Knife Rights has launched a national preemption campaign in Arizona. At the request of Knife Rights, Arizona Senate Majority Leader, Chuck Gray, has introduced SB1153, reference titled, “State Preemption: Knives,” which will protect knife owners, knife collectors and those in the knife industry from a confusing patchwork of local knife ordinances and rules in Arizona.
SB1153 represents the groundbreaking initiation of a key component of Knife Rights' national legislative agenda to protect knife owners' rights. Knife Rights anticipates that the Arizona knife preemption law will serve as a model for preemption efforts in other states whose citizens are subject to a similar patchwork of local knife laws with attendant civil rights issues.
“Currently a person traveling from Nogales to Flagstaff, Arizona, will be subject to numerous different knife ordinances and rules along the way, never knowing if they are in compliance with local laws, and quite possibly unintentionally breaking the law,” said Doug Ritter, Chairman and Executive Director of Knife Rights. “This is a confusing and unfair situation which can subject citizens to abuse of their civil rights and it needs to be remedied” Ritter added. “Knife Rights is proud to sponsor this first legislation of its kind in the U.S.,” said Ritter.
SB1153, is a “knife preemption law” that would keep all existing state laws regarding knives in place, but would make the State Legislature the sole authority on knife laws. This will insure consistency and fairness with regards to knife laws throughout the state.
Following on their success in preventing U.S. Customs' pocket knife grab this past summer, Knife Rights is embarking on a proactive legislative effort to protect our right to own and carry knives of any kind into the future. A key component of this legislative agenda is “Knife Law Preemption.” The concept of knife law preemption, in essence, says that the state laws relating to knives take precedence and prevents the cities, towns and other political subdivisions of the state from making their own laws relating to knives which are more restrictive than the state law.
This concept has been very successfully promulgated in the fight to protect firearms. Forty six states have enacted firearms preemption laws. These laws have prevented the creation of, or eliminated, a patchwork of ordinances and rules which serve to confuse or entrap those traveling within or through the state. A person traveling in a state without preemption laws could be charged with a violation of law when they have no intention of violating the law. Further, local ordinances often violate the right to bear arms as guaranteed by the Second Amendment and, in many cases, by the state's own constitution.
Knife Rights' national strategy is to work to enact knife preemption laws throughout the United States. This would afford the same protection to knife owners that firearms owners enjoy. Knife Rights has chosen Arizona as a starting point because the current political landscape in the Arizona legislature is very favorable to the protection of individual rights.
SB1153 has 8 Prime Sponsors and 13 Co-Sponsors.
SB1153 is being supported by Arizona's NRA affiliate, the Arizona State Rifle and Pistol Association, Arizona Citizens Defense League and Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
