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Some boats can be pulled by a motor vehicle. Some are too big.

If I were the prosecutor, I woud argue that a boat is not designed to be pulled behind a motor vehicle. Rather, it is a boat trailer that is designed to carry a boat while being pulled behind the motor vehicle.

In all these unlicensed possession debates, the question of how the police find out that you are carrying a concealed handgun must be considered. Police officers do not have X ray eyes and they cannot (legally) search pedestrians without reasonable suspicion, nor board a boat with consent, probable cause, or a warrant.

Maybe game wardens can. The Coast Guard can, but they are federal officers, not state.

Anyway, if someone is found to be carrying a weapon in a manner that the police think is illegal, that person's lawyer gets to make the argument to the DA or a judge.

For that reason, I think it is better to be cautious about these issues than to propose legal theories that have never been tested in court.

I agree that the spirit of the law was intended to cover a person's residence. Including boats opens up other problems that involve federal and maritime law, which I know nothing about.

- Jim

Welcome to the forum.

I say that it is not legal under the Texas penal code for a person who does not have a CHL to have a handgun in a boat or while walking to and from it.

The law precisely defines premises to include land or RVs that have wheels:

PC §46.02(a-2) For purposes of this section, "premises" includes real property and a recreational vehicle that is being used as living quarters, regardless of whether that use is temporary or permanent. In this subsection, "recreational vehicle" means a motor vehicle primarily designed as temporary living quarters or a vehicle that contains temporary living quarters and is designed to be towed by a motor vehicle. The term includes a travel trailer, camping trailer, truck camper, motor home, and horse trailer with living quarters.

- Jim