need help with knife value

K

kesparate

Joined
Feb 13, 2003
Messages
65
so, i got pulled over by the cops for having a loud muffler the other day, and as i am young and have long hair i was asked to step out of my vehichle. the cop asked about weapons and i told him about my knives (yes plural, but that can't be too uncommon here. can it???) he didn't like that too much so he cuffs me puts me in the squad car and calls in back-up to tear my car apart.
it's important to note at this point that all my knives are legal in this state (illinois) so the officer had no actual cause to seize any of them, but oddly enough he did. he took them all down town and put them in evidence where i couldn't get them till today.
so i go down there to get them and they bring out the plastic bag chock full of knives. between my pockets my backpack and the survival gear in the trunk there were 12. they gave me back 11.
so now i have to go down there again on weds. to talk to the officer who took them and his supervisor to see what happened to my number 12.

here's what i need. the missing knife is a 1998 emerson commander. this is the year that they produced them with the thicker scales, liners, and the more aggresive blade grinds. as far as i am aware it is the only year they made them like this. if it assumed the the knife is in very good condition, how much would it be worth, and how hard would it be to replace? any one with who's willing to go on record with a price and some credentials would be very greatly appreciated.
see the real bummer of this is that the one knife that's gone missing is my favorite folder. i very much intend to get it back.
 
Property sheet with the knives listed would be good but doubt that happened so your probably sol. If it was listed and the model and such could be proved ebay has a compleated auction listing that could be work for or against you depending on the results.
Best thing to do is just drop it, yea they did you wrong and they had no right to take your knife but sorry to say your not the onley one and this is the world we live in.
 
Politely ask the Shift Sergeant to look into it. Indicate you are sure it must of inadvertently been misplaced and you will be happy just to get it back. These have a way of falling behind a desk or under a seat of a patrol car and when correctly approached can often be located by a Desk Sergeant or Shift Commander. If it is found, say thank you and walk away. Let it alone and don’t brag to all your buddies.
 
kesparate, I really feel bad for you. They had no right, even by accident, to lose track of your knife. Here they are accusing you of wrongdoing, to the point of hauling you in like a criminal, only to find they had to let you go because you were legit. BS.

D. Stephen Pickering is right. Go back, very polite, and give them a chance to remember they are there to uphold the law, not slide around it.

Let me suggest something that might help in the future, that one of our guys here, Ken Fisher suggested to me.

Get a card. A business card. Go to www.vistaprint.com and order their free business cards. It will cost about $9 for shipping and handling. They make a nice card. Put your name and address of course, phone number, e-mail. Put your online name and "Patron of Edged Tools" or some such line, "Dealer in Edged Artistry".

When they pull you over, you show licence and registration. When they get inquisitive about knives, show them the knives and hand over a business card. You're an advisor to friends and acquaintances and you carry extra so you always have a variety to show to potential customers.
 
hmmm, the buisness card thing sounds like a fine way to deflect unwanted attention going forward.

i am going in to the police dept. tommorow to ask them to see if they can find it. given the number of knives and the amount of (utterly fruitless) digging through my car for drugs and such it may actualy have gotten lost. the first time i go in i will be both polite and respectfull. if they don't find it or "find" it then things will get ugly. i simply can't just let it go.

see i'm paranoid about this because it has actualy happened once before. when i was 17 i was in my own yard playing with a sword i made in the shop i was working in and four or five squad cars rolled up. One of the officers told me my sword was illegeal and confiscated it.
i knew she was wrong, so i researched the laws brought my findings to the internal affairs officer. he decided i was right and went to go get my sword, only to find that it had never been brought to evidence! i told them i expected to get it back, and they found it several days later still in the trunk of the officers squad car. attempted theft or absent mindedness, who can say? a long standing paranoia about getting my stuff seized by the cops, for sure!

anyway
has anyone ever seen a commander like mine for sale anywhere?

thanks
 
I hate to say it but imo there are cops who will keep what they like and with no prof of the knife missing whos telling the truth? surely not the longed hair guy.
 
Don't give up! Pursue this matter until justice is served. If this ever happens again, and you are asked if you have any weapons, only say yes if you have firearms. LE has no business confiscating any knives that are legal where you live. :grumpy:
 
Is it out of line to ask for a reciept and a supervisor to witness it? Don't the police have to get a supervisor when asked.(Most likely not I suppose) It's a-holes like that that give cops a bad rap.

Oily
 
situation resolved. a call to the sargent and one to the officer and it turned up in his trunk. it looks like a genuine accident.
thanks for the support and advice.
 
Kesparate,
I am glad this turned out good for you.

D. Stephen Pickering and Esav Benyamin you both gave very good information.

While I am sure that there are bad police officers, just like there are bad people I think they are the exception rather than the rule. As an ER nurse I work with alot of police officers and have come to find out that they are people too. Most of the time good people just like you and me.

One last bit of advice. If you find that your "profile" does get you more attention from the police maybe you should camoflage your profile. I don't care what any of the politically correct people say we all profile everyday. Even the people who say that they don't, do it in one way or another.

Tom
 
zr24x4er said:
I hate to say it but imo there are cops who will keep what they like and with no prof of the knife missing whos telling the truth? surely not the longed hair guy.
Click to expand...

It has long been held anecdotally that the cops always put on the best backyard fireworks displays for the 4th of July using the 'works they have confiscated. I have no idea if there's any truth in it.
 
This thread raises an interesting question.

Let's say I carry a knife that's completely legal (as far as I know) where I live.
I get pulled over for a regular traffic and the officer asks if I have any weapons on me. What do I have to say? I don't consider my EDC a weapon, just a tool...but he or she is apt to think differently. I think of myself as extremely ignorant when it comes to matters of the law....anyone with an informed opinion?

Nitin
 
I spent 13 of my 27 police years as a shift commander, and I can report that I only had one case of an officer stealing a knife. I got the knife back and "counselled" him that time. He was later fired for other things, and at last count has served two terms in prison. All this is by way of saying that while a bad apple slips through occasionally, we probably do a better job of policing our own ranks than most occupations, and prior screening is not foolproof. Officers "collecting" knives was the rule thirty years ago and beyond, and wasn't even frowned upon back then, just the rules of the game; but nowadays most officers want nothing to do with the property of arrestees or other citizens. Too much liability for nothing. Glad you got your favorite back!
 
i can second that notion. the lady cop who some how forgot to put my sword into evidence was also fired about a year later. i don't know about the prison thing though.
i do know that in this state (illinois) there is a law that requires an individual to surrender any weapons to the police, legal or not, upon request, if one is being questioned for any reason. so if you witness a crime you can be required to surrender your weapons, and that's any weapon, if you are kind enough to hang around and talk to the cops. in theory they should give them back when they are done with you, but if the cop is unsure of the legality they could easily impound them until the confusion is resolved.
 
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