CA fixed blade in car

Fozzie

Fozzie

Joined
May 18, 2014
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59
The what knife do you keep in your car thread inspired this. I currently do not have any blade in my car, save whatever my edc on my person is while i'm in it.

After reading about fixed blades being illegal to carry concealed here (yay stupid laws) I was wondering if anybody knows the legality of fixed blades in the car? I wanted to put a good solid blade or two or however many in there, but want to know if doing so is unwise legally.

Thank you in advance all.
 
There is nothing in the California penal code that prohibits the carrying of a fixed-blade in your car, either concealed or openly carried.

California penal code 21310 is the law in CA that specifically defines the illegality of a concealed fixed-blade. 21310 specifically states that fixed-blades "concealed upon the person" are illegal, it says nothing about a loose knife inside a vehicle. A knife carried in your glove compartment, console, door panel, trunk, or sitting on or laying under the seat, etc, are not considered to be "upon the person".

Of course, if you are carrying a concealed fixed-blade on your person while you are in your car, that is illegal.

There is another law here in California regarding the concealment of knives in things like canes, lipstick tubes, etc, but that law doesn't apply to your question.
 
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so would most any knife be legal to carry in a glove compartment, fixed or folding? i mean, as long as it's legal to own (ie - no butterfly, etc). i know that laws vary from city to county, but overall, since its not "on the person", it should be good to go right?
 
Spyder12 said:
so would most any knife be legal to carry in a glove compartment, fixed or folding? i mean, as long as it's legal to own (ie - no butterfly, etc). i know that laws vary from city to county, but overall, since its not "on the person", it should be good to go right?
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Technically speaking, as far as state law goes, if a knife is legal to carry on your person, then it is legal to carry it in your glove compartment, or anywhere else in your vehicle. Same goes for local jurisdictions.

Under CA state law, it is legal to carry any size of manually opening folder, openly or concealed on your person. And it is legal to carry such knives in your glove compartment.

Under CA state law, it is legal to OPENLY carry any size fixed-blade on your person, single or double edged. And it is legal to carry such knives in your glove compartment.

Under CA state law, it is legal to carry a switchblade on your person, openly or concealed, as long as the blade is under 2 inches long. It is also legal to carry such knives in the glove compartment of your car.

In California, although it is legal to own switchblades with blades longer than 2 inches and have them in your home, it is illegal to carry them on your person or anywhere in your car.

There are a variety of different types of knives that are entirely illegal to own in California, for example- knuckle-knives, gravity knives, ballistic knives, knives that cannot be detected by metal detectors, knives with blades hidden inside of pens, lipstick tubes, and walking canes.

As always, when in doubt, consult a criminal defense attorney.
 
Killgar -

That is about as concise an explanation of California STATE knife law as I've seen it put.

Now if y'all could just get the various cities and counties to follow suit and make it easy to understand THAT ball of worms.
 
@killgar - thanks for taking the time to explain clearly. now if we could just the legislators to follow suit! i've been lurking here for awhile, just trying to learn as much as I can. but i admit, I've read the local LA City and LA County laws a few times now, and don't feel anymore clear on the subject of whats allowed and whats not. then when you start reading comments and posts by others online, i see that i'm not the only one in that situation. i will go back and re-read the local laws with the basis of CA state law in mind, and hopefully it be a little clearer.

@zzyzzogeton - you took the words right outta my mouth. couldn't agree more!
 
ok, just went through and read both LA City and County again... though, they make it hard enough to find the ACTUAL code straight from the Govt office. But yes, it seems that all the limits are on open carry knives. This is great to know and will now be carrying more regularly as well as keep a good folding S&W knife in both my vehicle and my lady's.
 
I could be wrong, but I believe it's illegal to carry a knife in your car in Sacramento. Doesn't stop me though.

It is unlawful for any person to have in his or her possession, in any automobile, any dangerous or deadly weapon, but this restriction shall not be deemed to prohibit the carrying of ordinary tools or equipment carried in good faith for uses of honest work, trade or business or for the purpose of legitimate sport or recreation. (Prior code § 48.01.005)

So I guess it is legal, you just have to convince the officer that you only use the blade in "Good faith, uses of honest work, trade or business or for the purpose of legitimate sport or recreation..."
 
