What the heck is a "Bowie knife" under TX law? Is this knife legal?

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I don't know the answer to your question, or if "Bowie knives" are indeed banned for you, but if true I find it mind-blowingly ironic that Mr. Bowie of the Bowie knife fought and died at the Alamo only to have the state he helped in its infancy ban a knife design of his.
 
There is no legal definition of what is or is not a bowie knife.

Or a stilleto.

Or a dirk.

Or a sword.

Or a spear.

All of these items are prohibited under Texas state law, but none of them are defined legally. At all. It's basically going to come down to whether a police officer thinks it falls into any of these categories, and whether a judge agrees with him later on.

Generally speaking, as long as you're not doing something like waving it around in public or making threatening gestures, you'll be fine.

On the other hand, if you have so much as a case stockman knife, and you're waving it around threateningly, you're probably going to get arrested for possession of a prohibited weapon.
 
Actually the Texas Penal Code 46.02 Unlawful Carry Weapon precludes almost any weapon from being illegal if it used in the appropriate manner. Camping, hiking, hunting etc. it is legal to carry a machete. Not so legal to carry to Walmart. The Bowie knife thing has always been a head scratcher in Texas. Generally speaking it's assumed to be a REAL BIG knife.

(b) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that the actor was, at the time of the commission of the offense:
(1) in the actual discharge of his official duties as a member of the armed forces or state military forces as defined by Section 431.001, Government Code, or as a guard employed by a penal institution;
(2) on his own premises or premises under his control unless he is an employee or agent of the owner of the premises and his primary responsibility is to act in the capacity of a security guard to protect persons or property, in which event he must comply with Subdivision (5);
(3) traveling;
(4) engaging in lawful hunting, fishing, or other sporting activity on the immediate premises where the activity is conducted, or was directly en route between the premises and the actor's residence, if the weapon is a type commonly used in the activity;
 
On the other hand, if you have so much as a case stockman knife, and you're waving it around threateningly, you're probably going to get arrested for possession of a prohibited weapon.
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Well, I get what you're saying but to nitpick a bit a Case Stockman is not a "Prohibited Weapon".

§ 46.05. PROHIBITED WEAPONS.
(a) A person commits an offense if he intentionally or knowingly possesses, manufactures, transports, repairs, or sells:
(1) an explosive weapon;
(2) a machine gun;
(3) a short-barrel firearm;
(4) a firearm silencer;
(5) a switchblade knife;
(6) knuckles;
(7) armor-piercing ammunition;
(8) a chemical dispensing device; or
(9) a zip gun.

And of course there are the usual defense to prosecution and affirmative defenses to go along with it.
 
Well, what I'm saying about the case stockman is, because there's nothing saying what a bowie knife is under Texas law, there's nothing stopping the officer from claiming that he believed the case stockman to be a 'bowie knife'.

Would it stand up in court? No. But it'd stand up long enough to put you in the back of a patrol car and down to the station to prevent you from harming yourself or others.
 
There is no legal definition of what is or is not a bowie knife.

Or a stilleto.

Or a dirk.

Or a sword.

Or a spear.

All of these items are prohibited under Texas state law, but none of them are defined legally. At all. It's basically going to come down to whether a police officer thinks it falls into any of these categories, and whether a judge agrees with him later on.
Click to expand...

One thing you will notice in this list is that most definitions for this type of knife all have one thing in common, a double edge.

It would appear that the legislative intent here was to make most double edged knives illegal, they just did a horrible job of it.
 
I'm thinking a Class B Disorderly Conduct would probably be the correct call. Might be a little Terroristic Threat involved if he ran his mouth. Probably some Criminal Trespass if the manager had asked him to leave. Unless I miss my bet there would be Public Intoxication to boot. PI and DC usually go hand in hand. Likely a good candidate for a 72 hr mental detention warrant too.

Calling it a Bowie knife is going to be a hard sell. I suppose stranger things have happened but I thought of 3 righteous charges off the top of my head.
 
Thanks for all the help, guys. My gf just picked up the knife for me from bass pro shop (Xmas!) but I won't get to open it until later this evening when we exchange gifts.

I'm not planning on carrying it around for anything other than camping/fishing/hiking, but you never know when some overly enthusiastic LEO or park ranger will book me for carrying a "bowie knife" or something ridiculous. And even if it's a defense to prosecution that you're camping/hiking, it's only a "defense" and NOT a bar to prosecution in the first place.

TX has some really screwy weapons laws, and in my opinion as a lawyer this law is unconstitutionally vague (see http://law.jrank.org/pages/11152/Void-Vagueness-Doctrine.html) since nobody seems to know what the heck the statutory language means. A criminal statute needs to be written such that, GIVEN perfect information (remember juries are there to determine facts, not the law) there is a definite "yes" or "no" answer as to the legality of the conduct in question. That doesn't seem to be the case here, as no expert in advance could predict, even given all relevant facts, whether a particular knife is a "bowie knife." It's all left to the whim of the police, judges, prosecutors, and jurors. It would be so simple for the legislator to rewrite the law so it says something like "bowie knife = a fixed blade knife over X inches." I'm not sure if this statute has ever been challenged - there might be some case law that construed it narrowly so it's not really "vague" anymore, but from what you all have said that doesn't seem to be the case.

