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Knife Rights' Knife Owners' Protection Act Introduced in Congress - CALL/WRITE TODAY!
Protects Knife Owners From Vagaries of Restrictive State Laws
Knife Rights' Knife Owners' Protection Act, H.R.3478 (KOPA), has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. Matt Salmon (R-AZ). Knife Rights Chairman Doug Ritter explained, "KOPA will protect law-abiding knife owners travelling throughout the U.S. from the vagaries of restrictive state and local laws. As long as possession of the particular knife is legal in the state where the journey starts and ends, and provided the knife is secured in accordance with KOPA, a knife owner would no longer be threatened with arrest simply for traveling from one place to another." KOPA is the first proactive pro-knife federal legislation introduced in the nation's history.
Getting this bill introduced is only the first step. We need your help to gain additional co-sponsors. If your Representative is not already a co-sponsor (see below), PLEASE CALL OR EMAIL YOUR REPRESENTATIVE TODAY and urge them to co-sponsor this commonsense legislation. You can find your Representative at: http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/
Or, you can use the Open Congress website at: http://www.opencongress.org/bill/hr3478-113
Here's a model email that you can use. We strongly suggest you keep it simple and to the point:
"Those who travel across the country with knives for work, recreation and self defense are presently subject to arrest and prosecution under a confusing patchwork of inconsistent state and local laws and regulations, said Ritter, "what is perfectly legal in one place may be a serious crime in another, resulting in forfeiture of property and carrying significant penalties including jail time. Enforcement is not uniform even within jurisdictions and is subject to the vagaries of political expediency at times. Sportsmen and workmen who travel are particularly vulnerable."
"The culmination of almost three years of effort, Knife Rights developed the Knife Owners' Protection Act to address this absurd situation in a commonsense manner that is fair and equitable and is based on established legislative and legal precedent," Ritter noted, "we've fought hard to defend the right to carry a knife in the individual states, cities and towns, but KOPA represents a key initiative to protect law-abiding knife owners simply passing through areas like New York City where possessing the most commonly owned pocket knife in America today, the one-hand opening folding knife, may result in arrest and prosecution."
Sponsor Rep. Matt Salmon (AZ-05) said, "This legislation is long overdue. The Knife Owners' Protection Act is a responsible and reasonable means of ensuring that knife owners throughout America can travel with assurance that their rights will be protected with equal respect for states with overly restrictive knife laws."
Additional co-sponsors are: Rep. Kerry Bentivolio (R-MI), Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN), Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC), Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ), Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ), Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), Rep. David Schweikert (R-AZ), and Rep. Steve Stockman (R-TX)
The current situation with knives is similar to the circumstances with guns that existed prior to the passage of the Firearms Owner Protection Act (FOPA -18 USC 926A) in 1986, when Congress acted to protect law-abiding gun owners from a similar inconsistent patchwork of laws by insulating their travels if firearms possession was lawful at both the origination and destination points of travel.
Ritter noted "unfortunately, FOPA provides no protections whatsoever to knife owners, so they are completely unprotected from the same perils. It is entirely likely that a sportsman travelling with both firearms and knives who follows FOPA's requirements to the letter and also locks up his knives in an abundance of caution, could be insulated against prosecution for firearms possession, yet be arrested and prosecuted for knife possession. That is a ridiculous situation. KOPA simply aims to protect knife owners in the same manner as KOPA protects firearm owners."
KOPA has teeth to defend those who travel under its protection because it also provides penalties for law enforcement, prosecutors and others who ignore the protections provided. Similar to the protections and penalties generally provided in USC 1983 to those whose civil rights are violated, a falsely arrested citizen can be compensated for the expense of defending themselves from an unwarranted violation of the rights Congress has protected in KOPA.
Ritter closed by saying, "Knife Rights continues to lead the way with aggressive proactive legislative action to defend and protect knife owners' rights. KOPA is just another example of our groundbreaking efforts to create a Sharper Future for all Americans."
Read H.R3478 at: http://bit.ly/19njvUw
A FAQ on KOPA with additional details and background can be found at: http://bit.ly/1arZIa0
Getting this bill introduced is only the first step. We need your help to gain additional co-sponsors. If your Representative is not already a co-sponsor (see below), PLEASE CALL OR EMAIL YOUR REPRESENTATIVE TODAY and urge them to co-sponsor this commonsense legislation. You can find your Representative at: http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/
Or, you can use the Open Congress website at: http://www.opencongress.org/bill/hr3478-113
Here's a model email that you can use. We strongly suggest you keep it simple and to the point:
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Steve Hanner on
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This one piece of legislation could go a long way toward protecting our rights no matter where we go!
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Permalink Reply by John Bamford on
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That is much more than we have in the UK, I would push for it if I was a US citizen.
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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by Terry Ray on -
This is looking good to me, copy paste send , !!!
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FeaturedPermalink Reply by Charles Sample on -
I have emailed Congressman Mo Brooks of Alabama asking him to cosponsor and support the bill.
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Permalink Reply by Michael Kelley Sr. on
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Just emailed my Congresswoman Lee, 13th District CA. Glad I read this post since I had already RSVP'ed to attend a Town Hall meeting tomorrow morning. Hope to be able to discuss this matter or at least hand her or an aide a copy of my support for KOPA.
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Permalink Reply by Jan Carter on
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My email is done also! Michael, your post led me to be sure I notified the entire membership on the newsletter!
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FeaturedPermalink Reply by Charles Sample on -
I emailed my congressman, Mo Brooks. Here is his reply.
Dear Mr. Sample:
Thank you for contacting me to share your views regarding H.R. 3478, the Knife Owners' Protection Act of 2013.
Representative Matt Salmon of Arizona introduced H.R. 3478 on November 13, 2013. This legislation seeks to protect the right of law-abiding citizens to transport knives interstate, notwithstanding a patchwork of local and state prohibitions.
H.R. 3478 was referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary on November 13. Although I am not a member of this committee, please know that I will keep your views in mind should this or similar legislation come to the full House of Representatives for a vote.
Quite frankly, and absent changes to the bill that undermine its apparent purpose, I am inclined to support it with my vote.
Please feel free to contact me again in the future. You may wish to visit my website at http://brooks.house.gov/ for additional information about issues and legislation before Congress.
Sincerely,Mo Brooks
Member of Congress
MB/lp
Washington DC Office
1230 Longworth HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: (202) 225-4801
Fax: (202) 225-439
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Wow someone with sense!
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