On August 27, 2024, the Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) of Massachusetts in the matter of Commonwealth v. Canjura, held that laws prohibiting the possession of switchblade style knives are unconstitutional under the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. The SJC reached this decision by concluding that switchblade knives are considered arms for Second Amendment purposes, resulting in this ground-breaking legal decision.
Centrality of the Second Amendment and Its Implications
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Central to the Second Amendment is the right to self-defense, which guarantees to all Americans the right to bear commonly used arms in public subject to certain reasonable, well-defined restrictions. Since 1975, Massachusetts General Laws chapter 269, section 10(b), prohibited individuals from possessing switchblades. This law is no longer valid. People are now permitted to possessing such knives.
The SJC’s Two-Part Test in Canjura
The SJC in Canjura used a two-part test to determine whether the regulation or restriction of switchblades passed constitutional scrutiny.
Step 1: Plain Text of the Second Amendment
First, the SJC assessed whether the Second Amendment’s plain text covered the conduct of possessing a switchblade. The SJC concluded that the Second Amendment does not only apply to firearms. Historically, arms were defined as anything a man wears for his defense or takes into his hands to strike another. The American colonists’ use of knives was extremely common both for self-defense and other purposes. As America developed, folding knives increased in popularity, and today include switchblades. As a result, the SJC concluded that possessing a switchblade is presumptively protected by the plain text of the Second Amendment.
Step 2: Historical Tradition of Arms Regulation
After making this determination, the SJC continued with the second part of its test to determine if the government has demonstrated the regulation against possessing switchblades is consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of arms regulation. More specifically, it examined whether the challenge to this regulation addresses a general societal problem that has persisted since the Eighteenth Century. If so, it further considered whether the lack of distinctly similar historical regulation addressing that problem is relevant evidence that the challenged regulation addressing that problem is inconsistent with the Second Amendment.
Switchblades as a Commonly Used Weapon for Self-Defense
The SJC concluded that because switchblades are commonly used as weapons today for self-defense, are widely owned and accepted as a legitimate means of self-defense across the country, and are not dangerous and unusual—meaning they do not possess physical qualities suggesting they are uniquely dangerous or capable of causing unlawful or excessive harm or fatalities—the regulation of switchblades was not consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of arms regulation. Considering this, you can now possess a switchblade in Massachusetts without penalty.
Legal Assistance for Dangerous Weapon Charges
If you, a family member, or friend is charged with possessing a dangerous weapon of any kind in Massachusetts, contact the Law Office of John L. Calcagni III, Inc. today for a free consultation at (508) 213-9113.
