Didn't notice this before ... Dalton, if you used that in the UK you'd get locked up pretty darn quick! Our police have just instigated a strict 'zero tolerance' policy of carrying blades on the street! We've had just too many being killed by blades lately, even by youngsters of 12yrs old.
Where do your laws stand on this?
Well Jo, unlike the UK, laws here vary greatly, according to juristiction by State, County, cities, etc. It can be difficult to keep up with, for example, I'm a County Sheriff, and fireworks are legal in the County, (almost exclusively used during the 4th of July, and New Years celebrations), but are ILLEGAL within the city limits, although not often enforced, unless noise complaints are excessive. We're a Country of many different values and laws, and each state is almost like a Country unto itself regarding different laws. Another example is, before I became a Deputy, I had a conceal carry permit for the State of MS, to carry a firearm for personal protection. I was trained to used them safely and effectively while in the Military, and it seemed good sense with violent criminals running around, usually gang members. This was renewable every 4 years through my State, Mississippi. I was allowed this by doing some simple paperwork, passing a background check, having fingerprints taken, and that I was a Mississippi citizen, had no felonies, was 21 or older, and a fee of about $125. Now, since MS (Mississippi) had enough trust in me to carry a firearm, several other states honor my permit if I cross state lines and carry in their juristictions. (Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, and a few others). I have family in Illinois State, and they have a very strict policy on firearms for civilians. You must have a permit just to OWN a handgun there, kept in your OWN HOME, and they don't allow civilians to conceal carry, except under certain strict circumstances. Now, a flipside to that is, now that I am a "law enforcement Officer", under a new Federal law passed through the Homeland Security Act, both my Wife and I are able to carry concealed to any State in the Union, regardless of their laws, but when in civilian clothes, we must have the weapon concealed. You can see where I'm going with this; it can be quite complicated.
As far as the sword cane, there are many factors involved in carrying something like this, but most places would consider it illegal for anyone other than a law enforcement Officer to carry, since it's greater than 3.5 inches, and could pierce the heart. A rule of thumb for civilians here is, "if you don't go looking for trouble, then trouble won't find you", or (as long as you're a law abiding citizen, a pocketnife, at least in my juristiction, isn't an issue). I also have a saying I live by, (as do many others), as I carry a concealed firearm wherever I go; "I would rather be judged by 12, than carried by 6". (Rather face a jury for my actions than pallbearers). I know I will NEVER pull out a firearm (off duty) UNLESS it is in the immediate defense of myself or an innocent from deadly force, and the chances of that are astronomical, but I'd rather have a weapon and not need it, than need it, and not have it. I go to the grocery store, movies, restaurants, etc. every day, and nobody ever even knows I'm armed. I think a very large number of Americans live by those kind of beliefs, and we are a Country of firearms and gun (and weapon) culture. "If guns are outlawed, only Outlaws will have guns", because Outlaws don't respect the Law, and will use them to prey on those weaker. OK, now about the cane sword; yes, it's legal for me, since I'm Law Enforcement, and I am assumed to be trusted to carry such things with due regard and won't EVER even expose it in public, let alone use it inappropriately. For the average law abiding Citizen, discretion and prudence prevailing, most Cops wouldn't make an issue of it if found on their person or in their vehicle, as long as the person had a clean criminal record, and appears to be trustworty due to age, reason for having it, employment, and several other factors, including the very refined BS detection meter built into every experienced Cop. If this cane was found on a 16 year old teen who had a violent criminal record, he would be charged with being in posession of a deadly weapon, and sent to, or back to, jail or prison, or something of the like. If found on a 38 y/o male, with no criminal record, gainfully employed, and using it as a cane due to obviously recent surgery, who's respectful of the questioning Officer, most likely nothing at all would be mentioned of it. Finally, law enforcement in general is much more concerned with illegal carrying and use of firearms, in conjunction with a subject's past criminal history, attitude towards the Officer, other related charges, (drug possession is a huge factor) and it would not be prudent for ANYONE to carry such a cane unless they were extremely discreet. I would also discourage most anyone from carrying it in almost every situation. I personally use good judgement in everything I do, and am LE, so I don't worry about it; I got the sword as a conversation piece other than anything else, and I carry a handgun ALWAYS off duty, and lawfully so, and a 5 inch long folding knife in my pocket too, (for utility uses only, I'd never use a knife as a weapon), so a sword isn't really an issue. I would never even expose it, unless out of public view, and only to trusted friends. I know the UK is much different, and your Police Officers don't even carry firearms, only radios and batons, unless they are SWAT, or your equivelent, and your violent crime is far less than ours. Yet, we have so many firearms in circulation here, that it isn't feasible to collect them all, having only our Police and Military carrying them, and it's constitutionally guaranteed, (with stipulations. Anyone here convicted of a felony, OR, a domestic violence misdemeanor, can NEVER own or posess a firearm, or pocketknife even, which would be considered a deadly weapon, and send an ex-convict on parole back to prison immediately). In fact, without exception, every other Cop I know WANTS law abiding citizens to carry, (as long as they have a permit and training), because it's a statistically proven deterrent to thugs attacking, and the violent crimes diminish. You may not agree with some of the ideas I stated, but remember Jo, you've been born and raised in a Country very different than our mindset here. I would love to remove weapons from the hands of every convicted felon in America, but it's just not realistic; there are far too many out there. I would rather see good folks arm themselves for personal protection, instead of being preyed upon by disrespectful, armed cowards. Well, that was quite longwinded, wasn't it? I hope not too much... and hope it answered you question...
~Dalton
P.S. By the way Jo, I can understand where blades or knives get more negative attention in your Country; by the simple fact that firearms are so much more difficult to get there! You don't notice it too much here, since handguns are far more prevalent, but makes sense, doesn't it? People are stabbed and killed here too, probably more often per capita than there, but it's all relative. For all the negative publicity we receive regarding firearms and crime, 10 times more people are killed in automobile crashes (100,000) here yearly than are killed by firearms, or knives, for that matter.