Authorities in France are cracking down on knife carrying after an increase in knife attacks - including the severe injury of one man earlier this month - and working to fully enforce existing laws.
Public prosecutors' offices across the country - including in the cities of Bordeaux, Paris, Marseille, Montpellier, Nantes, Nice, Rennes, Lyon, and Toulouse - are now issuing fixed fines of €500 for carrying or transporting a category D weapon “without legitimate reason”.
The payment of the fine also leads to the ‘perpetrator’ being given a criminal record, and listed on a file banning them from being able to buy or own weapons.
What does current French law say?
The law currently classifies knives as a category D bladed weapon, in the same way as axes, machetes, combat daggers, telescopic truncheons, tear gas canisters and brass knuckles.
The law states the following criteria for a knife to be considered a dangerous ‘dagger’-style weapon:
Blade integrated with the handle, or equipped with a system enabling it to be made integrated with the handle
Double-edged over the whole length or at least at the tip
Longer than 15 cm and at least 4 mm thick
A handle incorporating a guard.
Contravening this law can lead to up to a year in prison, and a fine of up to €15,000.
What about pocket knives?
The law states that if a knife does not satisfy the above criteria, context becomes more important.
“The carrying and transporting of knives that are not listed weapons [as defined by the list above] is permitted, provided there is a legitimate reason,” it states.
“The legitimacy of carrying and transporting presupposes that the knife being carried or transported has usage characteristics in relation to the activity for which it is actually used.”
The law does not, therefore, strictly prohibit the carrying of a pocket knife.
Yet, the Service Public website outlines what is meant by a “legitimate cause”. It states: “To determine whether you have a valid reason for carrying or transporting a weapon, the police, or the judge in the event of a dispute, take into account the place, the circumstances and the context.
“Legitimate cause is examined on a case-by-case basis. It is up to the police and gendarmes to decide whether the pocket knife is ‘likely to constitute a weapon dangerous to public safety.”
This means that, in general, if you were carrying the knife for a clear use such as a picnic, a hiking trip, or fishing excursion, it would be tolerated.
On the other hand, if you were stopped on a city street, and were found to be carrying a knife such as a steak blade or large Swiss Army knife “just in case” or “for self-defence”, this would not be considered a legitimate reason.
Why the crackdown now?
Until now, courts have tended to be more flexible in their rulings towards knives.
They have taken context, type of knife, and use into greater consideration than the law might suggest at face value. This is because knife carrying is sometimes seen as a key part of regional and farming traditions.
However, authorities are now working to enforce the law more strictly after a spike in knife crime activity, including the severe wounding of a 24-year-old man in Grenoble (Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes) in a knife attack. The perpetrator fled the scene.
Criminal record
Yet, the new crackdown has been severely criticised by some, including gun owner association the Union française des amateurs d'armes.
The group has said that the “ambiguous” legal definition of a “legitimate reason” could lead to abuse, and to unfair prosecutions for legal gun owners such as hunters and collectors.
The group is particularly concerned by the fact that anyone fined under the law will receive a criminal record, and be listed on the Fichier national des personnes interdites d'acquisition et de détention d'armes (FINIADA, national file of people banned from acquiring and possessing weapons).
This file is normally reserved for those who are considered to present a dangerous risk, who have been banned from using weapons due to a serious judicial conviction, psychiatric treatment, severe violence, or harassment.
“Registering [people] on the FINIADA immediately unleashes a thunderbolt of bureaucracy,” said hunting federation la Fédération interdépartementale des chasseurs d'Île-de-France (FICIF).
“Once the procedure has been launched, it is impossible to validate a hunting licence or buy weapons. You have to sell all the weapons you own or risk having them confiscated by the authorities without compensation.”
‘A steep price to pay for a pocket knife’
A lawyer who also enjoys hunting told Le Figaro: “It is a steep price to pay for a pocket knife.
“Once the fine has been paid, it is as if the person has admitted guilt. There is no way of appealing or challenging the actual nature of the offence,” he said.
“I fully understand the desire to combat the violence that is blighting our society, but this arbitrary and indiscriminate way of criminalising all citizens is absolutely intolerable,” he said. “Banning people from carrying pocket knives will not stop criminals, who can buy a kitchen knife for a few euros at a garage sale, from committing their crimes.”
The crackdown in France comes as the UK law is also toughening towards knives. From September 24, it will be illegal to make, transport, sell, carry, or own “zombie-style” knives and “statement” machetes in England and Wales, closing what has been described as a “legal loophole”.
This style of knife is typically defined as a weapon with a double-edged blade over 20 cm in length, with a serrated edge.
