Chicago Knife Law Q

C

Coronach

Joined
Feb 24, 1999
Messages
368
OK. Chicago has a limit on blade length, set at 2.5"

This rules out almost every knife in my stash (not very extensive), except maybe my antiquted Buck triple folder ( :rolleyes: ).


However...

The Chicago legislation says "shall not carry concealed."

The question suddenly becomes: is a knife with a pocket clip, clipped in the front pants pocket and plainly visible to any and all, considered 'concealed?' A rational person would say no, if you can see it, its not concealed. But a rational person would also not pass legislation limiting blade length to 2.5"

Legal eagles? Anyone know?

Thanks,
Mike
 
I would think you should be Okay as long as you follow the 2.5" limit.

The 2.5" limit really sucks. That would knock out almost everything I have.
 
Well, yeah. I'm trying to not follow the 2.5" rule. ;)

The law states that its limited to 2.5" if it is concealed. Unconcealed, however, appears to have no legal limit (These a 3" limit in Illinois that seems to pertain to knives actually used as weapons, not to utility folders used to open letters and peel fruit and such *innocent look*). Basically, I'm wondering how they define 'concealed.'

Thanks for the reply,

Mike
 
I bet if you carry it in a visible sheath which is designed for such a tool, no reasonable person can consider it concealed.
 
Unfortunately I don't have an answer to your question about clip carry, and apparently neither does anyone else. It's a dilemma that has been brought up on the forum before and defies a certain answer because it's a grey area not addressed specifically in the law and therefore open to interpretation. To make matters worse, it needs to be "interpreted" multiple times. First by you when you decide to carry your knife, next by the officer that discovers the knife, then by the DA and eventually by judge and jury. You could fully conceal your 3" knife and clearly be in violation of the law, but have virtually no risk of being caught, or you can clip the knife and run the risk that eventually some cop somewhere who believes that it is illegal to carry that way will spot the clip. Whatever you do, don't expect to get an iron-clad opinion on whether it's legal unless it gets written into the law. No matter what, opinions will vary even within the police force and DA's office.

My personal opinioin is that I prefer to carry concealed and I don't want a record, so I stay under the limit. Otherwise, I would rather get caught clipped than fully concealed, because I can at least argue a defense against a charge like that. Maybe the best suggestion is in a sheath, if that suits you.

Also remember that carrying on a clip or in a sheath presents a problem if wearing a coat. When the coat covers the knife, it's concealed and therefore illegal, when the coat comes off, the cops can plainly see the formerly concealed knife and become aware of the violation. In my opinion this is the worst way to carry a knife.
 
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