Knife Laws In Mississippi
Mississippi is a knife-cordial state where you can richly relish the wilderness. You can open carry any knife for hunting, skinning, chopping, and dicing. However, concealed carry law imposes some restrictions on a knife with large blades. The state’s law permits the dwellers of Mississippi to own any kind of knife. The law is flexible, and even allows some knives which are usually disqualified such as switchblades, ballistic knives, and gravity knives. However, people in Mississippi are permissible to use survival knives to avoid a nasty situations.
Knives that are explicitly restricted in Mississippi
Mississippi is one of the knife-friendly states where no knife types are generally outlawed.
As per the knife law,
“It is unlawful for parents to knowingly allow minor children to possess or carry a Bowie knife, butcher knife, switchblade knife, or dirk; or for anyone to provide such a knife to a minor or intoxicated person. It is unlawful for a convicted felon to possess a bowie knife, butcher knife, switchblade knife, or dirk. It is unlawful to bring any such knife onto the educational property.”
Convicted felons are permissible to have a knife; however, there are some legal hindrances.
Restrictions on Sale or Transfer in Mississippi
The state does not prohibit owning any kind of knife or blade, not even the often-banned gravity knives, switchblades, or ballistic knives. But it imposes some restrictions, for instance,
- It is unlawful to provide, sell, or transfer a bowie knife, butcher knife, switchblade knife, or dirk to a minor
- It is unlawful to provide the abovementioned knife to an intoxicated person
- Concealed carry laws imposed some limits on hiding larger blade types.
- Knife ownership is restricted, though not completely excluded, for convicted felons, as well as minors under the age of 18 years
- Open carry rights are very vigorous, with a few exceptions
Statewide Preemption in Mississippi
Constitutional preemption obtains in Mississippi per Article 3 Section 12 of the State Constitution which provides:
“The right of every citizen to keep and bear arms in defense of his home, person, or property, or in aid of the civil power when thereto legally summoned, shall not be called in question, but the Legislature may regulate or forbid carrying concealed weapons. The Legislature may regulate or forbid carrying concealed weapons. Open carry is Constitutionally protected.”
As per the law: § 97-37-1.
“Concealment of deadly weapon lists bowie knives and dirks among the class of weapons subject to certain restrictions including concealed carry. The same listing applies to § 97-37-5. Possession by a felon. Mississippi does not provide a statutory or legislative definition for bowie knife, butcher knife, or dirk.”
There are municipal ordinances in Mississippi, though, state law fails to preempt local ordinances that govern the carrying of blades. Moreover, the general focus is on further limiting concealed carry. A knife owner should be conscious of knife legalities while traveling from town to town.
The legality of Knife Possession in Mississippi
According to Mississippi Code section § 97-37-13.
“All adults (those 18 years old or older) who have no felony convictions on their record can own any kind of knife they wish. They can dispose of these knives as desired also, buying, selling, trading, or giving away blades as they see fit. The one exception is that it is illegal to give or sell a switchblade, dirk, butcher knife, or a Bowie knife to a minor (a person younger than 18) or to an individual who is intoxicated at the time of the transfer.”
The open world of knives welcomes Mississippians when reaching the criteria
Mississippians when met the legal age and status (have never been convicted of a felony) can own:
- Bowie knives
- Swords
- Machetes
- Hunting knives
- Fishing knives
- Dive knives
- KA-BAR knives
- Single-edged and double-edged fixed blade knives
- Throwing stars/ throwing knives
- Sword canes
- Disguised knives
- Switchblades
- Balisong knives
- Ballistic knives
- Ordinary folding pocket knife
The law in Mississippi for a convicted felon’s knife ownership
As per the law,
“A felon cannot own a dirk, switchblade, Bowie knife, or butcher knife. Otherwise, their rights to own, buy, and sell knives are unrestricted.”
Open carry knife laws
As per the knife legislation in Mississippi,
“Open carry is permitted by state law, with no state limits on length, knife configuration, or other details. A person may not brandish a knife at another in a threatening manner or carry a knife primarily to inflict harm on others except in self-defense. Schools, courthouses, properly posted government buildings, and prisons are naturally off-limits for any kind of knife-carrying, open or concealed.”
What is LEGAL in Mississippi
- Any adult with no felony convictions can own any type of knife they want
- Buying, selling, trading, or giving away, is legal by an Adult in Mississippi
- Open carry is permissible the law does not place restrictions on length limits and knife configuration
What is ILLEGAL in Mississippi
- It’s illegal to sell or give a dirk, bowie knife, butcher life, or a switchblade to a minor or an intoxicated person
- A convicted felon can’t own a Bowie, dirk, butcher knife, or a switchblade
- It’s illegal for someone to brandish a knife at someone in a rude manner or with a bad intention
- It’s illegal to carry a knife in courthouses, government buildings, prisons, or schools.
What is the LENGTH LIMIT in Mississippi
As per the law,
“Mississippi law does not place length limits on knife blades, though the concealed carry laws tend to ban the concealed carry of larger knife types without explicitly setting a limit in inches”
What are Concealed carry laws in Mississippi
According to the law (Code § 97-37-1),
“Anyone above 18 years of age can carry any weapon concealed or life when the carrier is in their place of business or home or real property of the two locations or when inside a vehicle. It’s illegal to carry a dirk knife, bowie knife, butcher knife, switchblade, or any other knife having finger rings. Sporting knives are legal to carry concealed when carried for sporting purposes. Fishing knives and hunting knives fall under this category. Some blades could be temporarily legalized under rare circumstances.”
The exception to the rule:
- Sporting knives are carried directly for a sporting purpose.
- Hunting and fishing knives
Other Knife Law Considerations in Mississippi
Mississippi’s local governments have passed ordinances pushing some extra restrictions on legal concealed carry. For instance,
- Tupelo, MS, for example, disallows concealed knives with blades longer than 3.5”
- Vicksburg sets the limit at 4” for a concealed blade
Bottom line
Mississippi offers all-embracing rights to knife owners whether they are citizens, migrants, or tourists, the state’s law permits nearly unlimited open carry opportunities for non-felons over the age of 18. The only major future extension to knife rights would be the passage of a preemption bill restraining stringent local knife regulations.
