Can a Mississippi business owner carry brass knuckles and switchblades?
There was a time in the not so distant past when carrying partially or completely concealed deadly weapons in Mississippi was illegal, with a few exceptions.
You could always carry a deadly weapon in your home and in your business, provided you were over the age of 18. But, if you weren’t at home or your place of business, having a pistol tucked away in a pocket or purse could earn you jail time.
For Mississippians, those days are long gone. According to Section 24 of the state’s concealed weapon law, Miss. Code Ann. § 45-9-101(24), if you aren’t engaged in criminal activity other than a misdemeanor traffic offense, you are welcome to conceal “a loaded or unloaded pistol or revolver … in a sheath, belt holster or shoulder holster that is wholly or partially visible, or carried in scabbard or case that is wholly or partially visible” without a license.
However, the law does not grant the unlicensed concealed carry of every deadly weapon listed in the code; it specifies a pistol or revolver. The state’s deadly weapon code lists everything from slingshots to machine guns.
Here’s the complete list of deadly weapons:
Bowie knife
Dirk knife
Butcher knife
Switchblade knife
Metallic knuckles
Blackjack
Slingshot
Pistol
Revolver
Any rifle with a barrel of less than 16 inches in length
Any shotgun with a barrel of less than 18 inches in length
Machine gun
Any fully automatic firearm or deadly weapon
Any muffler or silencer for any firearm
Any imitation firearm
It is still against the law to carry concealed stun guns, pistols and revolvers in some public spaces.
The prohibited places include:
- Any police, sheriff or highway patrol station
- Any detention facility, prison or jail
- Any courthouse
- Any courtroom (unless you’re the presiding judge or granted permission by the presiding judge)
- Any polling place
- Any meeting place of the governing body of any governmental entity
- Any meeting of the legislature or the committee thereof
- Any school, college or professional athletic event not related to firearms
- Any portion of an establishment licensed to dispense alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises
- Any portion of an establishment where beer or light wine is consumed on the premises, that is primarily devoted to such purpose
- Any elementary or secondary school facility
- Any junior college, community college, college or university facility unless for the purpose of participating in any authorized firearms-related activity
- In the passenger terminal of any airport (unless fully encased and being checked in as baggage)
- Any church or place of worship (except for those who qualify under the Mississippi Church Protection Act)
- Any location where the person in charge posts a sign saying that ”carrying of a pistol or revolver is prohibited.” The sign has to be readable 10 feet away.
What is the penalty for breaking the concealed carry law?
If convicted of carrying a concealed deadly weapon, you could be fined and/or imprisoned. Fines for first offenses range from $100 to $500 with up to six months in jail. Second offenses include the same fines range and at least 30 days in jail, but no more than six months.
The third offense could land you in a state penitentiary for one to five years.
Concealed vs. open carry
If you just have to carry brass knuckles, wear them as a charm around your neck. The practice may not become a popular fashion statement, but it will not get you arrested. As long as a deadly weapon is completely visible, it is legal.
Mississippi does not regulate the open carrying of deadly weapons by law-abiding citizens, but be nice.
“Mississippi prohibits any person who has or is carrying a deadly weapon from exhibiting the weapon in a rude, angry, or threatening manner in the presence of three or more persons,” according to the Giffords Law Center.
This story was originally published May 12, 2023 at 5:50 AM.
