Best LEGAL self defense weapon to carry?

Lord Spooky · Dec 8, 2005

Lurch said:

If you want to carry something you can use as a weapon but won't get you into trouble, consider carrying:

small can of deodorant - nasty if it gets in your attacker's eyes

small can of hairspray - as above, but your attacker will need to go to hospital to get the resin out of his eyes. I used to work in a factory where we made the stuff, and it's nasty - glue dissolved in alcohol.

Mini maglite - a useful aluminium bodied torch about 5 inches long which can be used as a kubotan. Don't put a wrist-strap on it if you are in the UK though, as it then becomes an offensive weapon.

Leatherman or similar - also useful as a kubotan - don't bother trying to open it.

Add to this most of the items listed in the other posts - keys, coins, pens, combs (NOT sharpened, though) etc, and you have a fair selection.

You can, in the UK, legally carry something that would usually be considered as an offensive weapon if you had a legitimate reason for carrying it.

You can carry a weapon if you have reasonable and genuine belief that you are going to be attacked, for example if you have been threatened by someone you truly believe will carry out their threat and so forth.
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Any chance you can back all that up with some valid documentation?

Lurch · Dec 9, 2005

spookyFBI said:

Any chance you can back all that up with some valid documentation?
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Yup.

Prevention of Crime Act 1953 s.1
Any person who without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, the proof whereof shall lie on him, has with him in any public place any offensive weapon shall be guilty of an offence.
Important points concerning the Prevention of Crime Act 1953 s.1:-
• This offence involves the carrying of a weapon in a public place. A public place is defined as anywhere where the public have or may be permitted to have access whether for payment or not.It is important to define what is meant by an offensive weapon. The Act defines what they are :-
(a) articles that were made for causing injury to a person and are offensive weapons in their own right (for example, a flick knife, a bayonet or a hand gun)
N.B. some sheath knives would be considered to be offensive weapons in their own right. It all depends on the design of the article in question and it is for the jury to decide whether it is an offensive weapon in each individual case. The courts have decided that certain other types of articles (e.g.. flick knives) ARE offensive weapons in their own right. Lock knives and pen knives are NOT offensive weapons in their own right.
(b) articles adapted for use for causing injury to a person (for example, a bottle that has been broken so the broken end may be used to cause injury)
(c) an article being carried by a person who intends to use it to cause injury (for example, a hammer)
• A person who has a good reason (reasonable excuse) or lawful authority for carrying the offensive weapon is not committing a crime. However the onus of proof is on the person carrying the weapon to show that they were carrying it with an innocent purpose. The reasonable excuse (or lawful authority) must be identified with the carrying of the weapon, and not with its use. Carrying an offensive weapon for "self defence" in case of attack is not a reasonable excuse. It is not a reasonable excuse to be carrying the weapon because you had been using the article for an innocent purpose earlier and had forgotten to put it away afterwards.
• In the following situations the courts agreed that the person carrying the offensive weapon had reasonable excuse:
(a) a person who had a machete and a catapult with him to kill grey squirrels that he would use to feed his birds of prey that he kept under licence
(b) the weapon was being carried as part of fancy dress by someone going to a fancy dress party. There are many other similar situations when carrying an offensive weapon would be permissible. On Scout camps you would probably be considered as having a reasonable excuse if you were carrying, say, a sheath knife or a machete to use to make camp gadgets. However carrying such an article on camp (if a public place) without such a purpose or for any other good reason would be against the law.
• Lawful authority is a reference to those people who carry weapons as a matter of duty such as a soldier with a rifle or a policeman with a truncheon.
• The maximum penalty for a conviction of this offence is 4 years imprisonment for offences committed after 4 July 1996 and 2 years for offences committed before then.
• Age is not a relevant factor so far as this offence is concerned. The only important point to remember is that children under the age of 10 are deemed not to be capable of committing crime. They are below the age of criminal responsibility.

Section 139(1) of the Criminal Justice Act 1988
This provision makes it an offence for a person to carry an article with a blade or a point in a public place unless they can prove any of the following:-
• That they had lawful authority or reasonable excuse for carrying it
• That they were carrying the article for use at work
• That they were carrying it for religious reasons
• That they were carrying it as part of national costume
This offence is punishable by a maximum of 2 years imprisonment for offences committed after 4 July 1996 and a fine only for offences committed before then.
Please note the following points:-
• Folding pocket knives with blades not exceeding 3 inches are exempt from this provision. This means that it is not an offence to carry a pen knife around with you. Age is not a material factor in any respect - anyone can own or carry a penknife no matter what age they are. The only occasion when the police would take action would be if the person is using the penknife illegally such as to cause criminal damage or to injure someone.
• Lock knives with blades of any length and folding pocket knives with blades exceeding 3 inches are covered by this provision together with any other article that has a blade or is sharply pointed, such as a stanley knife.
• Carrying an article with a blade or a point for "self defence" in case of attack does not constitute a reasonable excuse, nor is it a reasonable excuse to be carrying it because you had been using it for a job earlier and had forgotten to put it away afterwards.

