Nevada Knife Laws


Sgt. SIG

New member
I just picked up a nice neck knife and then of course I began to wonder if it would be illegal to wear it concealed. It has a 4 1/2" blade.

153yb1u.jpg


The NRS's aren't very clear about knife carry and what constitutes "concealed" etc. not to mention Municipal Codes for each city. :blink:

NRS: CHAPTER 202 - CRIMES AGAINST PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY

I did find this referrance:

202.350 1. [It] \Except as otherwise provided in
sections 2 to 11, inclusive, of this act, it\\ is
unlawful for any person within this state to:
(a) Manufacture or cause to be manufactured, or import
into the state, or keep, offer or expose for sale, or give,
lend or possess any knife which is made an integral part of
a belt buckle or any instrument or weapon of the kind
commonly known as a switchblade knife, blackjack, slung
shot, billy, sand-club, sandbag or metal knuckles; or
(b) Carry concealed upon his person any:
(1) Explosive substance, other than ammunition or any
components thereof;
(2) Dirk, dagger or dangerous knife;
(3) Pistol, revolver or other firearm, or other
dangerous or deadly weapon; or
(4) Knife which is made an integral part of a belt
buckle.
2. It is unlawful for any person to possess or use a:
(a) Nunchaku or trefoil with the intent to inflict harm
upon the person of another; or
(b) Machine gun or a silencer.

and:

(a) \"Dangerous knife" means a knife having a blade
that is 2 inches or more in length when measured from the
tip of the knife which is customarily sharpened to the
unsharpened extension of the blade which forms the hinge
connecting the blade to the handle.


Sounds to me like a "neck knife" would be a "concealed dangerous knife".:grr:

Do any of my fellow Nevadans have any insight regarding knife carry you can share?

Tnx, Sgt. SIG
 

Last edited:
I did find this referrance:

202.350 1. [It] \Except as otherwise provided in
sections 2 to 11, inclusive, of this act, it\\ is
unlawful for any person within this state to:
(a) Manufacture or cause to be manufactured, or import
into the state, or keep, offer or expose for sale, or give,
lend or possess any knife which is made an integral part of
a belt buckle or any instrument or weapon of the kind
commonly known as a switchblade knife, blackjack, slung
shot, billy, sand-club, sandbag or metal knuckles; or
(b) Carry concealed upon his person any:
(1) Explosive substance, other than ammunition or any
components thereof;
(2) Dirk, dagger or dangerous knife;
(3) Pistol, revolver or other firearm, or other
dangerous or deadly weapon; or
(4) Knife which is made an integral part of a belt
buckle.
2. It is unlawful for any person to possess or use a:
(a) Nunchaku or trefoil with the intent to inflict harm
upon the person of another; or
(b) Machine gun or a silencer.

and:

(a) \"Dangerous knife" means a knife having a blade
that is 2 inches or more in length when measured from the
tip of the knife which is customarily sharpened to the
unsharpened extension of the blade which forms the hinge
connecting the blade to the handle.


Knife laws are certainly vague.

However, the law you quote above is NOT the same as found on the Nevada Legislature's law library website NRS: CHAPTER 202 - CRIMES AGAINST PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY See quote below:


NRS 202.350 Manufacture, importation, possession or use of dangerous weapon or silencer; carrying concealed weapon without permit; penalties; issuance of permit to carry concealed weapon; exceptions.

1. Except as otherwise provided in this section and NRS 202.355 and 202.3653 to 202.369, inclusive, a person within this State shall not:

(a) Manufacture or cause to be manufactured, or import into the State, or keep, offer or expose for sale, or give, lend or possess any knife which is made an integral part of a belt buckle or any instrument or weapon of the kind commonly known as a switchblade knife, blackjack, slungshot, billy, sand-club, sandbag or metal knuckles;

(b) Manufacture or cause to be manufactured, or import into the State, or keep, offer or expose for sale, or give, lend, possess or use a machine gun or a silencer, unless authorized by federal law;

(c) With the intent to inflict harm upon the person of another, possess or use a nunchaku or trefoil; or

(d) Carry concealed upon his person any:

(1) Explosive substance, other than ammunition or any components thereof;

(2) Dirk, dagger or machete;

(3) Pistol, revolver or other firearm, or other dangerous or deadly weapon; or

(4) Knife which is made an integral part of a belt buckle.

2. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 202.275 and 212.185, a person who violates any of the provisions of:

(a) Paragraph (a) or (c) or subparagraph (2) or (4) of paragraph (d) of subsection 1 is guilty:

(1) For the first offense, of a gross misdemeanor.

(2) For any subsequent offense, of a category D felony and shall be punished as provided in NRS 193.130.

(b) Paragraph (b) or subparagraph (1) or (3) of paragraph (d) of subsection 1 is guilty of a category C felony and shall be punished as provided in NRS 193.130.

3. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, the sheriff of any county may, upon written application by a resident of that county showing the reason or the purpose for which a concealed weapon is to be carried, issue a permit authorizing the applicant to carry in this State the concealed weapon described in the permit. The sheriff shall not issue a permit to a person to carry a switchblade knife. This subsection does not authorize the sheriff to issue a permit to a person to carry a pistol, revolver or other firearm.

4. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 5, this section does not apply to:

(a) Sheriffs, constables, marshals, peace officers, correctional officers employed by the Department of Corrections, special police officers, police officers of this State, whether active or honorably retired, or other appointed officers.

(b) Any person summoned by any peace officer to assist in making arrests or preserving the peace while the person so summoned is actually engaged in assisting such an officer.

(c) Any full-time paid peace officer of an agency of the United States or another state or political subdivision thereof when carrying out official duties in the State of Nevada.

(d) Members of the Armed Forces of the United States when on duty.

5. The exemptions provided in subsection 4 do not include a former peace officer who is retired for disability unless his former employer has approved his fitness to carry a concealed weapon.

6. The provisions of paragraph (b) of subsection 1 do not apply to any person who is licensed, authorized or permitted to possess or use a machine gun or silencer pursuant to federal law. The burden of establishing federal licensure, authorization or permission is upon the person possessing the license, authorization or permission.

7. This section shall not be construed to prohibit a qualified law enforcement officer or a qualified retired law enforcement officer from carrying a concealed weapon in this State if he is authorized to do so pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 926B or 926C.

8. As used in this section:

(a) “Concealed weapon” means a weapon described in this section that is carried upon a person in such a manner as not to be discernible by ordinary observation.

(b) “Honorably retired” means retired in Nevada after completion of 10 years of creditable service as a member of the Public Employees’ Retirement System. A former peace officer is not “honorably retired” if he was discharged for cause or resigned before the final disposition of allegations of serious misconduct.

(c) “Machine gun” means any weapon which shoots, is designed to shoot or can be readily restored to shoot more than one shot, without manual reloading, by a single function of the trigger.

(d) “Nunchaku” means an instrument consisting of two or more sticks, clubs, bars or rods connected by a rope, cord, wire or chain used as a weapon in forms of Oriental combat.

(e) “Qualified law enforcement officer” has the meaning ascribed to it in 18 U.S.C. § 926B(c).

(f) “Qualified retired law enforcement officer” has the meaning ascribed to it in 18 U.S.C. § 926C(c).

(g) “Silencer” means any device for silencing, muffling or diminishing the report of a firearm, including any combination of parts, designed or redesigned, and intended for use in assembling or fabricating a silencer or muffler, and any part intended only for use in such assembly or fabrication.

(h) “Switchblade knife” means a spring-blade knife, snap-blade knife or any other knife having the appearance of a pocketknife, any blade of which is 2 or more inches long and which can be released automatically by a flick of a button, pressure on the handle or other mechanical device, or is released by any type of mechanism. The term does not include a knife which has a blade that is held in place by a spring if the blade does not have any type of automatic release.

(i) “Trefoil” means an instrument consisting of a metal plate having three or more radiating points with sharp edges, designed in the shape of a star, cross or other geometric figure and used as a weapon for throwing.

[1:47:1925; NCL § 2302] + [3:47:1925; NCL § 2304]—(NRS A 1959, 548; 1963, 90; 1967, 486; 1973, 190, 900; 1977, 269, 880; 1979, 1435; 1985, 452, 593, 792; 1989, 653; 1995, 1207, 2726; 1997, 826, 1601; 1999, 421, 1208; 2001, 575; 2003, 1351; 2005, 594)
 
Gee, no gray areas there.:cool:

How do the vendors get away with selling switchblades at the gun shows? I asked a vendor this once and they replied that it was illegal to carry one, but not to own it. I think they were wrong.

Oh well, there's better technology now, like the Emerson wave, that is way faster at deploying the blade than a switchblade ever was.
 
I just picked up a nice neck knife and then of course I began to wonder if it would be illegal to wear it concealed. It has a 4 1/2" blade.

153yb1u.jpg


The NRS's aren't very clear about knife carry and what constitutes "concealed" etc. not to mention Municipal Codes for each city. :blink:

It would be illegal to carry it concealed.
It would be legal to carry it openly.

NRS 202.350
1. Except as otherwise provided in this section and NRS 202.355 and 202.3653 to 202.369, inclusive, a person within this State shall not:
(d) Carry concealed upon his or her person any:
(2) Dirk, dagger or machete;
8. As used in this section:
(a) “Concealed weapon” means a weapon described in this section that is carried upon a person in such a manner as not to be discernible by ordinary observation.
 
Would my K-Bar be considered a dagger or a knife?
"Dirk"/"Dagger" is not defined by NV law.

AFAIK... NV case law defines it as any bladed instrument with a handguard/crossguard.

So, depending on the LEO, it can be considered a "dagger".

Bottom line...
Do not conceal carry a fixed blade instrument in NV.
 

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