List of items for which possession is restricted

Contraband consists of items of which possession may be illegal, depending on the variety and the country or the age or sex of the possessor. One can be punished for having such an item, even if one has paid for it, made it oneself, or is in possession of it without knowledge.

Weapons

• Guns - see also Second Amendment to the United States Constitution
• Biological weapons and Chemical weapons
• Knives and other weapons, depending on circumstances
• Explosives: for example, Semtex or dynamite
• Some items which are often not considered to be weapons, such as whips or bows, are age restricted.

Information

• Pornography - this varies immensely from country to country and by culture
• Hate literature - varies according to country
• Books which may be considered subversive or immoral in some countries or cultures (see List of banned books).
• Certain software e.g. advanced encryption algorithms, PGP or GnuPG, DVD decryption software such as DeCSS, etc. in some countries.
• Official secrets

Animals

• Wild animals, especially in cities or without special training
• Possibly dangerous domesticated animals, such as a pit bull
• "Livestock" (as opposed to "pets") under many zoning plans and/or municipal codes
• Numerous pets
• Dead bodies, in most countries they have to be buried in dedicated areas
• Graves unless they've been dug in graveyards
• Endangered species, especially birds of prey

Chemicals

• Drugs - this varies immensely from country to country and by culture
• Alcohol in various countries
• Certain chemical compounds
  • formaldehyde
  • materials for clandestine chemistry
• Radioactive substances, nuclear materials
• Some alternative health supplements, e.g. laetrile, ephedra, etc.

Burglar tools

• Police uniforms, or uniforms of other official representatives
• Lockpicks
• Master keys or skeleton keys
• "Slim jim" devices for opening locked cars

Miscellaneous

• Fireworks
• Prehistoric fossils and other archaeological artifacts without government permission
• Goods resulting from another crime, such as stolen goods or forged credentials
• Radar detectors
• Headlights with blue dots
• Blue lights under cars
• Studded tires
• Dyed gasoline
• Food stamps
• Spray paint - possession by minors is forbidden in some places to prevent graffiti
• 1933 U.S. 20 dollar gold coin
• Too many animals in one dwelling
• Too many residents in one dwelling
• Too many vehicles (parked on premises, whether operational or not)
• Home distilling apparatus, equipment for making moonshine
• Ancient finds (treasure trove)
• Chewing gum in Singapore. 1 year jail. Possible exemption for medical use eg nicotine replacement.
• Some medical devices (those deemed to be dangerous without specialized training, such as surgical devices)
• Some plants or their seeds (such as marijuana)
• Items from countries subject to trade embargos, such as Cuban cigars

Items during a protest

• Mask - For example, in California no protester may wear a mask. The law was initially created to force members of the Ku Klux Klan to show their faces, but the same code was later invoked to prevent protesters from wearing gas masks.

Notes

• There are often obligations related to possessions, such as paying taxes, and making sure they cause no danger or damage.
• Even if a possession is legal, carrying it is not always allowed, e.g. alcohol within sight of a football pitch in England, and a weapon in many cases.
• Plants taller than 8 inches in one's yard are not allowed in Elsmere, Delaware, (Newspaper articles) and grass and certain kinds of plants (termed "weeds") taller than that are proscribed by most municipal codes or restrictive covenants.

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