“We can reasonably infer that switchblades are weapons in common use today by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes.”
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court issued a decision on Tuesday ruling that a ban on carrying a switchblade knife violates the right to bear arms under the Second Amendment.
Since 1957, a state law has prohibited carrying spring-release knives in Massachusetts. The rule prohibited the possession of “a switch knife, or any knife having an automatic spring release device by which the blade is released from the handle,” with the punishment of up to five years in prison for violating the law.
Tuesday’s ruling stemmed from the 2020 arrest of David E. Canjura. According to the SJC, he was charged with carrying a dangerous weapon when police searched him in response to a call for an altercation between him and his girlfriend and they found an “orange firearm-shaped knife with a spring-assisted blade.” Canjura challenged the constitutionality of the charge against him, arguing the blade was an “arm” and his right to carry for self-defense under the Second Amendment.