What is considered "open carry" for a balisong?

A

AkimboOrphans

Joined
Jul 10, 2015
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At one point i was told that you could carry one in a sheath and since that shows the length it is considered "open." This is for ohio in case there is anything specific for there in particular.
 
Knife laws are usually available online. I am unaware of what Ohio's are, even though I just spent a week there haha. Sorry that I can't give you a direct answer, and best of luck in your search.
 
Concealment is one of those difficult areas of law because it is not explicitly defined. However, there is some caselaw on the books for Ohio. A case in 1969 was asked to define concealment, and that court used the Shipley v. State definition. Knifeup.com sums this decision up as:
The Shipley Court said that a weapon was concealed so situated as not to be discernible by ordinary observation by those near enough to see it if it were not concealed. It specified that absolute invisibility was not required, stating that ordinary observation did not extend to an unusually careful, thorough, or detailed search.
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If carried in a sheath, the sheath should not obscure it in such a way that a person can no longer tell if it's a knife. Ideally the safest form of carry would be a molded kydex sheath where the top third or even half of the knife protrudes from it and is plainly visible. This also shows it to be a balisong immediately to anyone that knows what a balisong is. There are hundreds of makers across the US that makes these for you at not much money, or you can do it yourself with a little time and some youtube tutorials.
 
I was thinking i was going to have to get one of those molded sheaths, right now i just have a cheap belt "pouch" that came with my shitty regal. it clearly shows that i have a knife, but not that it's a balisong. are there any belt sheaths you would recommend for the bradly kimura XI? All i've seen are the neck ones, and i already wear my keys around my neck on a lanyard so i wouldn't really want to do that.
 
Just remember, Ohio laws a crappily vague when it comes to knives. I'm friends with a number of LEOs and they've pretty much all told me that, while very few knives are explicitly illegal, basically if an officer doesn't like the look of your knife they can almost always legally confiscate it or hassle you about it.
 
basically what i've heard is that as long as it is open carried it's fine, seeing that you can legally open carry any knife in ohio, where my problem arises is what "open" is. technically carrying in a sheath that is visible is "open," but it doesn't show what it is.
 
AkimboOrphans said:
basically what i've heard is that as long as it is open carried it's fine, seeing that you can legally open carry any knife in ohio
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That might very well be. An attorney would be the best resource, though that might get pricey. The guys I know are good people, but my cynical side makes me a bit suspicious of police officers telling me that police officers are always right. ;)
 
Ohio case Pettit (1969) as well as federal case Sorrell v McGuigan, make it rather explicit that no, police officers are not always right, even if they say they are. Of course they tend to let a whole lot of ambiguous situations slide if you don't go pissing them off in the first place. I've carried an arsenal of weapons in my life, some legal, some not, and never even been questioned about them.

You know, its strange. Balisongs are legal to carry concealed in my state, but I own none. I just never liked them.
 
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