What is the legality of a "concealed" knife in most states?

[aarondhgraham]

What is the legality of a "concealed" knife in most states?

Way back in the mid 90's I lived in California.

Carry of a gun wasn't in the cards,,,
So I carried a slender knife in a shoulder holster I made.

Shoulder holster?

Yep, I made it out of very thin upholstery leather,,,
I wore it between my under and outer shirts.

The reason is that while I did have a slender knife,,,
I just can't stand anything around even the back of my neck.

At that time I was working part-time as a CSO for a university police department,,,
One of the cops saw my knife and asked the DA's office about it.

It was a fixed blade and under the blade length maximum,,,
But according to the Riverside County DA office,,,
it was illegal because I carried it concealed.

I honestly don't know if they were lying or not,,,
But I was told if I were to ever be caught wearing it on duty,,,
Not only would I lose my job but I would be cited for a weapons charge.

Perhaps some of the legal eagles here can clarify this for our present time.

Come this November switchblade knives will be legal here in Okie-Land,,,
I'm considering getting a very small one to carry on me,,,
Perhaps a neck rig or another armpit rig is in order.

Aarond

.

 

[ugaarguy]

I've made this post into its own thread since it's asking questions far broader and in greater depth than the thread it was originally posted into.

 

[sgt127]

I thinks that's going to vary so much, state by state and even by city ordinances.
In Texas, legal is under 5 1/2" and not double edged. How you carry is irrelevant. It's either an illegal knife, or it isn't.

 

[hso]

The most up to date source of information is here - http://www.kniferights.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=273&Itemid=1

As sgt127 said, how you carry it in TX isn't important if the knife is an "illegal knife". Conversely it doesn't appear that it is illegal to carry any "legal" knife any way you want.

Sec. 46.02. UNLAWFUL CARRYING WEAPONS. (a) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly carries on or about his or her person a handgun, illegal knife, or club if the person is not:
(1) on the person's own premises or premises under the person's control; or
(2) inside of or directly en route to a motor vehicle or watercraft that is owned by the person or under the person's control.

***

(6) "Illegal knife" means a:
(A) knife with a blade over five and one-half inches;
(B) hand instrument designed to cut or stab another by being thrown;
(C) dagger, including but not limited to a dirk, stiletto, and poniard;
(D) bowie knife;
(E) sword; or
(F) spear.

TX is still one of the more anti freedom states on knife laws in spite of the success Knife Rights has had there recently.

June 17, 2015: Texas Governor Abbott has signed Knife Right's Knife Law Preemption bill, HB 905, which repeals local ordinances more restrictive than state law and ensures that the repeal of the Texas ban on switchblade (automatic) knives that Knife Rights passed last session will now be the law throughout Texas.

The new law goes into effect September 1. Texans should note that until the new law is in effect, they can still be charged with violations under existing law.

- See more at: http://kniferights.org/#sthash.b7CO4DR3.dpuf

The blade length and blade type bans still are in place and will have to be defeated in the future if Texans want their state to join TN and others where Knife Rights fought and won to remove restrictions on knives.

 

[jeepnik]

Laws vary of course, but in many places even with a permit for a concealed handgun, you can't carry a concealed knife. But, and Spyderco was in my opinion the one that really got the ball rolling, the pocket clip if visible makes it not concealed.

 

[ugaarguy]

the pocket clip if visible makes it not concealed.

That also varies from state to state, and is often a question of case law instead of clearly worded statute.

 

[Valkman]

I saw an episode of Cops in CA where they checked a guy out and he had a neck knife under his shirt, and they arrested him for a felony so I think the advice you got was probably right.

 

[grter]

Keep in mind this post concerns New York City

In New York City whatever knife is legal they don't want to see. Concealed carry is mandatory and you can get charged with a violation if you for example have a tiny swiss army knife hanging off your keychain or a otherwise legal knife with its clip showing on your pocket.

This is odd and in contrast to other states that charge you for concealed carry, don't count on a clip showing as making it considered non concealed as some areas like to give the arresting officer every advantage.

I guess the reasoning for requiring concealed carry in NYC is being a show off is being a trouble maker.

