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ORS 166.260

Applied in 33 court decisions — leading case State v. Brown (1986)

Most recently applied in 346 Or. App. 819 - State v. Sepelak (February 2026)

Amended by 1977 c.207 §1; 1991 c.67 §36; 1993 c.735 §1; 1995 c.670 §2; 1999 c.1040 §3; 2009 c.316 §2; 2009 c.499 §4; 2012 c.106 §3; 2015 c.709 §2; 2025 c.453 §4

How often courts cite this section

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citing decisions per year

Court decisions citing this, by year. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.

(1) ORS 166.250 does not apply to or affect:

(a) A parole and probation officer, police officer or reserve officer, as those terms are defined in ORS 181A.355.

(b) A federal officer, as defined in ORS 133.005, or a certified reserve officer or corrections officer, as those terms are defined in ORS 181A.355, while the federal officer, certified reserve officer or corrections officer is acting within the scope of employment.

(c) An honorably retired law enforcement officer, unless the person who is a retired law enforcement officer has been convicted of an offense that would make the person ineligible to obtain a concealed handgun license under ORS 166.291 and 166.292.

(d) Any person summoned by an officer described in paragraph (a) or (b) of this subsection to assist in making arrests or preserving the peace, while the summoned person is engaged in assisting the officer.

(e) The possession or transportation by any merchant of unloaded firearms as merchandise.

(f) Active or reserve members of:

(A) The Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard or Space Force of the United States, or of the National Guard, when on duty;

(B) The commissioned corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; or

(C) The Public Health Service of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, when detailed by proper authority for duty with the Army or Navy of the United States.

(g) Organizations which are by law authorized to purchase or receive weapons described in ORS 166.250 from the United States, or from this state.

(h) Duly authorized military or civil organizations while parading, or the members thereof when going to and from the places of meeting of their organization.

(i) A person who is licensed under ORS 166.291 and 166.292 to carry a concealed handgun.

(2) It is an affirmative defense to a charge of violating ORS 166.250 (1)(c)(C) that the person has been granted relief from the disability under ORS 166.274.

(3) Except for persons who are otherwise prohibited from possessing a firearm under ORS 166.250 (1)(c) or 166.270, ORS 166.250 does not apply to or affect:

(a) Members of any club or organization, for the purpose of practicing shooting at targets upon the established target ranges, whether public or private, while such members are using any of the firearms referred to in ORS 166.250 upon such target ranges, or while going to and from such ranges.

(b) Licensed hunters or fishermen while engaged in hunting or fishing, or while going to or returning from a hunting or fishing expedition.

(4) The exceptions listed in subsection (1)(d) to (i) of this section constitute affirmative defenses to a charge of violating ORS 166.250.

Official source: Oregon State Legislature. Reproduced from public-domain Oregon statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.