I have done a few searches through both of the forums here and I cant find this posted anywhere so I figured I would ask. Does anyone know if there is a website or book I could get at the library that has the legal carry blade lengths for all the states? Just wondering. I am going to step over to knifeforums and look there as well, but I wanted to ask here first.

Garrett

You might want to check out this website http://www.cgcweb.com/knif_law.htm Scroll down about halfway to the state law summary link. Bear in mind that even though a state may not have a blade restriction, many localities do. Hope this helps, Ed

thanks,

it seems like there are quite a few ways to interpret the law of each state. I was looking for concrete numbers as the few police officers I know dont seem to know the actaul limit is for their state!

Garrett

I am not a lawyer or cop so Caveat emptor:

I think that the vagueness in the law and probably case precedent is due to the tension between liberty and control. Officers want the be able to remove any threatening tool / weapon and individual at their discretion. OTOH, Americans feel justified in wanting to carry whatever tools / weapons they feel comfortable in using and our constitution, more or less, supports this. By having laws that make a statement towards control but are vague and interpretable, enforcers are free to be as controlling as they wish in most circumstances whilst allowing the illusion that there still is some liberty in our society.

Sorry if that brushed the edges of ranting <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I live in Maryland...I know...lucky me. Anyways, after hearing many different people pontificate about the legal length for a knife in the state, I decided to look it up in the Annotated State Code. I had heard things like "under 4 inches," "four fingers," "smaller than the palm of your hand," "can't be carried in your pocket." Well, after an afternoon of digging online, I found out that there is not a state mandated limit in Maryland. All that is prohibited are basically any kind of fixed blade or switch blade or gravity/butterfly knife. Any and everything else is legal. And since this was the annotated stated code, it listed the court rulings on each provision. And there are two that support our right to carry folding, locking blades. On the other hand, I know a few police officers, and they have said that if I get into trouble, having a knife on me, of any sort, is only going to get me in more trouble. So damned if you do, damned if you don't. I'll take my chances and be prepared.

-Chris

Remember too that the police are under no obligation to tell you, the civilian, the truth. There is no law that says they must tell the truth. It's kind of like the military in that, "If you have to ask, the answer's 'No'." Except the military has a tradition of saying "No Comment" rather than lying.

Here in NYC I was stoped on the train once for having a buck 4 inch blade but Transit cop didn't know it was a knife, he tought it was a gun since the part of the case that was sticking from under my shirt looked like a holster. He looked at my blade and let me go. I wasn't in trouble or anything and I was polite and cooperative. Last night I asked couple of POs on duty what is the legal legth of the blade but got no uniform answer. But most of them said it's measured by his palm (not YOURS), amount of trouble you are in and attitude. If you [censored] them off any knife becomes a weapon, if you are nice to them they are nice back to you. I showed them my sebenza and they told me that if I got on the wrong side of him I would get in trouble. But most of the time your presentation has to do a lot with it too. If you are just a normal guy, minding about your business than they have no reason to bother you. Even if they know you have a knife, chances are you won't go on the crime spree.

Matt

NYC is legally 4" - not palm - 4" to the handle/hilt - not edge length. There are a bunch of other rules too

Go to Bladeforums.com - they have a link to all the state (and some local) knife laws.

Yeah, the cop can give you a hard time below 4", but the DA will probably decline to press charges

It is good to know that th DA won't persecute / prosecute you but that doesn't always help in getting your knife out of the evidence room. A custom folder worth >$200 isn't something that I would want confiscated. My EDC remains cheaper than the Wave.

Fortunately, I look like a nerd and I guess I pretty much am one. I am tall and thin and wear spectacles, so everyone tends to dismiss me as a geek, which is a good thing. I suspect I'd have problems if I looked rough and tough. I was raised to be polite, and that's the way I act.