Quick Legal Facts
Statewide Preemption:
Limited to traveling within the state.
Concealed Carry:
Carrying a concealed knife in Colorado with a blade in excess of three-and-one-half inches (3½") in length is a violation of law.
Schools:
Deadly weapons may not be possessed on school grounds. This applies to all educational levels, kindergarten through post-graduate.
Major Cities with Knife Ordinances:
Denver Sec. 38-117. - Dangerous or deadly weapons—Prohibitions. Unlawful to carry, use or wear any knife with a blade greater than three-and-one-half (3-1/2) inches in length.
Critical Dimensions:
Three-and-a-half inches.
The Colorado State Constitution recognizes and preserves the right of people to keep and bear arms in defense of themselves, their homes and their property, but also provides that it does not “justify” the practice of carrying concealed weapons.
The right of no person to keep and bear arms in defense of his home, person and property, or in aid of the civil power when thereto legally summoned, shall be called in question; but nothing herein contained shall be construed to justify the practice of carrying concealed weapons.·
C.R.S.A. Const. Art. 2, § 13
The laws regarding the possession of knives and edged weapons in Colorado may be found at Title 18, and in particular, Article 12 (Offenses Relating to Firearms and Weapons).
Forbidden:
Any “switchblade knife,” “gravity knife,” or “ballistic knife” is illegal. § 18-12-102. These specific types of knives are statutorily defined in § 18-12-101. The bias toward closure language, in the definition in the Federal Switchblade Act, is not part of Colorado law.
Note: 2017 Colorado SB 0008 will repeal this prohibition of automatic and gravity knives from the definition of illegal weapons. This legislation will be effective 90 days after the end of the 2017 legislative session, or approximately August 9, 2017. Caution: The blade length of an illegal concealed knife in Colorado remains at in excess of three-and-one-half inches (3½”).
Sale/Transfer:
The forbidden or prohibited knives, “switchblade, gravity or ballistic”, cannot be sold, since they cannot legally be possessed.
Concealment/Carrying:
Carrying a concealed knife in Colorado with a blade in excess of three-and-one-half inches (3½”) in length is a violation of law. The Colorado concealed weapon statute provides that it is a crime to carry a knife concealed on or about the person. § 18-12-105(1)(a). “Knife” is statutorily defined as follows:
{f) “Knife” means any dagger, dirk, knife, or stiletto with a blade over three and one-half inches in length, or any other dangerous instrument capable of inflicting cutting, stabbing, or tearing wounds, but does not include a hunting or fishing knife carried for sports use. The issue that a knife is a hunting or fishing knife must be raised as an affirmative defense.
Affirmative defense means that the burden on the knife owner to prove that he or she was carrying a knife for sports use and that the knife qualifies as a hunting or fishing knife.
It is legal to carry a knife with a blade length of less than three-and-one-half (3-1/2) inches either openly or concealed. The Colorado Supreme Court has interpreted the unlawful carrying statute as prohibiting the conviction of a person for carrying a knife with a blade less than three-and-one-half inches (3½”) in length, absent proof that the person intended to use the knife as a weapon. Moreover, such intent cannot be inferred solely from the appearance of the knife in question. A.P.E., a Juvenile v. The PEOPLE of the State of Colorado, 20 P.3d 1179 (Colorado Supreme Court 2001).
Critical Dimensions:
Three-and-a-half inches–any blade length longer than three-and-a-half inches is a “knife,” which cannot legally be carried concealed, with specific exceptions for hunting, fishing or sport use.
Statewide Preemption:
Section § 18-12-105.6 offers limited protection to knife owners by providing that state law prevails when someone is traveling in a private vehicle or other private means of transportation. However, if you are not traveling in a private vehicle, local laws may apply.
Schools:
Deadly weapons may not be possessed on school grounds. This applies to all educational levels, elementary through university (K through post-graduate). § 18-12-105.5. For purposes of this section, the definition of deadly weapon includes a knife (a defined term as set forth above). There are several exceptions, including a knife stored inside a vehicle.