Oklahoma Repeals Knife ban that Balimore Police used to Arrest Freddy Grey

Oklahoma has repealed their version of the switchblade knife ban.   Baltimore has a similar law that Freddy Grey was arrested under before his death from a serious spinal cord injury, three fractured vertebrae, and a crushed voice box, apparently while in police custody.   The Baltimore law is more vague than the Oklahoma law HB 1911(pdf) , and the AG in Baltimore has ruled that the arrest was illegal, probably for two reasons.

First, the knife was not concealed. The officer noted that he saw the knife clipped to the front pants pocket. Second, the knife was not a “switchblade”, even under the vague Baltimore law, if anyone had been required to prove the case in court. From kniferights.org:

Maryland does not have knife law preemption, so municipalities such as Baltimore are allowed to fabricate laws more restrictive than the state itself. Baltimore’s city code prohibits the sale, carry or possession of “any knife with an automatic spring or other device for opening and/or closing the blade, commonly known as a switch-blade knife.” While it might be possible in theory to interpret that unusual definition of “switch-blade” to include assisted-opening knives, such an interpretation would conflict with virtually all other switchblade definitions throughout the country.

 These vague and irrational knife laws, just as most concealed carry laws, were passed precisely to give the police authority to  arrest those who the police considered undesirable, mostly blacks, recent immigrants, or anyone out of favor with the local elites.  When you read the debates about these laws, you often read of police saying that they need the law as a “law enforcement tool”.   

A commenter on the excellent blog Weaponsman  reports that the knives are common in the city and sold in large numbers of retail outlets.  From Weaponsman commenter Sir Lord Baltimore:

I can relate that the style of knife Mr. Grey had on his person was/is in common currency throughout the entire city. Pretty much every male I knew carried one. Black, white, working-class, or poor. Heck, you could find cheap versions at many ghetto corner stores. The one extant surplus store in town (A great place H and H 425 Eutaw Street) sells better quality ones over the counter.

I never left home without a knife. It was Baltimore for the love of Pete. I always had a “switchblade” handy. Never got messed with by the police for it either. I dealt with the police often enough…I was employed as a drink slinger for a number of years. Also did work for various property management companies in places like ever glamorous West Baltimore. Never a peep outta the cops once.

Frankly, the place where young Freddy was picked up was a place that I wouldn’t want to be without a weapon of some sort (a knife is a paltry thing). The police likely needed to have something to charge Freddie with.

In a number of states, education on the stupidity and futility of the knife bans has resulted in repeal of the bans.    There is even an ongoing campaign in New York to modify the knife law because of the startling number of abusive arrests enabled by the law.   It has become a strong moneymaker for the DA in New York City.

At last count, Oklahoma makes the ninth state to repeal this irrational law.  Maine was number eight, only a few days ago.  Given Maryland’s attitude toward the Constitution and freedom, they seem unlikely to be number ten.  

  It is interesting to note that all of the old media seem to follow the AP lead in declaring that the legislation “legalizes” switchblades.  It shows a basic difference in the assumptions about reality.  Switchblades were not banned until the 1950′s.   Then a spate of media driven frenzy lead to a slew of trendy switchblade bans across the country.   Now, as new media educates people to the irrationality of those bans, they are being repealed.    To say that they are being “legalized” implies that the natural state of things is to be illegal; that t
e state tells us what is “allowed”.

This is the opposite of the foundational philosophy of the American legal system.  Here, everything is allowed unless it is forbidden.   It is a profound and important difference.   Under Oklahoma law, it is still illegal to carry on their person “any dagger, bowie knife, dirk knife,”.  

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