Montreal police ticket veteran bagpiper for carrying traditional knife

Slumblor said:
Thanks for this, I knew this had to be a local law and not a Criminal Code issue. I didn't realize it was illegal to carry a knife in Montreal "without a reasonable excuse". I wonder what the Montreal cops consider a reasonable excuse.
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Probably "being another cop" and not much more.
 
Being blatantly Scottish in Quebec may not be a reasonable excuse. :D
Revolverrodger said:
From what you posted
SECTION 2. It shall be prohibited for any person to be in a
public place, on a street, in a parc, a public area, on foot or in a
vehicle of public transportation, and having on oneself or with
oneself a knif, a sword, a matchet or another like object, without a
reasonable excuse.

He has a reasonable excuse
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Dark Attic Works said:
There's absolutely no grounds for this as I understand our Canadian law. That knife is not prohibited and is therefore permitted. A non-prohibited knife is not considered a weapon unless used (or intended to be used) as such. Even if it were considered a non-prohibited weapon for some reason, he did not conceal it or carry it for a purpose dangerous to public peace so there should be no issue. This is property theft by the state plain and simple and I hope he fights to get his knife back and the fine revoked. Perhaps a public apology from the police would be in order as well.
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I agree but that's not the purpose of these kinds of charges. This is about reminding people who is in charge, and that they better submit to authority if they know what's good for them.
 
I'm thinking he could leverage the skirt for some transgender points if he plays his cards right and claims that's why the boys in uniform took a break from Tim Horton's to persecute him.
 
I am not Canadian, have never visited and am not familiar with the laws. It seems, though, that this incident would be a good test case for a knife rights or civil liberties organization in Canada.:confused:
 
Even as a child pipes were more terrorizing than a knife. Looking back , I was woodcarving with a knife at 7 but I've never owned bagpipes !!
 
Insipid Moniker said:
Yeah, I get it and all, but this seems more than a little ridiculous. Some cultures, like Sihks, wear a blade as part of their religious attire. I would think both that and the traditional Scottish attire would be more than enough, "reasonable excuse." At least until we see a crime wave of knife-wielding bagpipers terrorizing the streets. :rolleyes:
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I can't help but wonder how well a Sikh carrying a blade would have gone over! :o (however misguided that would be...)

It does beg the question "whose attire is acceptable and whose might not be". Suppose it's not the kind of thing that you can pick and choose.
 
It may not be about the knife, but could be because he's a Scott, thus his attire is why he was stopped in the first place.
 
marcinek said:
I can't help but wonder how well a Sikh carrying a blade would have gone over! :o (however misguided that would be...)

It does beg the question "whose attire is acceptable and whose might not be". Suppose it's not the kind of thing that you can pick and choose.
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Canada is all about pleasing the ethnic minorities
 
I have lots of scotch in my blood , well ... actually just two Buds , but maybe 25% Scots heritage . I envision a seen not unlike the movie "Braveheart" with many thousands of brave and somewhat inebriated Scots and their supporters dressed in full Scot tradition - arrayed before city hall and proceeding to moon the authorities whist lustily spanking their buttocks in a display of contempt and defiance !
 
I'd like to think the police up there have more important things to do. Apparently not.
Sounds similar to knife laws here in NZ. A knife is stupidly classified as a 'restricted weapon'. One can only carry a knife if one has a 'legitimate reason' to do so. It's worded to be open to interpretation by officialdom in whatever way they want.

I always carry a folder in my RFP. My reason? It's a pocket knife, it's a useful tool. That's what it's for. Of course officialdom would simply not accept that reason as legitimate and the law is so worded to allow them to do that.
 
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It would be great to see everyone free of the hierarchy that makes laws to control the population instead of serving it. No one is free until everyone is free. Stop protecting me from slipjoints :-)
 
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