Legal Weapon were a Southern California-based punk band, initially composed of singer Kat Arthur and guitarist Brian Hansen (both previously of the Silencers), bassist Patricia Morrison (formerly of Bags and later of the Gun Club, the Sisters of Mercy and the Damned), drummer Charlie Vartanian and guitarist Mike R. Livingston.

The band's early full-length albums Death of Innocence (on which their lineup included Steve Soto and Frank Agnew of the Adolescents) and Your Weapon were well received. Later efforts moved away from punk to a more hard rock sound. The band released one album on a major label, 1988's Life Sentence to Love, during a period in which they were signed to MCA Records.

With her powerful voice, Arthur was often called "the Janis Joplin of punk". She died October 14, 2018, at the age of 62.