The Arizona Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday unanimously advanced a bill that would ban brass knuckles after hearing passionate testimony from a teen who was attacked in the Gilbert In-N-Out Burger parking lot.
“There’s no useful purpose for brass knuckles,” testified Connor Jarnagan, 17 , who was struck with the weapon in December 2022. “They add nothing to our communities in Arizona besides contributing to violent crime and providing to serve teens and adults with a weapon that can kill someone.”
Senate Bill 1183, sponsored by Sen. John Kavanaugh, R-Fountain Hills, would make the possession, manufacture, transport, sale, or transfer of brass knuckles a class one misdemeanor, according to legislative records. Brass knuckles are metal fittings that go around the fingers and amplify the force of a punch.
Kavanaugh said he was prompted to introduce the legislation because of attacks in the East Valley where brass knuckles were used. He called them “vicious weapons” with no self-defense purpose.