shooting on my own property

[KMA4626 0]

does anyone know the basic rules of shooting on my property? i know my coworker has a full blown shooting range in his back yard but he literally has no neighbors even remotely close to him, and when i asked he said he has no idea what the laws are or whether or not his set up is even legal. i know people who shoot 22 rifles in their backyards with neighbors right next to them and people who shoot clay pidgeons with neighbors fairly close too. but then again I also know people who have been arrested for shooting pellet guns at beer bottles too close to their neighbors houses too. it seems that everyone i ask has no idea what the laws are. i have been doing a pretty bad job finding decent information on google and i sure as hell dont want to find out the hard way.

[Zeke 5,504]

Check for discharge ordinance in your town. Some are specific

[xXxplosive 823]

.....remember, it's NJ where all laws are meant to be vague.

[Pew Pew Plates 358]

As long as it's not hunting and as long as there is no town law, you're good to go.  I shoot .22 up to 30-06 out my back door on my 100 yard range without issue.  I have close neighbors, just not in the direction I'm firing (obviously) so I don't do much more than zeros or testing at home.  The police told me as long as I'm safe to have fun.

[KMA4626 0]

ok thanks. ill check into my town specifically. my one neighbor is pretty close but considering how we have pretty loud gatherings every weekend in the late pm im sure they wont mind a little noise during the day. so as long as its legal im sure my neighbors should be understanding... hopefully.

[maintenanceguy 510]

There is no state law preventing shooting on your own property.  There may be a local discharge ordinance.

 

I'm in the middle of nowhere too and shoot in my back yard all the time.

[varna 9]

I went and asked my township and was looked at perplexed. They told me no one had ever asked before. They looked it up and only found a noise ordinance at certain times of day. Told me have at it. I too have no close neighbors and no one behind my property for a few miles..... all woods. I did build a rather large dirt back stop. Usually, when I shoot, my neighbors will join me and it gets other neighbors shooting in their yards. I have NJSP as my local law enforcement and not to their fault (too large an area to cover efficiently) I could blast a few hundred rounds and put my stuff away before they would even show up.

[Oakridgefirearms 224]

I shoot behind my house and have had the cops show up a couple of times. They have said that they can't tell me to stop (since my town has no discharge or noise ordinances) and to have fun.

[Newtonian 453]

Isn't there a 550-foot rule, or does that only apply to hunting?

 

Also, wife was asking about bow shooting. Same rules as firearms? My town has no discharge for firearms but doesn't say anything about arrows.

[T Bill 649]

The bowhunting safety zone is the minimum distance from an occupied building where a bowhunter may have a nocked arrow, and is 150 feet. Carrying a bow with a nocked arrow within 150 feet of an occupied building or 450 feet of any school playground is prohibited. Any portion of the school grounds (including fields used for sports), that could be used for play or recreation, is considered to be part of a playground.

 

The owner or lessee of a building-and persons specifically authorized by the owner or lessee in writing (written permission must be in possession while hunting)-may hunt within 150 feet of the building. Persons authorized to hunt within 150 feet of a building must hunt from an elevated position to shoot down toward the ground. Shooting into a safety zone is prohibited.

Sunday bow hunting is allowed on Wildlife Management Areas and on private property ONLY. There are no exceptions to this rule. It is extremely important for all hunters to know the boundary lines of the property (s) they are hunting.

 

http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/pdf/safetyzone.pdf

[JC_68Westy 1,024]

The bowhunting safety zone is the minimum distance from an occupied building where a bowhunter may have a nocked arrow, and is 150 feet. Carrying a bow with a nocked arrow within 150 feet of an occupied building or 450 feet of any school playground is prohibited. Any portion of the school grounds (including fields used for sports), that could be used for play or recreation, is considered to be part of a playground.

 

The owner or lessee of a building-and persons specifically authorized by the owner or lessee in writing (written permission must be in possession while hunting)-may hunt within 150 feet of the building. Persons authorized to hunt within 150 feet of a building must hunt from an elevated position to shoot down toward the ground. Shooting into a safety zone is prohibited.

Sunday bow hunting is allowed on Wildlife Management Areas and on private property ONLY. There are no exceptions to this rule. It is extremely important for all hunters to know the boundary lines of the property (s) they are hunting.

 

http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/pdf/safetyzone.pdf

This only applies when hunting.

[weekend_junkie 129]

Notwithstanding and state laws or regulations, it's largely up to each town to set discharge ordinances. I recommend using www.ecode360.com to find your town and then search for both "firearm" and "discharge" to discover any potentially applicable ordinances. For example...

 

http://ecode360.com/10099773?highlight=discharging,discharge#10099773