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is this knife legal to carry?

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  • robertl1974

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    Jun 13, 2008
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    hi guys i just got this knife it is a kershaw blur with speedsafe assisted thumb stud opening. the blade is 3.3/8 closed it is 4.1/2 open it is 8 inches long i do not know the texas law when it comes to knives carry i do not want to get in trouble for a knife thanks for all the help
    kershawblur1.jpg
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    txinvestigator

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    Does it have a spring that helps it open?

    Here is Texas law on knives;

    Texas Penal Code
    CHAPTER 46. WEAPONS


    Sec. 46.01. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:

    (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.

    (11) "Switchblade knife" means any knife that has a blade that folds, closes, or retracts into the handle or sheath, and that:
    (A) opens automatically by pressure applied to a button or other device located on the handle; or
    (B) opens or releases a blade from the handle or sheath by the force of gravity or by the application of centrifugal force.



    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 that is owned by the person or under the person's control.


    Sec. 46.05. PROHIBITED WEAPONS. (a) A person commits an offense if he intentionally or knowingly possesses, manufactures, transports, repairs, or sells:
    (5) a switchblade knife;





    I'll have to see if I can find it again, but there was a case out of one of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals where a person with an "assisted opening knife" was convicted, and that conviction was upheld. The knife was not named by manufacturer, but it was described in the ruling and sounded just like a Kershaw assisted opening.
     

    robertl1974

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    thanks guys this one come with that little bass thing in the pic i can remove that and then it will be a manuel knife i should be ok to carry it
    SDC10280.jpg
     

    Big country

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    I'll have to see if I can find it again, but there was a case out of one of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals where a person with an "assisted opening knife" was convicted, and that conviction was upheld. The knife was not named by manufacturer, but it was described in the ruling and sounded just like a Kershaw assisted opening.
    I heard about that in my level lll class. It is my understanding that there is no clear law on the books that specifically pertains to "assisted openers" and that it is left up to the officer's discretion. I could be wrong but I think an assisted opener is released by a centrifugal force. But as I understand it is one of those gray areas that might be risky. But I'll leave it up to txinvestigator to get the specifics, because he is better at that than I am and he has proved me wrong before.
     

    txinvestigator

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    I heard about that in my level lll class. It is my understanding that there is no clear law on the books that specifically pertains to "assisted openers" and that it is left up to the officer's discretion.

    Here is the issue;

    The Kershaw assisted openers open by you first pressing the end of the BLADE where it meets the handle. As the pic shows, there is a little device that assists the blade open when you press the end of the blade.

    Since the little button is NOT on the handle or sheath, it was widely thought that those knives were not switchblades. A person was arrested and charged with a prohibited weapon for having an assisted opening knife. He was convicted and appealed. The conviction was upheld, giving us precedent. Meaning a lawful arrest can take place for an assisted opening knife now.

    I'm still looking for the case
     

    ReVrEnD_0341

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    txinvestigator, just because the conviction was upheld, doesn't mean the arresting officer isn't a douche for arresting the guy.

    And as for the gravity knife ruling... Any, and I do mean ANY folder can be a gravity knife. It is all in how it is used.

    This whole thing with knives is stupid, and whoever came up with these laws should be taken out behind the wood shed and beat with a rubber hose.
     

    Big country

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    Right. But dose the blade use centrifugal force to "assist" with opening the blade? I think it does? If so by the definitions provided in chapter 6 of the penal code it is in fact a "switchblade", or at least that is how I interpret the definition. I don't or didn't think it was, but like you said there was a conviction, and it was not over turned!
     

    Big country

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    txinvestigator, just because the conviction was upheld, doesn't mean the arresting officer isn't a douche for arresting the guy
    The arresting officer may very well be a douche. The question is about the actual law and how it reads, not the officer's douche bag ness.

    And as for the gravity knife ruling... Any, and I do mean ANY folder can be a gravity knife. It is all in how it is used.
    This whole thing with knives is stupid, and whoever came up with these laws should be taken out behind the wood shed and beat with a rubber hose.
    Agreed! You can do just as much damage just as quick with all most any modern folding knife.
     

    iratollah

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    The law is an ass. Switchblades or other autoknives that may be opened with only one hand are inherently safer to use than a knife that requires two hands to open.
     

    M. Sage

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    Great. One more thing to be worried about. It's not enough that San Antonio has a ban on lock-blade knives (that everybody ignores)...

    Right. But dose the blade use centrifugal force to "assist" with opening the blade? I think it does? If so by the definitions provided in chapter 6 of the penal code it is in fact a "switchblade", or at least that is how I interpret the definition. I don't or didn't think it was, but like you said there was a conviction, and it was not over turned!

    No, it does not in any way, shape or form. I own two assisted-open knives from different manufacturers, one is a Kershaw with the same system as in the OP, and they actually have some pull back into the handle because of the spring. They cannot operate on centrifugal force, or at least nothing a human is capable of without using a machine of some sort. I've had several assisted-open knives. They sometimes will open when dropped or when slapped really hard just right, but they tend to stay closed, and when you get the blade close to the handle, they'll actually pull the blade into the full-closed position and hold it there with some resistance.


    I just skimmed that decision. Mr. Thomas had a very shitty lawyer IMO. Assisted-open knives do not have levers on the side as stated by the officer in that case. Assisted open knives "bias closed", they do not resist closing (well, initially they do, but...). In fact, it's odd to me that the court used Webster's definition of "automatic", the one that would apply to this would be "having a self-acting or self-regulating mechanism". Assisted-open knives do not have a self-acting or self-regulating mechanism...

    Piss-poor lawyer. He shouldn't have even bothered with the appeal, since it hosed the rest of us. On further reflection, it almost looks like he acted as his own lawyer, and you know what they say about that. If not, his lawyer should honestly be de-barred and run out of the state on rails: he's that bad. An HVAC installer buddy in California beat a similar switchblade rap there using nothing but a public defender. The definition of switchblade in CA's penal code is very similar.

    For what it's worth, I still have a Kershaw Blackout that I haven't got around to sending back on warranty; the assisted open torsion bar is worn out/broken (I use knives.. a lot) and it opens just as easily and quickly as it did with the spring in place.
     

    dbgun

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    I have a knife that looks like the one that robertl1974 displayed. Except it's not a Kershaw, but a chinese knockoff that I can open w/ one hand. Maybe I'd better not carry it around anymore. No sense getting in trouble over a cheap $5 knife.:mad:
     
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