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Since your question specifically mentions complying with knife law, you might want to check out the Florida law quoted below. It's not the general weapon law, but the one that applies specifically to school property. Despite what was told to you verbally by someone at campus security, it may be technically illegal to carry any knife, no matter how small, on a FL college campus. I am not quoting this information because I agree with the law or even think that you should follow it. I just think it is smart to know exactly what the law says so you can make an informed decision about what to carry and how to use what you carry.

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Florida State Law
Section 790.115

(2)(a) A person shall not possess any ...weapon, including a razor blade, box cutter, or knife, ... on the property of any school...

...For the purposes of this section, "school" means any preschool, elementary school, middle school, junior high school, secondary school, vocational school, or postsecondary school, whether public or nonpublic.

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the above quoted from http://pweb.netcom.com/~brlevine/fl.txt
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That's a pretty sweeping law and it matches the law we have in North Carolina.

You may want to consider the possibility that if Campus Security said a 3.5" folder was OK, then they may not be inclined to enforce anything more restrictive than that. However, if they have some other reason to be "interested" in you, they may be more diligent in finding all the ways you are technically in violation of any laws. So while you may be OK opening a care package with your knife, it may be a different matter if you are drunk and fighting or otherwise getting into trouble and then found to be carrying. Or if someone specifically files a complaint about it, either because they don't like knives or even because they have some grudge against you, then you would want to be aware of the letter of the law. In other words, if you choose to carry, then keep your nose clean and be discrete and that includes not being too quick to loan your knife to others.

Also, since you specifically mentioned self-defense, I would add that there are many SD options beyond the knife and many that are actually more effective. A knife has relatively low stopping power. I would much rather have pepper spray than a knife in a SD scenario, and spray does not have as much legal restriction.
 
That is one thing i really hate about these laws is that it seems that no one can definitively say what the law is, including the people that are making sure they are enforced. I am not positive but I think you have to have a concealed carry permit for pepper spray around here. Thanks for that quote though, I will definitely be very careful if I decide to carry anything more than my gerber multi-tool. We have enough of a taser problem here so as it is ;)
 
When it comes to interpreting these kinds of laws, it is a bad idea to rely on what other people tell you about them. The people who enforce the law know a lot about it, but cannot possibly know every detail. It is best to go directly to the statutes and read for yourself what they actually say. The full law code of any state or municipality can almost always be found on the internet and conveniently searched. If you need further interpretation, it should be from a member of the Bar in your state, preferably in writing.

To make it a little more complicated, the wording of the law is not the only thing that defines what the law is. Decisions that have been made in actual criminal trials become precedent that affects how future prosecutions are decided. This kind of research is beyond what most people would bother to do, but at a minimum, knowing what the statute says is a good idea and not very difficult to do.

The link above includes the statutes that specifically discuss the carry of pepper spray. I recommend that you read it. If you do, you may come to the conclusion that you can carry it for defensive purposes without a problem. This is not intended to be leagal advice. Check with your lawyer.
 
Lurker said:
This is not intended to be leagal advice. Check with your lawyer.
Click to expand...

I love the legal disclaimer at the end ;). I am writing a column on the D.C. gun bans so when I go to interview some of the lawyers/law students I will probably bring the topic of knives up as well.
 
hey fellas, good news! i went to walmart and bought a spyderco native for 40 bucks and i can say by far, for the price, its one of the sharpest knives i have handled. i wish it was easier to open and close with one hand but i will get used to it. thanks for the suggestions!
 
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