Missouri Switchblade Carry Laws

If you wanted to know if its legal to own or carry a switchblade in Missouri, here is your answer... YES.

Below are the applicable Missouri laws:

With the signature of Gov. Jay Nixon earlier this month, the ban on possessing, selling and manufacturing switchblades in Missouri has effectively been repealed, according to Knife Rights.

The new law, signed on July 14, 2012 and effective immediately, doesn’t word it as clearly, but here’s the main part of the bill concerning knives:

1. A person commits a crime if such person knowingly possesses, manufactures, transports, repairs, or sells:

Any of the following in violation of federal law:

(d) A switchblade knife.

What that essentially means is that it is still a crime to carry a switchblade, but only when it violates federal law. According to Knife Rights, that’s limited to interstate commerce, Indian reservations and anywhere federal regulations exist like national parks.

The ban on switchblades and automatics has been repealed in Missouri, but it doesn’t necessarily give you free range to carry a switchblade wherever you go in the state. Aside from carrying them on federal lands, local laws may vary because there doesn’t seem to be any preemption statute to unify the law throughout the state.

Still, this is another bill in the effort by Knife Rights and other civil liberties groups to expand the ability to carry all types of knives and tools.

Courtesy Tim at The Cutting Edge dot com.

So, now your question is...?  Is it a violation of Federal law to carry a switchblade?  

The answer is a resounding NO...

See below that the Feds are only concerned with commerce and not the carry of switchblades-

Federal Switchblade Law

This article is intended to demystify the US federal laws that govern switchblades. In my travels over the past several decades I have noted that nearly everyone has some of kind of misunderstanding of how these laws work, and what they actually apply to. So to make life easier for all of us, I'm going to spell it all out in plain English.

First thing to explain is that these laws are from the US national government. They cover the entire United States and all of its non-state territories. However, like many federal laws there are matters that are not addressed within them, which means that such matters are left to the individual states and local jurisdictions to govern (or not govern).

The specific laws themselves are from Title 15, Chapter 29 of the United States Code (U.S.C.) and consist of five sections:

• § 1241. Definitions
• § 1242. Introduction, manufacture for introduction, transportation or distribution in interstate commerce; penalty
• § 1243. Manufacture, sale, or possession within specific jurisdictions; penalty
• § 1244. Exceptions
• § 1245. Ballistic knives

Let's break them down by section

§ 1241.

The first section, titled "Definitions" sets out the meaning of certain terms that are used throughout the rest of the chapter. The first term, “interstate commerce,” if of crucial importance to understanding this entire set of laws because it greatly limits the scope of what these laws apply to. In short, “interstate commerce” means commerce (buying, selling and trading) between any of 50 US states, Washington DC, any of the US Territories (e.g. Guam or American Samoa), and "any place outside thereof," referring to all foreign countries. In other words, this means this term applies to selling, buying and trading between states, between a state and a territory, between a state or territory and a foreign country (i.e. importing) and so on. It does not refer to buying, selling or trading within the same state or territory.

A switchblade is defined as "any knife having a blade which opens automatically—
(1) by hand pressure applied to a button or other device in the handle of the knife, or
(2) by operation of inertia, gravity, or both. "

The use of the phrase "in the handle" is notable, because if the knife has a spring-operated blade, but no device that actuates it that is located in the handle, this definition does not apply (e.g. so-called Assisted Opening Knives). The other (2) definition is meant to apply to gravity knives (which are rather obscure) and butterfly knives, though the vague nature of this line's phrasing leaves some room for interpretation that I cannot elaborate on as it is too complicated.

§ 1242.

"Whoever knowingly introduces, or manufactures for introduction, into interstate commerce, or transports or distributes in interstate commerce, any switchblade knife, shall be fined not more than $2,000 or imprisoned not more than five years, or both."

Arguably one of the most important parts of this chapter, several key elements of this section require explanation. First, it is notable that this law only prohibits introducing, manufacturing, transporting or distributing switchblades if doing so is part of a business transaction and it that transaction crosses over state or territory lines, or the knives are coming from a foreign country. That's all it does. It has no effect on selling within the same state, and it has no effect on carry.

Above Tim believes the law in Missouri isn't clear but it is.  The Missouri law does not specifically indicate it is illegal to carry a switchblade in Missouri unless the Feds prohibit, and they don't...

So here is the deal... Missouri says if the Feds deem switchblade carry in Missouri illegal it is, and the Feds say if its illegal in Missouri to carry a switchblade then it is...  Thats it, Missouri nor the Feds say carry of a switchblade in Missouri is illegal.

As of July 2012 Missouri repealed the on books ancient, unfair and repressive  switchblade laws. Congratulations to Missouri residents, they have gotten some of their rights back to carry knives and tools of choice.