Legal Issues
Can. 29 of the Second Lateran Council under Pope Innocent II in 1139 banned the use of crossbows against Christians.
Today, the crossbow often has a complicated legal status due to the possibility of lethal use and its similarities to both firearms and archery weapons. While some jurisdictions regard crossbows the same as firearms, many others do not even require any sort of license to own a crossbow — even for people, such as felons, who may not legally possess a firearm. The legality of using a crossbow for hunting varies widely, however (especially in United States), and is beyond the scope of this article.
Read more about this topic: Crossbow
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