Sale and hire of dangerous weapons
It has long been a criminal offence to sell or hire certain types of offensive weapons to the public. These items include flick knives, knuckle dusters and blow pipes. Recently it has also become an offence to market knives in such a way that indicates they are suitable for combat or that would otherwise encourage the use of such knives as a weapon. (See the Knives Act 1997). However certain defences specified in the Act may apply.

It is also now a criminal offence to sell the following items to people under the age of sixteen:
(a) any knife, knife blade or razor blade (but see the note below)
(b) any axe
(c) any other article which has a blade or which is sharply pointed and which is made or adapted for use for causing injury to the person
These offences were created by section 6 of The Offensive Weapons Act 1996.
Please note - folding pocket knives with blades less than 3 inches in length are again not affected under this legislation. It is not an offence to sell such a knife to a person under 16 years old. Razor blades permanently enclosed in a cartridge or housing exposing less than 2 millimetres of the blade (e.g. an ordinary disposable razor) are also not affected.
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Most of the 'weapons' I listed are perfectly legal to carry as they are not weapons in the conventional sense. Carrying a torch is not unreasonable if it's something you have with you most of the time and can find a reason to use. Ditto deodorant. If you're carrying hairspray, make sure that you use the stuff, otherwise it'll look suspect. A leatherman is a multi-purpose tool, and if the main blade is under 3 inches, then it's fine.

For the full text of the various Acts, see the following:

Criminal Justice Act 1988: www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1988/Ukpga_19880033_en_1.htm

Offensive Weapons act 1996: www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1996/1996026.htm

Knives Act 1997: www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1997/1997021.htm

See also: www.cps.gov.uk/legal/section12/chapter_c.html which is a useful guide on the law from the Crown Prosecution Service

And: www.police-law.co.uk/rainertech/policelaw.nsf/Index!OpenForm

Lord Spooky · Dec 9, 2005

Cheers

blue eagle · Dec 17, 2005

I'd rather not carry around a weapon. it's more fun fighting with your barehands against most opponents anyways. The most common weapon used nowadays are firearms. if they carry a gun and point it at you, any weapon would be too slow to draw anyways. a handgun would have to be unloaded and safety locked to carry around safely. imagine trying to load it when someone's attacking, that'll take about 1 minute. You are better off either coffing up cash or running.

Thomas · Dec 17, 2005

blue eagle said:

a handgun would have to be unloaded and safety locked to carry around safely. imagine trying to load it when someone's attacking, that'll take about 1 minute. You are better off either coffing up cash or running.
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I agree with the idea that it's bets to cough up the cash when facing a gun, but I disagree about carrying an unloaded pistol. Depending on the safety features, it's best to carry it loaded and be well practiced in drawing and removing the safety. For example, on mine the hammer has to be pulled back to full c ock (there is a "half" for safety) and there is a switch to lock it when it is c ocked. Different pistols have different safeties and its best to examine them carefully before getting one to carry. But, do carry loaded, just exercise caution.

fugepilot · Dec 17, 2005

Or... snap your Achilles tendon , then as you recover you always have a stout walking to hand.

hellcatassassin · Dec 22, 2005

i useually use anything im wearing as a weapon!
belt~whip techniques
necklace~ (depending on the length and weight you could use either whip chain techniques or nunchaku style)
spike wrist band ~ brass knuckles
sash~ use to trap and entangle enemys limbs and wepaons!
fan~ obviously fan techniques
umbrella~ i have made my own style for this one! ^^
unbent safty pins~ throwing needles (takes awhile to get used to)
and if all else fails just use yours hands ,feet, knees etc.

Nevada_MO_Guy · Dec 23, 2005

Surefire E2D Defender

This flashlight looks like a nice replacement for a kubaton, hestitan, yawara stick.

tolchocker · Sep 14, 2006

Jewbacca said:

I doubt you can carry a piercing weapon (even if it's a cane) on an airplane.
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my mum got her bag searched at the airport and they found a pair of nail scissors (pretty lethal they were, long, thin, and sharp) they allowed them through on the basis that the blades them selves were to small to cut deep (but the scissors themselves could stab a good few deadly inches into you)

stupid sometimes

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Best LEGAL self defense weapon to carry?

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Best LEGAL self defense weapon to carry?

Lord Spooky Banned Banned

Lurch Angry Kid

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blue eagle New Member

Thomas Combat Hapkido/Taekwondo

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tolchocker Skittles!

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