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http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420AP_WA_Ancient_Weapons.html
Tacoma considers update of weapons law to include swords
TACOMA, Wash. -- Some government officials are crusading to get cheap versions of medieval weapons off the shelves of local convenience stores because the appearance of collectible swords, crossbows and throwing stars is upsetting people who just want to buy a pack of gum.
The city's lawyers are having a difficult time, however, figuring out how to revise Tacoma's "dangerous weapons" ordinance to stop the stores from selling collectible swords without also making it illegal for grocery stores to sell bread knives or camping stores to offer hunting knives.
The City Council's Public Safety and Human Services Committee first heard complaints about the weapons from neighborhood activists, but police say they haven't seen an increase in crimes involving such weapons.
"I see no reason for a weapon to be convenient," said Fred Brookshire, chairman of the South End Neighborhood Council.
Swords are popular right now, thanks in part to their role in movies such as "Lord of the Rings." Video games and live-action role-playing may also be making swords more popular, said Craig Johnson, production manager for Arms & Armor, Inc., a Minneapolis company that produces high-end reproductions of medieval weapons and armor.
"It comes and goes," Johnson said. "There is an uptick of swords in popular culture."
The quality of swords used by practitioners of martial arts have very little in common with collectibles sold at convenience stores. Purists dismiss those as "sword-like objects." They can't be used as real swords because they fall apart and break, Johnson said.
The cheap stuff is often mass-produced in countries such as China, India, Philippines or Pakistan, he said.
"That's probably where some of those stores are buying them," Johnson said. "It's flooding the market with really inexpensive, poor-quality stuff."
A single high-quality, handmade sword can cost hundreds of dollars.
Tacoma convenience store owners say they're doing nothing wrong and are frustrated with the city's attempt to regulate or ban the sale of weapons.
"No one can convince me it would help deter crime," said Julius Henderson, son of Song Henderson, the owner of Peter's Grocery on South 38th Street.
Many store owners say they don't sell weapons to anyone younger than 18, and the people who buy from them are collectors, not criminals.
Stories about sword attacks show up periodically in the news, but there is no evidence of a rash of crimes involving swords in Tacoma.
Last April, a Kent man turned himself in to police after allegedly stabbing a man to death with a two-foot cane sword. In July, a Tenino man was arrested for allegedly ramming a car and attacking a man with a machete. A Spanaway man was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2004 for stabbing a man death with a samurai-type sword.
During one of the earlier discussions about the issue, Tom Orr, the assistant city attorney first assigned to write a new weapons ordinance, told the Public Safety and Human Services Committee that he had no evidence regarding the effect of weapons sales from convenience stores.
"It's as much a political question as a legal question as to how to approach this," said Orr, who has now left his job with the city to work for the Law Enforcement Support Agency.
Cecil Logino of the Seattle-based Academia della Spada, a school that teaches civilian dueling, believes in educating people rather than legislating safety.
"What people just need to keep in mind is, yes, it can be used as a weapon like lots of things," he said. But a sword or knife requires proximity and a great deal of physical effort to inflict harm, he said.
"A sword has never been the best weapon to kill someone," Longino said. "You have to be pretty dead-set on what you're doing."
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Tacoma considers update of weapons law to include swords
TACOMA, Wash. -- Some government officials are crusading to get cheap versions of medieval weapons off the shelves of local convenience stores because the appearance of collectible swords, crossbows and throwing stars is upsetting people who just want to buy a pack of gum.
The city's lawyers are having a difficult time, however, figuring out how to revise Tacoma's "dangerous weapons" ordinance to stop the stores from selling collectible swords without also making it illegal for grocery stores to sell bread knives or camping stores to offer hunting knives.
The City Council's Public Safety and Human Services Committee first heard complaints about the weapons from neighborhood activists, but police say they haven't seen an increase in crimes involving such weapons.
"I see no reason for a weapon to be convenient," said Fred Brookshire, chairman of the South End Neighborhood Council.
Swords are popular right now, thanks in part to their role in movies such as "Lord of the Rings." Video games and live-action role-playing may also be making swords more popular, said Craig Johnson, production manager for Arms & Armor, Inc., a Minneapolis company that produces high-end reproductions of medieval weapons and armor.
"It comes and goes," Johnson said. "There is an uptick of swords in popular culture."
The quality of swords used by practitioners of martial arts have very little in common with collectibles sold at convenience stores. Purists dismiss those as "sword-like objects." They can't be used as real swords because they fall apart and break, Johnson said.
The cheap stuff is often mass-produced in countries such as China, India, Philippines or Pakistan, he said.
"That's probably where some of those stores are buying them," Johnson said. "It's flooding the market with really inexpensive, poor-quality stuff."
A single high-quality, handmade sword can cost hundreds of dollars.
Tacoma convenience store owners say they're doing nothing wrong and are frustrated with the city's attempt to regulate or ban the sale of weapons.
"No one can convince me it would help deter crime," said Julius Henderson, son of Song Henderson, the owner of Peter's Grocery on South 38th Street.
Many store owners say they don't sell weapons to anyone younger than 18, and the people who buy from them are collectors, not criminals.
Stories about sword attacks show up periodically in the news, but there is no evidence of a rash of crimes involving swords in Tacoma.
Last April, a Kent man turned himself in to police after allegedly stabbing a man to death with a two-foot cane sword. In July, a Tenino man was arrested for allegedly ramming a car and attacking a man with a machete. A Spanaway man was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2004 for stabbing a man death with a samurai-type sword.
During one of the earlier discussions about the issue, Tom Orr, the assistant city attorney first assigned to write a new weapons ordinance, told the Public Safety and Human Services Committee that he had no evidence regarding the effect of weapons sales from convenience stores.
"It's as much a political question as a legal question as to how to approach this," said Orr, who has now left his job with the city to work for the Law Enforcement Support Agency.
Cecil Logino of the Seattle-based Academia della Spada, a school that teaches civilian dueling, believes in educating people rather than legislating safety.
"What people just need to keep in mind is, yes, it can be used as a weapon like lots of things," he said. But a sword or knife requires proximity and a great deal of physical effort to inflict harm, he said.
"A sword has never been the best weapon to kill someone," Longino said. "You have to be pretty dead-set on what you're doing."
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