There are many laws concerning weapons at the state, county, and town levels. If you carry an illegal type of weapon openly in the wrong place or carry a concealed weapon without a proper permit, you can face criminal charges. It is easy to think that weapons other than guns are okay to carry around, but many types of knives are illegal to carry concealed in North Carolina. Learn about the laws concerning carrying a concealed weapon in North Carolina.
Illegal Weapons
Certain types of guns and weapons are always illegal when carried as concealed weapons, except on your own property. These include:
- Bowie Knife: used as a combat weapon in the 19th century, a Bowie knife is often used as a survival or hunting knife
- Dirk or Dagger: A dirk is a thin and pointed knife originally invented in Scotland. A dagger is a short knife with a pointy end
- Slung shot: a hard object, such as a metal ball, attached by a strap or thong to the wrist and used as a weapon
- Loaded cane: This type of cane has a heavy material such as lead at one end
- Metallic knuckles: adds hardness to your punch by making your fist rock solid
- Razor: You can cut someone with a sharp edge like this
- Shuriken: Japanese concealed weapon that used as a hidden dagger
- Stun gun: Often hidden in ordinary things like flashlights or a fake cellphone and send an electric shock into a person’s muscle when applied to the correct area.
Carrying a weapon like this doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll face charges, and even if you do, there are defenses listed directly in the statutory law.
Legal Open Carry
Open carry of weapons is legal in most areas. For example, at a Charlotte-area bus stop in 2019, a 23-year-old woman used a stun gun to fight an attack from behind by a knife-wielding man. If you carry a stun gun openly, it is considered legal. Because some stun guns can look like an ordinary cell phone or flashlight, it is not intimidating to others when you carry them openly.
North Carolina allows for the open carry of any legal weapon, so long as you are not carrying it to terrify or alarm the public. However, there are also places where a stun gun would be illegal even when carried openly. It is unlawful to open or conceal-carry any kind of knife or other weapon:
- Onto a school campus unless parked in a locked car
- On state property
- Into a Courthouse
- Into a parade
- In a funeral procession
- In a demonstration
- Into a private health care facility
- Into an event that charges admission, such as a ballgame or movie theater
What Is Legal?
It is legal to possess an ordinary pocket knife, designed for carrying in a pocket or purse as long as you keep it in a closed position with the cutting edge enclosed by its handle. If you open the knife by throwing or spring action, though, it is still illegal. You may open carry some weapons without law enforcement charging you with a crime.
What If I’m Charged?
If charged with possessing one of these illegal weapons, your best defense is one of these options:
- The weapon was not a firearm.
- You were engaging in an activity using the weapon legitimately. A legitimate use could include hunting, farming, trading, or selling the weapon.
- Possession of the weapon was for legitimate use. Perhaps you only used a stun gun in self-defense when somebody attacked you. You weren’t carrying it to scare others or to hurt anyone.
If charged with a weapons crime, you could receive a Class 2 misdemeanor conviction. The state of North Carolina will not expunge a violent crime, so your criminal record remains for life. A criminal record may stop you from getting a home or auto loan and hurt your reputation for job interviews or future relationships.
You could also spend time serving a sentence for a Class 2 misdemeanor, including up to 60 days in jail and a fine of $1,000.
We Can Help
If you face charges for a weapons crime, you need an attorney who understands the law. Weapon laws in North Carolina are often open to interpretation, so it’s best to have an attorney on your side who understands how to mount a defense and prevent criminal charges. With a knowledgeable criminal defense attorney standing up for you, there is hope for reduced charges or even a dismissed case.
Contact us today at Cape Fear Law and see how we can help you move forward.