I live in Texas and am in line for one at Buds. If I cancel my order I'll have to pay a 10% fee if I do so before 90 days. Hopefully there will be some clarification or it will take more than 90 days, I'd hate to take possession of this item and become a felon!
I'm not claiming it's legal or illegal. Too much ambiguity in the Texas Penal Code for me to understand, as I am not an attorney. But here is a paragraph from US Law Shields blog.
http://blog.uslawshield.com/tag/mossberg-shockwave/
Part Two: Okay in Texas? Probably not.
Unfortunately, all this analysis does not help very much when we get to the laws in Texas. As noted above, the crux of the argument in favor of the weapon being a non-NFA item is that it cannot be classified as a shotgun under federal law. Federal law looks at whether or not it is intended to be fired from the shoulder. Since the firearm isn’t a shotgun to begin with, then logically it cannot be a short-barreled shotgun.
The problem under Texas law is that “shotgun” is not a defined term in the penal code, but “short-barrel firearm” is. Texas Penal Code Section 46.01(10) defines a short-barrel firearm as a rifle with a barrel length of less than 16 inches or a shotgun with a barrel length of less than 18 inches, or any weapon made from a shotgun or rifle if, as altered, it has an overall length of less than 26 inches.
At first glance, there doesn’t seem to be a difference from the way the federal law classifies these weapons, however without having a clear definition of a shotgun, we cannot determine whether or not the Shockwave is excluded from what Texas courts would consider a short-barrel firearm. In the absence of language in the Texas Penal Code similar to “intended to be fired from the shoulder,” can having a pistol grip instead of a shoulder stock automatically create a firearm that is not a shotgun?
When left without a clear definition, the jury would end up looking at the firearm and deciding whether or not it met the commonly understood definition of a shotgun, which is usually a smooth bore firearm used for firing small shot at a short range.
If in the eyes of the jury the Mossberg 590 Shockwave looked like a shotgun, then due to the 14-inch barrel it would be a short-barrel firearm and possession would be a third-degree felony offense under Texas Penal Code Section 46.05(a)(1). Therefore, we definitely advise caution when it comes to purchasing and possessing this firearm in Texas!
