massachusetts knife laws

sasquatch1

sasquatch1

Joined
Mar 16, 2011
Messages
459
hello could anyone tell me the knife carrying laws in massachusetts, links or something like that please. thank you.
 
I am a Massachusetts resident. You can possess any knife but not carry in public any autos, ballistic knives, daggers, stilettos or dirks, which means any double-edge knife. This feature of the law protects collectors, but it does not specify how a collector is to legally carry his/her new purchase to their home, since public carry is a felony. Boston, Lawrence, Cambridge, Revere, Lynn, Salem and Beverly have 2.5" blade limit for knives carried in public. These are local ordinances, punishable by arrest and $300 fine. Worcester also has a blade limit, 3" if I recall correctly. Holders of a Massachusetts Class A licenses to carry firearms (even if restricted to hunting and target shooting) are exempt. For what its worth, I EDC a 4" lock-blade folder at all times. I simply removed the clip and carry it completely concealed. I have spent a lot of time in the above anti-knife jurisdictions and never had a problem. Dress well, practice good concealment and keep a low profile. You should be fine.
 
Might be a little late to the party but what Tom said is correct. If you're looking for the law its MGL chapter 269 section 12 I'm pretty sure. Its pretty boring to read but it goes over pretty much everything.
 
yeah i think i read over it, it does explain everything i think i'll be fine i carry a 4" edc at max, usually my benchmade ambush but thinking about replacing it with my spyderco endura 4 waved. i dont do anything to cause me to draw the attention of police anyways.
 
i have another question, can you carry a fixed blade in mass, if so whats the max blade length?
 
sasquatch1 said:
i have another question, can you carry a fixed blade in mass, if so whats the max blade length?
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Again, as with folders, as long as it is not double-edged ("dagger" or "dirk"), you should be fine. Massachusetts does not have a state law limiting blade length, but the local ordinances that I mentioned in a previous post apply to fixed blades as well as folders. I find fixed blades hard to conceal, which is why I carry a 4" lock-blade folder. If you wish to carry a fixed blade, especially with the hot summer weather not far away, concentrate on good concealment. Check yourself in a full-length mirror to make sure that the knife/sheath doesn't "print". Most LEOs don't know the laws concerning knives in this state, which is very anti-weapon in any case. You could save yourself a very unpleasant encounter with a LEO (including arrest) if you pay attention to your appearance and concealment techniques. Use your head and be careful out there!
 
How would one find out about what local restrictions are - particularly, for example, Worcester? I haven't
found anything Googling aside from the MGL chapter 269 section 12.
 
TOM1960 said:
Again, as with folders, as long as it is not double-edged ("dagger" or "dirk"), you should be fine. Massachusetts does not have a state law limiting blade length, but the local ordinances that I mentioned in a previous post apply to fixed blades as well as folders. I find fixed blades hard to conceal, which is why I carry a 4" lock-blade folder. If you wish to carry a fixed blade, especially with the hot summer weather not far away, concentrate on good concealment. Check yourself in a full-length mirror to make sure that the knife/sheath doesn't "print". Most LEOs don't know the laws concerning knives in this state, which is very anti-weapon in any case. You could save yourself a very unpleasant encounter with a LEO (including arrest) if you pay attention to your appearance and concealment techniques. Use your head and be careful out there!
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my edc would be and eskabar i've carried it a few times to try it out and i can put it a pocket and its gone, but i might stick with my folders as you said. because eskabar is black coated and black adds a "tacical" or "weapon" look to it for some. where my endura 4 waved is a nice satin finish to it along w/ a non threatening blade shape.
 
edb said:
How would one find out about what local restrictions are - particularly, for example, Worcester? I haven't
found anything Googling aside from the MGL chapter 269 section 12.
Click to expand...

yeah, i have the same problem i went to my towns website and couldnt find any knife/gun/weapon ordinances. any one know how to find them?
 
sasquatch1 said:
do you think you could to try to pull them up for agawam?
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I'm very familiar with Worcester's ordinances so I knew where to look. Your best bet is to call the Law Dept. in Agawam and ask them. It doesn't look like they have the Towns Ordinances on-line.
 
enzo1 said:
I'm very familiar with Worcester's ordinances so I knew where to look. Your best bet is to call the Law Dept. in Agawam and ask them. It doesn't look like they have the Towns Ordinances on-line.
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i figured, i tried the website before. and thanks for the effort! i think i might have to make the phone call
 
As a resident of Salem, I can tell you that while they say 2.5", if they find a knife of any sort on you your going to have a bad day. This is especially true in the month of October, when the city is extra full of tourists. The police enforce a strict zero tolerance policy for knives or weapons of any sort(regardless of any local ordinances).
 
MrSpiffdifilous said:
As a resident of Salem, I can tell you that while they say 2.5", if they find a knife of any sort on you your going to have a bad day. This is especially true in the month of October, when the city is extra full of tourists. The police enforce a strict zero tolerance policy for knives or weapons of any sort(regardless of any local ordinances).
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Last time I checked, in the United States detainment for a non-existent crime is false arrest. Cops who pulled ---- like that down in my area end up getting sued and/or losing their badges. Federal judges do not like to screw around with stuff like that. Thing is, it's on the citizen to file suit, and if they don't know any better, the offending officer is never caught.
 
As an aside: My son and I were talking about this, and he asked me, "What's a dirk?" We ended up doing a google image search and discovered that this is illegal in Massachusetts. Silly amusement was had by all.
 
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