Wash. Rev. Code » Title 9 · Chapter 9.94
Revised Code of Washington

Wash. Rev. Code § 9.94.040 (2026)

✓ current as of May 2026
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(1) Every person serving a sentence in any state correctional institution who, without legal authorization, while in the institution or while being conveyed to or from the institution, or while under the custody or supervision of institution officials, officers, or employees, or while on any premises subject to the control of the institution, knowingly possesses or carries upon his or her person or has under his or her control any weapon, firearm, or any instrument which, if used, could produce serious bodily injury to the person of another, is guilty of a class B felony.
(2) Every person confined in a county or local correctional institution who, without legal authorization, while in the institution or while being conveyed to or from the institution, or while under the custody or supervision of institution officials, officers, or employees, or while on any premises subject to the control of the institution, knowingly possesses or has under his or her control any weapon, firearm, or any instrument that, if used, could produce serious bodily injury to the person of another, is guilty of a class C felony.
(3) The sentence imposed under this section shall be in addition to any sentence being served.
[ 2005 c 361 s 1; 1995 c 314 s 4; 1979 c 121 s 1; 1977 ex.s. c 43 s 1; 1975-'76 2nd ex.s. c 38 s 18. Prior: 1955 c 241 s 4.]

Notes:

Severability—1979 c 121: "If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected." [ 1979 c 121 s 8.]
Effective date—Severability—1975-'76 2nd ex.s. c 38: See notes following RCW 9A.08.020.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 6 cases, 1956–2017 · leading case: State v. Morbeck, 589 P.2d 823 (Wash. Ct. App. 1979).
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State v. Morbeck, 589 P.2d 823 (Wash. Ct. App. 1979). · cites it 4× “RCW 9.94.040. At trial, defense counsel offered to prove that the defendant's possession of a weapon was necessary to protect himself against another inmate who had recently made *406 threats against him.”
State v. Barnes, 708 P.2d 414 (Wash. Ct. App. 1985). · cites it 2× “—Herman Barnes was charged by information with possession of a weapon by a prisoner, in violation of RCW 9.94.040, which provides: Every person serving a sentence in any penal institution of this state who, without authorization pursuant to law, while in such penal institution .”
State v. Champion, 622 P.2d 905 (Wash. Ct. App. 1981). “8/06/79 An information was filed in Snohomish County Superior Court charging Champion with possession of a weapon in violation of RCW 9.94.040. 8/10/79 A warrant for Champion's arrest was issued.”
State v. Davis, 294 P.2d 934 (Wash. 1956). “) “Possession of contraband” is defined and the penalty fixed in § 4 of the act RCW 9.94.040. “Interference with laboring prisoners” and “the giving of narcotics and firearms to a prisoner” are defined and the penalty for each is fixed in § 6 of the act.”
State v. Gilcrist, 531 P.2d 814 (Wash. Ct. App. 1975). · cites it 2× “Both inmates were charged and convicted of violating RCW 9.94.040, which provides: Every person serving a sentence in any penal institution of this state who, while in such penal institution or *735 while being conveyed to or from such penal institution, or while at any penal…”
State of Washington v. Maxwell Delvon Jones (Wash. Ct. App. 2017). “An offense under this statute is comparable to an offense under RCW 9.94.040 for possessing any weapon while in a state correctional institution, which is a class B felony, or while in a county or local correctional institution, which is a class C felony.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.