Sorry for the rant at the end, this is just really frustrating to me as I am always super cautious in obeying the law. :mad:
 
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Here's my take:

46.01 defines an illegal knife as a bowie knife.
46.02 prohibits the carry of an illegal knife.

46.15 :
(b) Section 46.02 does not apply to a person who:

....

(3) is traveling;

(4) is engaging in lawful hunting, fishing, or other sporting activity on the immediate premises where the activity is conducted, or is en route between the premises and the actor's residence, if the weapon is a type commonly used in the activity;

This is not "just a defense against prosecution, this clearly states that it doesn't apply to people engaged in hunting.

How cops are going to interpret things is always a question, but if a cop decides that your little swiss army knife is illegal, the fact that he is an idiot isn't going to stop you from being arrested.
 
Completely aside, I bough that knife for my brother as a gift. It was such a nice knife I wanted one. Great edge and very sturdy in hand.
 
When I went to a base in TX a year ago for a month of training, I registered my carry gun with the post PD. There was no field training involved with this training, so I didn't take my field gear, but it never occurred to me that TX law would prohibit such knives.

In Utah, with a carry permit, you can carry AND CONCEAL pretty much any knife you want, anywhere you are allowed to carry a gun.
 
I have no proof, but here is my anecdotal understanding of the features that make a "bowie" knife:

1. The "S" shaped finger guard,
2. A clip point, with its top edge sharpened (making a short part of the blade double-edged.)
3. Its long, (8"+) blade.

The double-edged nature of the clip point I think is the main concern. Nowadays however, most "bowie knives" are not sold with the sharpened clip.
 
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There is no legal definition of what is or is not a bowie knife.

Or a stilleto.

Or a dirk.

Or a sword.

Or a spear.
Click to expand...

All of these things are legal in California, and can be open carried ironically.
But pretty much any non bladed blunt item that is a weapon or intended to be a weapon is not.
Sword or spear? Perfectly fine. Baton? Felony.
No length limits and no limits on double edges. Fixed blades must be open carried as legal "dirks".


This is why you can never assume to know the law. How many people would assume California has more bladed weapon freedoms than Texas? (Or most of the nation in fact.)
 
hey, we finally got them to specify this past legislation what an assisted open knife is.. and that it's not a switchblade.. Some over eager officers, and stair stepping prosecuting attorneys were seizing and charging folks over Kershaw and Gerber assisted opening knives..

And almost didn't, thanks to some of our law makers.... blowup.gif
 
I'm not planning on carrying it around for anything other than camping/fishing/hiking, but you never know when some overly enthusiastic LEO or park ranger will book me for carrying a "bowie knife" or something ridiculous. And even if it's a defense to prosecution that you're camping/hiking, it's only a "defense" and NOT a bar to prosecution in the first place.
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Nope, you're wrong about that, that's not quite how it works. A defense to prosecution means you can't be prosecuted for it. An affirmative defense means you can be prosecuted but you have to prove up the affirmative defense. If you do you win. Usually.

Obviously folks get arrested by cops that don't know the law upon occasion. Generally speaking they fail the hello/attitude test. Right or wrong, that's the way it is.
 
I have no proof, but here is my anecdotal understanding of the features that make a "bowie" knife:

1. The "S" shaped finger guard,
2. A clip point, with its top edge sharpened (making a short part of the blade double-edged.)
3. Its long, (8"+) blade.

The double-edged nature of the clip point I think is the main concern. Nowadays however, most "bowie knives" are not sold with the sharpened clip.
Click to expand...

I think the clip point is the only really important part of that, as the original bowie knife didn't even have the sharp bit on the top. The knife that made the bowie knives famous did, but you certainly don't need that to define it as a bowie knife.
 
Just vague enough to have you spend a nice three day weekend in jail. If it sticks you can pay for it the rest of your life.

I'm thinking a Class B Disorderly Conduct would probably be the correct call. Might be a little Terroristic Threat involved if he ran his mouth. Probably some Criminal Trespass if the manager had asked him to leave. Unless I miss my bet there would be Public Intoxication to boot. PI and DC usually go hand in hand. Likely a good candidate for a 72 hr mental detention warrant too.
Having seen what this kind of thinking can do to a Man and his Family. It can make you really wonder how free you really are.
 
The confusion is why I don't carry a fixed blade knife and why I generally discourage others from doing so.

A folder that is under the legal blade length limit, that doesn't have a double edge, that doesn't open simply from pressure on a button and that has a detent of some sort that will pull the blade closed for that last little bit of closing blade travel is going to be legal under TX state law.
 
Just vague enough to have you spend a nice three day weekend in jail. If it sticks you can pay for it the rest of your life.

I'm thinking a Class B Disorderly Conduct would probably be the correct call. Might be a little Terroristic Threat involved if he ran his mouth. Probably some Criminal Trespass if the manager had asked him to leave. Unless I miss my bet there would be Public Intoxication to boot. PI and DC usually go hand in hand. Likely a good candidate for a 72 hr mental detention warrant too.
Having seen what this kind of thinking can do to a Man and his Family. It can make you really wonder how free you really are.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure why you've referred to that paragraph and exactly what kind of thinking you're referring to. In the scenario of brandishing a Case Stockman these charges would fit the elements of the crime much more closely than Carrying a Prohibited Weapon which doesn't fit at all.
 
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