Q & A

The Salem Police Department has set up an email address that allows citizens to send in questions via the Internet.  If you have a law enforcement related question, send your inquiry to crimeprevention@cityofsalem.net.  Please be sure and include your name, address and phone number in your inquiry.  Your question will be answered to the best of our ability (answers to some questions may have limitations due to case confidentiality) and sent back to you, via email.  Below are postings of the questions received in the past month:

Q - I had a question regarding Airsoft guns, pellet guns, toy guns, etc.  What are the laws on these types of guns?  If neighbor kids are shooting them, what are the regulations they need to follow?  Is it just a free for all if they still have the identifying "orange tip"?

A - You ask an interesting question. There are two ordinances that apply to parts of your question.  They are as follows:

SRC 95.020 Airguns; Discharge Prohibited

It shall be unlawful for any person to discharge any airgun within the city.

SRC 95.050 Bean Shooters And Slingshots

It shall be unlawful for any person to use any bean shooter, slingshot or any other contrivance used in shooting beans, stones, pebbles, or other substance or thing, in or upon any street, alley, or public place within the city.

The orange tip on the muzzle end oftoy firearms is an attempt by manufacturers to help make them identifiable as something other than a functional firearm.  Without the orange tip, some of the toys are so realistic that they are easily confused for real firearms, which can unfortunately result in deadly consequences.

In this unfortunate time of school shootings and other tragic events, we strongly encourage parental supervision to ensure the use of any of these "toys" is within the confines of the law, as well as safe and sane.  All too often the police receive reports of armed persons when in reality they were toys.  Criminal charges such as Disorderly Conduct may apply when the public is needlessly alarmed.  Each of these cases is unique and need to be looked at on a case by case basis. 

Q - I was wondering if it's illegal to wear ear buds (in ear speakers used for MP3 players) while riding a bicycle in Salem?

A - I reviewed both the city revised codes and state statutes and found none that would prohibit the use of headphones. It would be recommended however, that the rider be able to hear vehicles or pedestrian noises to avoid being in a collision with either one.

Q - We recently had a window broken by a teenager who used a sling shot to shoot three (3) marbles at the window.  Are sling shots illegal to use within the city limits?  Under what ORS does this misdemeanor fall?

A - Under SRC 95.050, slingshots are illegal to use "in or upon any street, alley, or public place within the city."  Since you mentioned that it involved three marbles, I am assuming this was an "intentional act."  The following ORS's may apply:

ORS 164.354 Criminal Mischief II ($750 or less in damages)

ORS 164.365 Criminal Mischief I (greater than $750 in damages)

Q - I was wondering what the allowable limit is for any one adult who owns several types of guns?

A - The following persons are prohibited from possessing firearms:

Anyone who has been convicted in any court of, a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding 1 year, excluding crimes of imprisonment that are related to the regulation of business practices.

Anyone who is a fugitive from justice.

Anyone who is an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance.

Anyone who has been adjudicated as a mental defective or has been committed to a mental institution.

Any alien illegally or unlawfully in the United states or an alien admitted to the United states under a nonimmigrant visa.

Anyone who has been discharged from the US Armed Forces under dishonorable conditions.

Anyone who, having been a citizen of the United states, has renounced his or her citizenship.

Anyone that is subject to a court order that restrains the person from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner or child of such intimate partner.

Anyone who has been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence. (See the Lautenberg Amendment.)

Anyone who is under the age of 18 for a shotgun or rifle, or under age 21 for a handgun.

With the exception of the above listed prohibitions, a person's right to bear arms is constitutionally protected under the 2nd Amendment.

Q - I'm receiving personal email correspondence on my work email address from an individual I have asked not to email me unless it is business related.  The individual has not abided my request and aside from blocking him from my email list, is there any legal action I can take?

A - Electronic mail (email) is basically the same as any other form of mail.  Unlike telephone calls which may be restricted under ORS 166.090, emails are pretty much unrestricted unless they contain certain threats, contraband such as child pornography, or attempts to defraud.  Blocking the sender's address or depositing them in the trash, like you would other forms of junk mail, is the recommended manner of dealing with them.