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zzyzzogeton said:
Killgar -

That is about as concise an explanation of California STATE knife law as I've seen it put.

Now if y'all could just get the various cities and counties to follow suit and make it easy to understand THAT ball of worms.
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I consider myself fortunate that where I live in California (San Diego), we have no local knife laws to worry about, so only state laws apply.
 
Spyder12 said:
@killgar - thanks for taking the time to explain clearly. now if we could just the legislators to follow suit! i've been lurking here for awhile, just trying to learn as much as I can. but i admit, I've read the local LA City and LA County laws a few times now, and don't feel anymore clear on the subject of whats allowed and whats not. then when you start reading comments and posts by others online, i see that i'm not the only one in that situation. i will go back and re-read the local laws with the basis of CA state law in mind, and hopefully it be a little clearer.

@zzyzzogeton - you took the words right outta my mouth. couldn't agree more!
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You're welcome.

I've got some time, so just for the heck of it I'll explain LA knife laws as my lawyer explained them to me (I had to travel up to LA for work at one time and needed to know the laws there).

The knife laws in LA are the same for both the county of LA and the municipality of LA.

It is illegal to openly carry any knife in LA with a blade 3 inches long or longer.

It is illegal to carry concealed any fixed-blade in LA.

It is illegal to carry a switchblade with a blade 2 inches long or longer in LA.

It is LEGAL to carry concealed any size of manually opening folding knife in LA.

It is LEGAL to openly carry any knife in LA, folder or fixed-blade, as long as the blade is under 3 inches long.

There are exemptions to the open carry blade length limits in LA law. For example- If a person is carrying a knife for legitimate work related purposes, or for legitimate recreational purposes, then it is legal to openly carry a knife, folder or fixed-blade, with a blade 3 inches long or longer. I spoke at length on this topic in a recent thread entitled "Double Edged Knives In California", specifically in post #20.

I was also advised to the following- If you are carrying a folding knife with a blade 3 inches long or longer in LA, and if you do not qualify for any of the exemptions, make sure the knife is carried deep in your pocket with no clip visible. The reason is, a cop (and perhaps a prosecutor) might consider a visible pocket clip to constitute an openly carried knife, thereby making it illegal.
 
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you know, it's so clear when you say it... i was unsure if any blade 3" or longer would be illegal to carry. with all the speculation over what's concealed and what's not, what's on your person and what's not; it just seemed like so much was open to interpretation and a big risk. but this is so great to know, its great to finally get SOME good news about personal rights in CA!

thanks again Killgar, i really appreciate the time you took to help out a noob
 
I was watching Sons of Anarchy once and it got me thinking. Jax runs around with his K-Bar hanging off his belt but most of the time his sweater covers the handle. Does that then make it "concealed" even though the rest of the sheath is in plain sight?
 
clampdaddy said:
I was watching Sons of Anarchy once and it got me thinking. Jax runs around with his K-Bar hanging off his belt but most of the time his sweater covers the handle. Does that then make it "concealed" even though the rest of the sheath is in plain sight?
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Unfortunately California law does not specifically define what constitutes a "concealed" fixed-blade. That means, if the handle of the knife is covered but the blade portion is not (or vice versa) the decision regarding whether or not the knife is illegally "concealed" will become a matter of opinions- first it will be up to the opinion of the cop who stops you, and if that cop arrests you, it will be up to the opinion of the prosecutor assigned the case, and if that prosecutor decides to charge you, it may be up to the opinion of a jury.

My advice, if a person is going to carry a fixed-blade in California (like I do), carry it completely out in the open. California penal code 20200 specifically says that a knife worn openly in a sheath hanging from the waist of the wearer is NOT considered concealed under the law. But even 20200 doesn't specifically define what "concealed" means.

It's entirely possible that a cop won't care if the handle of a persons fixed-blade is covered, but since it's also just as possible that a cop might decide to arrest you for it, why take the chance. I say, err on the side of staying out of jail.
 
That's pretty much what I was thinking. I wonder if the provisions listed for the "concealment" of hand guns would also apply to knives.
 
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