As the abstract notes, “Under the Supreme Court’s standard in District of Columbia v. Heller, knives are Second Amendment “arms” because they are “typically possessed by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes,” including self-defense. Bans of knives which open in a convenient way (bans on switchblades, gravity knives, and butterfly knives) are unconstitutional. Likewise unconstitutional are bans on folding knives which, after being opened, have a safety lock to prevent inadvertent closure. Prohibitions on the carrying of knives in general, or of particular knives, are unconstitutional.”
Knife Rights applauds these scholars for this long-overdue effort. This is a great start on the sort of scholarly works that needs to be done to assist in potential legal cases down the road. The arguments made and supported in this article will also support our legislative efforts to roll back knife bans and oppose proposed new restrictions on knives. The initial draft of the article has been posted online. Go to the Social Science Research Network site to download the 37-page article.
Just a note of caution, for those unfamiliar with the process. This is the initial submission draft of this article. It will now go through an exhaustive peer review and editing process. Revisions will be posted online during that process. Only after that entire rigorous review process has been completed will the final version of the article be published. So, just to reiterate, this article is not published at this point and should not be relied upon for any legal effort, or for that matter, arguing with a cop who has arrested you for carrying a particular “illegal” knife. Having said all that, these scholars are leaders in the field and I wouldn’t expect any substantive changes.