Knives regardless of length type or whatever can not be manufactured with the intent to be weapons. Whatever you carry whether a pen, chopstick, or legal knife, if you carry it with the intent of it to be used as a weapon you can be charged with a serious weapons charge.

Don't say officer I carry it for protection when asked when in fact you actually carry it for utility use unless you like court rooms, judges, and jails.

Any knife you carry must have a blade less LESS LESS LESS (important and you can bet it will be measured from the handle regardless of whether the steel portion is sharpened or not) than 4 inches.

If it is a lock blade you can not be able to flick it open or they will charge you with a serious gravity knife weapons charge. For years it was a given as long as you can't flick it you were good to go now they are getting creative and gripping the blade and hurling the handle away (a Manhattan district attorney Cirus Vance fantasy fictional story reinterpretation of the law. I am sorry this guy is a jerk and it is deserved he has hurt a lot more innocent people with this than criminals who prefere firearms these days) has been used to qualify a knife as a gravity knife.

Almost any lock blade can be opened in this manor with great risk of chucking the knife through your foot and for the most part a useless stupid clumsy way to deploy a knife, especially in a high stress situation. This is absolutely using the knife far outside of it's design specifications and I must stress again dangerous and impracticle.

There is a vague dirk and dagger probition my best guess is they mean knives designed as stabbers. Butterfly knives are legal under NY state law as long as they have a locking latch (the extra step of manually latching it shut exempts them from being considered gravity knives) but New York City has arbitrarily designated them as weapons with no real facts (maybe hollywood fiction) to back that up. I can say butterfly knives in the phillipines have a long tradition of being used as utility knives, not weapons.

Be aware that knife laws vary greatly from state to state as well as on the federal level and many of them are vague and open to interpretation to be determined when you are tried after being arrested and charged.

Be especially aware that many of these laws are not logical or reasonable in any way and/or interpreted in a reasonable manner, don't assume common sense will prevail.

 

[jmr40]

In Georgia schools 2" is the standard.

“Weapon” means and includes any pistol, revolver, or any weapon designed or intended to propel a missile of any kind, or any dirk, bowie knife, switchblade knife, ballistic knife, any other knife having a blade of two or more inches,

I can't say about anywhere else, but the above is an excerpt from the signs posted at all public schools here. I'm retired now, but when I taught anything found on a kid 2" or less was handled as a school discipline matter. Usually a 3 day in-school-suspension.

Anything over 2" required LE involvement since legally it is a weapon. The kids were sent home while LE investigated the situation. If they determined there was criminal intent it was in their hands and no longer a school issue. If they determined it was an honest mistake and there was no criminal intent the 3 days or so during the investigation was considered his out of school suspension and he came back to school at the end of the investigation.

 

[hso]

the pocket clip if visible makes it not concealed.

This is a common myth and is not reliable universally. No one should bet their freedom on this without careful and thorough research into state, local, and case law (the last being the most difficult and tedious). A shirt or jacket covering that clip or the clip blending in too much due to color can lead to being charged even where you think this rule applies.

Manhattan district attorney Cirus Vance fantasy fictional story reinterpretation of the law

Knife Rights has a suite against the City and "Mr." Vance to stop this and other abuses of law abiding citizens being shaken down and exploited by this embarrassment to the legal profession. They're working to pass a bill in the NY State Legislature that would pull the teeth of Vance and city for using these tactics.

 

[ChaoSS]

Since you referenced California, I'm not sure what the laws used to be (it's my understanding, although it may be incorrect, that the laws have changed somewhat significantly over time) but today, yes, fixed blade concealed carry is a huge no no in California.

A lot of people don't know that, either, you see a lot of people with a belt knife with the shirt covering it.

 

[9mmepiphany]

Wow, I sure hope you get better information on your local knife carry laws than you got back in CA

It was a fixed blade and under the blade length maximum,,,
But according to the Riverside County DA office,,,
it was illegal because I carried it concealed.

The part about it being illegal is correct.

However, there is no statewide "blade length maximum" for a fixed blade knife that is openly carried on the belt, nor is there for a folding blade carried concealed...however, there might be local ordinances with more limitations

I honestly don't know if they were lying or not,,,
But I was told if I were to ever be caught wearing it on duty,,,
Not only would I lose my job but I would be cited for a weapons charge.

