In a decision that’s got knife enthusiasts and Second Amendment advocates sharpening their arguments, a Ninth Circuit panel has upheld California’s longstanding ban on switchblades, dismissing challenges from Knife Rights, Inc. The ruling, rooted in the state’s decades-old restrictions under Penal Code Section 21510, reaffirms that automatic knives—those slick, one-handed wonders with a button or lever deployment—are still contraband in the Golden State. Knife Rights argued that modern switchblades are ubiquitous tools for everyday carry, no more dangerous than a pocket knife or multitool, and that the ban violates the Supreme Court’s Heller framework by infringing on a longstanding tradition of carrying arms for self-defense. But the panel wasn’t buying it, leaning on California’s public safety rationale and historical precedents that treat switchblades as gang weapons from the mid-20th century switchblade panic.
This isn’t just about flicking open a blade; it’s a microcosm of the endless tug-of-war over what constitutes a protected arm under the Second Amendment. Post-Bruen, we’ve seen courts grapple with historical analogues—think Bowie knives or dirks from the Founding era—but California’s ban survives because judges here continue to defer to legislative fearmongering rather than demanding true historical parallels. Switchblades aren’t military-grade exotica; they’re legal federally since 1958 (thanks to the Switchblade Knife Act’s exemptions) and carried by millions nationwide, from cops to craftsmen. The Ninth Circuit’s punt invites Knife Rights to escalate, potentially to en banc review or the Supreme Court, where Bruen’s text, history, and tradition test could finally gut these archaic prohibitions. For the 2A community, it’s a reminder: knives are arms too, and victories in guns don’t automatically cascade to blades—yet.
The implications ripple far beyond California. If this holds, it emboldens blue-state busybodies to double down on assault knife bans, multi-tools be damned, while red states cheer the feds’ hands-off approach. 2A warriors should rally behind Knife Rights’ war chest; their track record—legalizing pocket knives in New York and GRAV knives in NYC—shows they deliver. Expect petitions, amicus briefs from the NRA and FPC, and maybe even a cert petition that forces SCOTUS to clarify if Heller’s bearable arms includes your OTF folder. In the meantime, Californians: stick to manuals, and keep fighting—this blade’s just getting whetted.
