Expandable Batons in Missouri?

[Bark'n]

Does anyone know if civilian possession of a expandable baton such as an ASP is legal or not?

I have a friend who is wanting to get one. I advised against it as I believed it was unlawful for civilians.

Since I have been looking through Missouri's statutes and so far all I can find is Blackjacks being illegal. However the definition appears to be so broad as to include almost anything.

Definitions.

571.010. As used in this chapter:

(1) "Antique, curio or relic firearm" means any firearm so defined by the National Gun Control Act, 18 U.S.C. Title 26, Section 5845, and the United States Treasury/Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, 27 CFR Section 178.11:

(a) Antique firearm is any firearm not designed or redesigned for using rim fire or conventional center fire ignition with fixed ammunition and manufactured in or before 1898, said ammunition not being manufactured any longer; this includes any matchlock, wheel lock, flintlock, percussion cap or similar type ignition system, or replica thereof;

(b) Curio or relic firearm is any firearm deriving value as a collectible weapon due to its unique design, ignition system, operation or at least fifty years old, associated with a historical event, renown personage or major war;

(2) "Blackjack" means any instrument that is designed or adapted for the purpose of stunning or inflicting physical injury by striking a person, and which is readily capable of lethal use...
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Unlawful use of weapons--exceptions--penalties.

571.030. 1. A person commits the crime of unlawful use of weapons if he or she knowingly:

(1) Carries concealed upon or about his or her person a knife, a firearm, a blackjack or any other weapon readily capable of lethal use; or

(2) Sets a spring gun; or

Does anyone here have a clear explanation or can point me to a source for anything which specifically mentions batons, expandable or otherwise?

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[KenpoTex]

Having read the MO statutes more times than I care to remember, I don't recall any specific legislation regarding batons. They pretty much fall under the Blackjack category in MO law.

That said, there is an exemption under the CCW law (if you have a CCW you can carry them...at least that's how I read it).

571.030. 1. A person commits the crime of unlawful use of weapons if he or she knowingly:

(1) Carries concealed upon or about his or her person a knife, a firearm, a blackjack or any other weapon readily capable of lethal use; or

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4. Subdivisions (1), (8), and (10) of subsection 1 of this section shall not apply to any person who has a valid concealed carry endorsement issued pursuant to sections 571.101 to 571.121 or a valid permit or endorsement to carry concealed firearms issued by another state or political subdivision of another state.

[Bark'n]

Thanks Kenpo... I was asking for a friend who does not have ccw. I was under the same impression as you when I read the law. And that is what I told my friend last weekend when he first asked me about ASP batons.

Since I posted that, I was checking with a couple of LEO's I know. They said Missouri law considers expandable batons to be a "martial arts tool" and are legal for citizens to carry.

I know they are not lawyers, but they are the ones who makes the arrests on the street for weapons offenses.

I talked with 3 different LEO's and they all said the same thing. They didn't even hesitate when I pointed out the definition of a Blackjack in the statute saying how vague and broad reaching the definition was.

They all rejected that and said, as far as State law is concerned, expandable batons are martial arts tools and legal to carry.

Eventually, I'll get around to asking an attorney, but in the mean time, I passed the info on to my friend with the caveat that all the opinions I got were from cops and not attorneys.

Anyway, thanks for responding!

[KenpoTex]

I would be very interested in seeing a citation for the "martial-arts tool" thing since I don't recall ever seeing anything of the kind in Missouri law.