For the past 52 years it has been unlawful to possess a gravity knife in New York. However, it has only been within the last year that the criminal justice system has significantly turned its attention to this type of weapon. Initially, a large-scale investigation revealed that major retailers have been illegally selling gravity knives in great quantities for a number of years. The Court of Appeals then clarified the requirements for a jurisdictionally sufficient misdemeanor complaint charging a defendant with possession of a gravity knife. Finally, the Court will return to the subject of gravity knives next year when it hears arguments concerning the quantum of knowledge necessary to support a lawful stop and frisk when a suspect is in possession of what appears to be an illegal gravity knife.
The gravity knife was originally designed for use by paratroopers in World War II who needed to cut themselves free from a parachute that had become tangled in a tree or other obstruction. The knife could be opened by using only one hand; the user pointed the knife downward and the blade became free from the force of gravity and the flick of the wrist.
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