fx17 said:
Let's say I don't have a CFP. Can I take a swiss army knife to a school? I don't think that would be considered a "Dangerous Weapon" under Utah law, would it? Its clearly a tool, especially if you look at its intended use, and It's character.
Your swiss army knife is not generally going to be considered a "weapon" and so is not going to be subject to concealed weapon laws or laws governing weapons at schools. If you were to use it as a weapon to assault someone, then what might otherwise be simple assault could be elevated to aggravated assault because you used a weapon. That could be true even if you used a rock.
fx17 said:
Now, lets suppose my 12 year old son takes a swiss army knife to school. Is it still not classified as a "Dangerous Weapon"? If not, then wouldn't he legally be allowed to keep it at school? Wouldn't Utah's Knife Preemption law prohibit the school from banning knives that are not considered "Dangerous Weapons", and wouldn't it prohibit the school from making their on definitions of "Dangerous Weapons"?
Utah "Knife Preemption" is contained in two sections of code:
10-8-47.5 and
17-30-332. These sections of code deal with municipal and county powers, respectively.
In both cases, the limitation is on "municipalities" (ie "cities") or "counties". Also the limitation is on "criminal penalties."
Near as I can tell, these sections do NOT limit the ability of school districts or individual schools to enact policies on knives, including policies dealing with school imposed (ie "non criminal") discipline.
This annoys me greatly. In my day, a boy turned 8, joined cub scouts, and got his first pocket knife. From that day forward he was likely to carry a knife in his pocket everywhere he went. Some kids needed a little reminding by their 3rd grade teachers that if they played with the knife during school it would impounded like any other toy. But that quickly passed and for those who chose to carry a knife beyond the initial "toy" stage, it quickly became a necessity. It was common for males (including students, teachers, staff, and administrators) to carry a pocket/pen knife with them everywhere they went including school, church, etc. To be without a knife was to be nearly naked; even a simple, single bladed pen knife is a very valuable and oft-used tool. A decent little swiss army knife is invaluable. And when the multi-tools came out with usable pliers in addition to a couple of screwdrivers and blades we had achieved near perfection. Up until 9/11 my pocketknife, folding buck knife, or multi-tool went into the little basket with my car keys when I needed to clear airport security and then went right back onto my belt or into my pocket.
These days, the mere possession of a pen or pocket knife is sufficient to get kids expelled from every school of which I am aware including regular neighborhood schools, charter schools, and even most private schools. It is maddening to me. But I can find nothing in State code to prevent such policies. I'd love to be corrected.
Of course, such rules do not apply to parents, though I wonder if they have tried to enforce them against teachers.
I'd love to see some limitations placed on schools when it comes to obvious utility items like a swiss army knife or multi-tool. Maybe we could limit blade size to less than 3 inches and only non-lockable blades. But I'd like to see kids able to carry a pocket knife to school again.
Charles