LOWELL — Stefan Neal Palmer never thought much about regulations of the custom-built blades he makes. One Northwest Arkansas legislator wants to make sure Palmer never has to deal with a patchwork of rules.
At A Glance
Knife Association
The Knife Rights Association was organized in 2006. Its chairman is Doug Ritter. The group’s mission statement says it’s dedicated to:
• Providing knife and edged tool owners a voice to influence public policy and oppose restriction efforts.
• Encouraging safe, responsible use of knives through education and outreach.
• Encouraging the marketing of knives in a responsible manner.
• Cooperating with advocacy organizations with similar interests.
• Providing knife owners with services they will find valuable.
Source: kniferights.org
Unlike guns, the rules for making, selling and buying knives are pretty simple in Arkansas: Don’t use it as a weapon, and no switchblades. That’s state law, but under a proposal by state Rep. Jonathan Barnett, R-Siloam Springs, that would be the only regulations.
Barnett’s House Bill 1668, an act concerning knife regulation, would prohibit city, county or other local governments in the state from imposing additional restrictions, taxes or registration requirements for knives and blades.
Similar legislation, prompted in part by proposals for restrictions on firearms, also are pending in other states, Barnett said.
“It’s something that’s on the same level as gun rights. What this really does is clarify what the law says a knife is, and how regulations would be made,” he said. “From major retailers like A.G. Russell to one-man shops, Arkansas has more knifemakers than almost any other state.”
The proposal’s gist was created by the Knife Rights Association, a national advocacy group, and the American Knife and Tool Institute, a trade organization, Barnett said.
“Our language is really pretty simple, because Arkansas has a pretty liberal stance on the carrying of knives,” Barnett said. “In other states, the proposals have to be a lot more detailed.”
Tool or Weapon
“We’re in favor of anything to keep the right to carry knives from eroding,” said Goldie Russell, president of Rogers-based A.G. Russell Knives. “The industry groups have been working on standardization of laws for several years, and we’re in full support of that.”
The industry successfully banded together in 2009 to fight a federal proposal that would have classified most folding knives in the same banned category as switchblades, Russell said.
“This is a pre-emption bill, which is good because it means folks won’t have to fight piecemeal against a lot of local regulations,” she said.
Most people carrying knives aren’t using them as a weapon, said Sgt. Craig Stout of the Fayetteville Police Department.
“Heck, I have two pocketknives on me right now,” Stout said in a telephone interview. “We do run across a lot more people carrying knives than we do carrying guns, but they’re almost never using those knives illegally.”
While knives have figured into one recent Northwest Arkansas death — a customer was arrested in connection with stabbing his mechanic repeatedly in Springdale after a dispute over the mechanic’s work — they’re an uncommon weapon of choice, Stout said.
“Bare hands and fists are a lot more common in assaults or domestic violence,” he said. “Even random objects like ashtrays or lamps are more common than knives.”
While the concept appears sound, Palmer isn’t impressed by the bill.
“It’s nice to see them take an interest, but I don’t see where this is a big issue, given the other things government needs to address,” Palmer said. “I’m a little leery of a law that’s supposed to prevent more laws, and if something bad were to happen, they’ll just go back with another law that changes this one.”
The bill awaits a full vote in the state House. It doesn’t have a Senate co-sponsor.