However, it is highly unlikely that you would have been cited on a "weapons charge"

Carrying a concealed fixed blade knife is a felony and they don't usually issue a citation for felonies

 

[OptimusPrime]

In Washington DC I was refused entry into the Library of Congress for having my 2.5" Victorinox in my pocket. I pointed out that TSA even lets me carry on a flight now, and they didn't care. So yeah, knife laws can vary from state, city, or even different buildings within the same city.

 

[4thPointOfContact]

In Georgia schools 2" is the standard.

“Weapon” means and includes any pistol, revolver, or any weapon designed or intended to propel a missile of any kind, or any dirk, bowie knife, switchblade knife, ballistic knife, any other knife having a blade of two or more inches,

Just to expand a bit on Jmr40's reply.
The 2" rule only applies to elementary and secondary schools and with some additional exceptions.

In general, "...“Knife” means a cutting instrument designed for the purpose of offense and defense consisting of a blade that is greater than five inches in length which is fastened to a handle..." Anything <= five inches is not a weapon as defined by GA law and is unregulated, anything > five inches can only be carried with a Georgia Weapons License.

Georgia has preemption in all weapons laws.

Swords, butterfly knives, butter knives, dirks, daggers and switch blades do not matter to Georgia law.

 

[hso]

I pointed out that TSA even lets me carry

Ummm, not yet. They were going to but back tracked to the no knife position. If you've been getting through TSA with that you've been doing it through pure luck.

 

[Zeabed]

You have to look not only into the law of your particular state but also the local county and/or municipal ordinances that can limit or otherwise modify those laws. For example, for a resident of Florida most counties in that taste "pre-empt" knife carry within the carry rights covered by Florida CWL. That means that the license here is for concealed weapons, not only a gun. if you have a concealed knife, it is covered under the purview of said CWL. However, if you reside in Miami-Dade county, the local ordinances do not pre-empt knife carry. So if you carry a concealed knife in Miami-Dade you could be found to be in criminal violation of those ordinances, even if you have a Florida CWL. Knife rights activists and attorneys have not been able to make a dent on this M-D apparent contravention of what CWL means. Either that or they really haven't cared enough to try, Miami-Dade perhaps not being considered part of the U.S. anyway, and therefore abandoned to legal restrictions that do not affect other Florida venues. Just saying.

 

[lemaymiami]

Zea... I was a cop in what was then called "Dade" county (1973 -1995) and the standard we all went by in that era was that any folding knife with a blade less than four inches long was an "ordinary pocket knife" and not a weapon for concealment purposes (no matter how it was concealed -in your pocket or anywhere else -and you don't want to know where some folks carry their blades....). On the street you ran into everything from machetes on down -some concealed, some not. As a rule back then any attempt to charge someone carrying a knife with a "concealed weapon" charge was an exercise in frustration since courts in that era simply found one way or another to invalidate the charge (based on the search or any other technicality you could dream up). If I sound a bit cranky about the subject you're reading me correctly since as a young cop every time I made an arrest (and we're not talking ordinary citizen here at all...) on this type of charge it went nowhere back then....

The good news/ bad news about this was that when it came to using a knife "not in necessary self defense" any blade used to try to injure (or threaten) another bought you a solid felony charge of aggravated assault (if no injury occurred) or aggravated battery if there was the slightest injury. Yes, we did come into contact with more than one cutting or stabbing that was clear-cut self defense and those folks were in good shape. Any doubt about it being self defense and the man or woman went down for it...

Unless I'm mistaken the law here in Florida about knives is still not very clear since it's lumped in with dirks, blackjacks, "slungshot" (whatever that is....), etc. My state would be well served to change that...

One last point that's probably nationwide about knives. No matter how it's carried or what size it is... it's a felony to have it in your possession if you end up in jail. Contraband introduced into a lockup anywhere is likely to be a felony no matter what the circumstances. Anyone under arrest and headed to a jail had better disclose the item even if it was missed in a search during the initial arrest because they will be charged if it's later found by jail personnel - no matter how lawful it might be in any other circumstances...