What kind of knife are the laws stating?

[peanutbutter]

I live in California and I have read the California Penal Codes concerning knives.

Is the law talking about carrying knives carried on the your body? Or is it talking about knife ownership in general (e.g. kitchen knives placed in drawers at home, tool knives placed in the garage, etc.)?


And, how can you legally transport knives in a car (e.g. moving, traveling, camping, etc.)? Place it in the trunk, correct?

 

[Planterz]

Welcome to Bladeforums, fellow tuberite.

Here's a good site for CA knife laws:

http://www.ninehundred.com/~equalccw/knifelaw.html

CA's law explicitly states that certain items are illegal for carry and transport within the driver's area of a vehicle in public or areas accessable to public. This means you can own them in your home, or transport them in your trunk and be within the law.

California doesn't ban you from owning or buying anything. Selling/giving/lending/etc certain items however is prohibited. Mostly, it's switchblades and balisongs over 2" in blade length. Then there's "other" weapons like sword canes, nunchaku, brass knuckles, etc. These are all listed on that page. If you're unsure about something that's not listed, best bet is to leave it at home. It's kind of a weird law, since you can legally buy/receive whatever you want. It's the seller/giver is breaking the law. You can own whatever you want, but these things are illegal to carry on your person.

CA law says you can conceal any folding knife except switchblades (which includes balisongs) over 2" in blade length. Fixed blades are OK for open carry.

However, this is only State law. Your particular county or city might have additional restrictions. Your best bet is to find the minimum max length in your area as well as surrounding areas and find an applicable carry knife so you don't unwittingly commit a crime by crossing some imaginary line. If necessary, you can stick it in your trunk and everything's fine.

Hope this helps.

 

[peanutbutter]

thank you for your response. It helped me understand much clearer.