

Code 1981, § 16-11-134, enacted by Ga. L. 1995, p. 139, § 1.

Editor's notes

Ga. L. 1995, p. 139, § 7, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that the act shall only apply to the sale and transfer of handguns after January 1, 1996, and that no local ordinance which was in effect on March 22, 1995, shall be affected by Code Section 16-11-184 until January 1, 1996, at which time, unless enacted subsequent to March 22, 1995, as provided by that Code section, any such ordinance shall be of no further force or effect, and further provides that no ordinance or regulation attempting to regulate firearms in any manner shall be enacted by any county, city, or municipality after July 1, 1995.

Code Commission notes

Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 1995, this Code section, originally designated as Code Section 16-11-133, was redesignated as Code Section 16-11-134.

Read the official page (the state's PDF, opened at the page this text was read from).

Current through: Including Acts of the 2025 Regular Session of the General Assembly.

Text read from t16-ch7-11-(v14a)-2018-pdf.pdf, Volume V14A, 2018 edition, pages 1014 to 1015; merge action: annotated; file SHA-256 5985d65f23ef.