Need help for New York State

A

Achilles370

Joined
Jan 1, 2015
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Recently I have been trying to purchase a butterfly knife/balisong for myself to keep in my home and never to use in public. The question that I am asking is are they legal to own in a home private collection/flipping at home. Also is it legal for a company to ship one to New York. I do not live in NYC I live upstate and I was going to order off BladePlay but after calling them about this they say they can not ship to new york. KnifeWorks on the other hand say they can ship to new york. I need some help because this is starting to bother me. I have done a lot of research about the legality of balisongs in New York. Yes I understand that they are not classified as "gravity knives" but that doesn't help me when it comes to the fact if I can have one and if it can be shipped to New York (upstate).
 
As a result of some of the actions brought by the City of New York against manufacturers/distributors/vendors, ( a whole different course of discussion there), SOME companies, rightly or wrongly (another topic), have decided they don't want to bother with the whole state of New York.

The only solution I know is to have a the item shipped to a relative/friend and have them ship it to you, (or use it as an excuse to go visit them). Doubles your shipping fees, but needs must when the Devil drives.
 
Well the company KnifeWorks said they will ship the knife to New York state. Im just asking if i have them ship it can it be illegal that way?
 
Not a lawyer, not an expert on New York law (hell, not even an expert on anything :D). That's a Q for a New York lawyer.

Now, my OPINION is that if possession of the knife is not illegal by state law, county law or city law, then it would not be illegal. But then again, I am applying logic and common sense to your questions, which is apparently not necessarily important to the City of New York or the New York State Legislature. If it was important to the legislature, they would have already slapped the CNY to next Tuesday.
 
Yea I understand what your saying. I know for the most part anyways that in home for private collections it is legal you just can't use them in public. I just need to figure out if i can have it shipped without any issues that can happen in the future.
 
Butterfly knives fall into a gray area in NYS PL ...There are several court decisions correctly saying that they are not gravity knives due to the fact that they don't lock open automatically. They may very well be considered "dangerous knives" which is not clearly defined and can vary from one NYS court to another as to what that term truly means. Gravity knives and switchblades are illegal to posses which includes inside your house ( unless you meet one of the listed exceptions). Dangerous knives tend to need to be carried outside of your home, and some sort of intent is needed, but simple knife design is at times considered intent. You will not find a clear answer to this one....The only thing I can suggest is to get in writing a response that states you are allowed to own it from a Police officer, ADA or other person who falls into the clause that allows for an affirmative defense based on NYS PL 15.20#2 D....I do advise asking a DA ot lawyer if you are that concerned...here is the law I am referring to:
http://ypdcrime.com/penal.law/article15.htm
 
NYS knife laws are so undefined. I just want to know I can receive one in the mail and keep it in my house and no wheres else.
 
i wouldnt ,,knowing nys (and i do ) if you ever have to use your butterfly knife/balisong for self defense EVEN in your own home , i think you would be looking for some kind of jail time or fines or both
 
Well that is disappointing, you think even if I keep it at home locked away or something along those lines it would be fine? Or what about a trainer balisong. Are those legal in New York because technically they are not a knife.
 
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You're asking hypothetical questions for which only a NY State criminal defense lawyer can provide even semi-accurate guesses.
 
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