Transporting a fixed blade in a backpack for camping in Illinois in a vehicle

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Tiger2Lover

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Does anyone have any experience or suggestions on this subject. In Illinois we have CC for guns, so carrying a big gun is okay, but not a knife!!! Anytime I have transported a large fixed blade to be used for camping, I keep the knives stored in a backpack and in the trunk of the car. Should be fine. Most of our nearby states have very open knife laws which makes it easier. Our pocket knives must be under 3" Thanks.
 
Put simply, you aren't going to need your fixed blade while driving to the camp site. So stashing it in your knapsack or with your gear while on your way to the camp site shouldn't pose a problem. If you are at all concerned, that is the most risk-free method.

Because LEOs can have different interpretations of the law, if you had your fixed blade on you visibly, you may or may not get cited. But they might use the presence of that knife to do a car search. Which at best will be a waste of time.
 
Tiger2Lover said:
Does anyone have any experience or suggestions on this subject. In Illinios ...... Our pocket knives must be under 3"
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I don't think this is correct.

Is it perhaps your city law?

Down in the Southern part of the State the farmers all wear Buck 110's, Case Sodbuster, Trappers and such.

I don't think it's a State Law.

I could be wrong, but they're open and obvious down here.
 
Murphy Slaw said:
I don't think this is correct.

Is it perhaps your city law?

Down in the Southern part of the State the farmers all wear Buck 110's, Case Sodbuster, Trappers and such.

I don't think it's a State Law.

I could be wrong, but they're open and obvious down here.
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You need a permit from a state peace officer to carry a knife with a blade longer than 3 inches.
 
Sidehill Gouger said:
Since when? Show me the law.
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Pain to find, but seems to be based on -

720 ILCS 5/21-6 -

(a) Whoever possesses or stores any weapon enumerated in Section 33A-1 in any building or on land supported in whole or in part with public funds or in any building on such land without prior written permission from the chief security officer for such land or building commits a Class A misdemeanor.

Sec. 33A-1. Legislative intent and definitions. -

(2) A Category I weapon is a handgun, sawed-off shotgun, sawed-off rifle, any other firearm small enough to be concealed upon the person, semiautomatic firearm, or machine gun. A Category II weapon is any other rifle, shotgun, spring gun, other firearm, stun gun or taser as defined in paragraph (a) of Section 24-1 of this Code, knife with a blade of at least 3 inches in length, dagger, dirk, switchblade knife, stiletto, axe, hatchet, or other deadly or dangerous weapon or instrument of like character. As used in this subsection (b) "semiautomatic firearm" means a repeating firearm that utilizes a portion of the energy of a firing cartridge to extract the fired cartridge case and chamber the next round and that requires a separate pull of the trigger to fire each cartridge.

State references -

720 ILCS 5/21-6 -

https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/fulltext.asp?DocName=072000050K21-6 .

Sec 33A - 1 (Down at the bottom are the definitions) -

https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/fulltext.asp?DocName=072000050K33A-1 .

https://www.akti.org/state-knife-laws/illinois/ makes mention that the state need to prove you knowingly broke that part of the law.
 
It says you need permission, not a permit, from the man to carry * in a public building or land getting public funding ie: court, DMV, maybe a park or community center, etc… It doesn’t say you need to get a knife permit from the cops to carry a 3”+ knife, just generally.
 
XJ-linux said:
It says you need permission, not a permit, from the man to carry * in a public building or land getting public funding ie: court, DMV, maybe a park or community center, etc… It doesn’t say you need to get a knife permit from the cops to carry a 3”+ knife, just generally.
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I've been to the DMV many times packing a 110 Buck or an LB7 and it was never mentioned.

And, next weekend will be the annual Encampment at Fort Massac Park in Southern Illinois ( State Park) and there will be thousands of people there over the many days wearing 4" + knives and there will be venders there selling them as well. If there is a law, it is not enforced. At least not down here in farm country. I plan to ask a cop as soon as I see one, just haven't bumped into one lately.
 
Long ago after a day of hunting I took my hunting knife off my belt and put it on my dash of my car. A game warden pulled up saw it as it was 5 inches long and in it's sheath. I got a ticket for carrying a concealed weapon. When I showed up for court the charge had been dropped.
 
I am sure the prosecutor dropped the charge as soon as he saw the facts of your case. Your knife was clearly visible on the dash of your car and was not concealed on your person. That Game Warden demonstrated terrible judgment in your case, most are much better than that.
 
The statute above is referring to the use.
Illinois law is pretty lenient, and that above is not a 3" limit for a knife in your possession.

Lived there for more years than I wanted, and no problem ever with a knife at all.

In fact, I got pulled over one time in a park in the Chicago burbs (for 20 in a 15mph zone no less).
I was on my way to a knife gathering when the Officer "caught the tater".

I had a duffle bag full of knives, and some hawks, with several visible in the truck.

The Officer didn't bat an eye, gave me a warning and away I went.

Now you can even have auto knives in Ill. , as long as you have a valid FOID.

Finally, the op question really comes down to this: How did a Law Enforcement Officer become aware of a fixed blade knife in your bag?

T he discovery of your knife in your bag would likely be part of a "bigger-fish" interaction.

Be safe and use good common sense.
 
mqqn said:
The statute above is referring to the use.
Illinois law is pretty lenient, and that above is not a 3" limit for a knife in your possession.
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That's what I've noticed down here in Southern Illinois. I've lived here for nearly 3 decades and have never been questioned. Hunting is a big deal down here and people often wear pretty large fixed blades in sight.

That's why I assumed the op was from Chicago, I've heard they have special laws up there.
 
M Murphy Slaw

Yea, Chicago isn't really Illinois, but folks outside the state don't usually realize that.
I lived in west-central Ill.

My Father's side was all from Makanda, just south of Carbondale.

I wore a fixed blade on rare occasion, but it was not common in Central Ill. to see someone with a fixed blade.
 
Tiger2Lover said:
Does anyone have any experience or suggestions on this subject. In Illinois we have CC for guns, so carrying a big gun is okay, but not a knife!!! Anytime I have transported a large fixed blade to be used for camping, I keep the knives stored in a backpack and in the trunk of the car. Should be fine. Most of our nearby states have very open knife laws which makes it easier. Our pocket knives must be under 3" Thanks.
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Where are you getting your information from on folding knives being under 3 inches? Chicago and other commie fiefdoms maybe, but not a part of state law. Switchblades are legal to carry by state law - if you have a FOID card, except in Chicago and other commie areas.
 
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