A machete behind my seat...

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  • Brick House

    Plinker
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Feb 13, 2011
    137
    16
    Plainfield IN.
    I have a Question..I carry a Machete behind the seat in my truck, Not for self defense, but for when I go Fishing and Hunting and need to clear unwanted brush and weeds from my area. My father inlaw saw it and told me I could get in big trouble if a LEO saw it back there. Is this true??? Why would I be I allowed to carry a Loaded .45 but not a Machete ??? :dunno:
     

    Brick House

    Plinker
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Feb 13, 2011
    137
    16
    Plainfield IN.
    I was pulled over once and the police officer asked if I had any weapons and I said a pocket knife, and he took it from me and opened it and laid it on the hood of my car and Measured it. He said if it would have been over 4 inches I would have been in Big Trouble..So I think there is a blade limit.
     

    M67

    Grandmaster
    Rating - 100%
    23   0   0
    Jan 15, 2011
    6,181
    63
    Southernish Indiana
    I was pulled over once and the police officer asked if I had any weapons and I said a pocket knife, and he took it from me and opened it and laid it on the hood of my car and Measured it. He said if it would have been over 4 inches I would have been in Big Trouble..So I think there is a blade limit.

    In Indiana? I thought the only knife law in Indiana was that it couldn't be an automatic :dunno:
     

    grunt soldier

    Master
    Rating - 100%
    71   0   0
    May 20, 2009
    4,910
    48
    hamilton county
    your fine. i carry a machete in my truck at all times too. there is no law against it. in indiana the only real crazy knife laws are you can't have a auto and you can't have ninja stars lol. but you can carry any size blade you want.
     

    Love the 1911

    Sharpshooter
    Rating - 100%
    6   0   0
    Oct 20, 2010
    512
    18
    There are local ordinances that prohibit blades of certain lengths. I'm not sure what douche bag is carrying a tape measure to enforce such things but I haven't heard of it being enforced by any of my coworkers. The "big trouble" you'd be in? A citation and we could seize your knife.
     

    Brick House

    Plinker
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Feb 13, 2011
    137
    16
    Plainfield IN.
    The Douchbag with the Tape Measure was a Speedway Police Officer, and this happened several years ago. I also had a Belt made out of a Chrome Motor Cycle chain, that my mom bought me from a guy she worked with, that made Novelty gifts out of motorcycle parts, and the cop took it,and said it was a weapon and I had to jump through a bunch of legal hoops to get it back. I'm So glad I moved out of Speedway.
     

    Brick House

    Plinker
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Feb 13, 2011
    137
    16
    Plainfield IN.
    No , I'm just trying to guess what reason a Leo would use to try to Ticket or even arrest me for having a Machete hidden in my vehicle. They can come up with any reason if they feel the need to. , For example, I have been pulled over before because " My vehicle fit the description of one just used in a crime"...the oldest trick in the book to pull someone over that has not broken the law.
     

    PistolBob

    Grandmaster
    Rating - 100%
    4   0   0
    Oct 6, 2010
    5,387
    83
    Midwest US
    The Douchbag with the Tape Measure was a Speedway Police Officer, and this happened several years ago. I also had a Belt made out of a Chrome Motor Cycle chain, that my mom bought me from a guy she worked with, that made Novelty gifts out of motorcycle parts, and the cop took it,and said it was a weapon and I had to jump through a bunch of legal hoops to get it back. I'm So glad I moved out of Speedway.


    Was his name Dine by any chance?
     

    RichardR

    Master
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    0   0   0
    Aug 21, 2010
    1,764
    36
    I had a machete in one of my vehicles "confiscated" once, they said I could pick it up downtown Indy at the property room, I told them to keep it, as it would have cost me more in gasoline & parking than it was worth.

    I am not sure why it was "confiscated" or why the rest of my camping gear wasn't "confiscated" as well, but it sure did leave a bad impression on me with regards to douche-bag officers doing what ever they wanted, regardless of the legality.
     

    451_Detonics

    Grandmaster
    Rating - 100%
    6   0   0
    Mar 28, 2010
    8,085
    63
    North Central Indiana
    LEO's are often the most misinformed folks around when it comes to "laws". They are not lawyers nor have most actually read the Indiana statutes. Mostly they rely on what they have heard or been told.

    There are local ordinances that prohibit blades of certain lengths.

    I think you could easily argue the preemption law on a local ordinance if it came down to that. However the only length ordinance I could find applied to minors only in Merrillville.
     
    Last edited:

    ChalupaCabras

    Expert
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    3   0   0
    Jan 30, 2009
    1,374
    48
    LaPorte / Kingsbury
    Cops don't come from magical LEO farms - they come from the general population.

    Thus they are mistaken ever bit as often as, and have all the morals and ethcis of, the random Joe you bump into on the street.
     

    451_Detonics

    Grandmaster
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    6   0   0
    Mar 28, 2010
    8,085
    63
    North Central Indiana
    I disagree...by the very virtue of being an Law Enforcement Officer they should be able to be held to a higher standard. If they feel a need to enforce a law then they have a need to know what that law is. The firearms and weapons laws of Indiana are actually very simple and easily understood. It is an area that I would think LEO's would make sure they are familiar with.
     
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