LUBBOCK, Texas — Texans will soon be able to buy and legally use brass knuckles this Fall.
Jay White, the owner of Big Sky Tae Kwon Do, said if you decide to buy them, you need to be careful.
“It’s going to be tucked away. A female’s going to have it away in their purse.“ White said. “You know, how can you get to that tool quickly in a self-defense situation? You have to train that way. It’s a mind set. It’s not just, ‘I have it there’ and ‘Oh my’ I get attacked. It’s ‘Oh my, I’ve gotten attacked.’ Get my distance. Then I know where my tool’s at.“
According to a CNN article, up to the point, possessing knuckles was a Class A misdemeanor. If you were caught with them, you could have gone to jail for a year or pay a maximum fine of $4,000.
Supporters of the bill argue, “Knuckles are primarily a defensive tool“ and shouldn’t be associated with prohibited weapons.
White said he used to work for Lubbock Police and he teaches self-defense.
“Realistically, they have to use their hands on first,“ White said. “You’re going to be caught off guard. So once I create that distance going hands on. Then you can deploy those tools to help you in a self-defense situation.”
He said he thinks your hands are your best bet to fend off an attacker and it takes skill to use a weapon correctly.
“Ultimately comes down to, that device can be used against you,” White said. “It can be taken away from you. Doesn’t matter what it is. It could be a knife, a hand gun, anything. If you’re not used to training with it, it can be taken away from you.”
This law comes after lawmakers removed switchblades from the same banned list in 2013.
