<P> The laws restricting knife ownership, use, possession and sale are nearly identical to the laws of Scotland and the rest of the UK, though contained in different acts . In 2008, in response to a surge in public concern over knife - related crimes, Northern Ireland doubled the prison sentence for persons convicted of possessing a knife deemed to be an offensive weapon in a public place to four years' imprisonment, and added an evidential presumption in favour of prosecution for possession of a knife . </P> <P> Under the Switchblade Knife Act of 1958 (amended 1986, codified at 15 U.S.C. § § 1241--1245), switchblades and ballistic knives are banned from interstate shipment, sale, or importation, or possession within the following: any territory or possession of the United States, i.e. land belonging to the U.S. federal government; Indian lands (as defined in section 1151 of title 18); and areas within the maritime or territorial jurisdiction of the federal government, with the exception of federal, state law enforcement agencies and the military . In addition, federal laws may prohibit the possession or carrying of any knife on certain federal properties such as courthouses or military installations . U.S. federal laws on switchblades do not apply to the possession or sale of switchblade knives within a state's boundaries; the latter is regulated by the laws of that particular state, if any . </P> <P> Occasional disputes over what constitutes a switchblade knife under federal law has occasionally resulted in U.S. Customs seizures of knives from U.S. importers or manufacturers . In one case the seizure of a shipment of Columbia River Knife & Tool knives resulted in an estimated US $1 million loss to the company before the shipment was released . </P> <P> Amendment 1447 to the Switchblade Knife Act (15 U.S.C. § 1244), signed into law as part of the FY2010 Homeland Security Appropriations Bill on October 28, 2009, provides that the Act shall not apply to spring - assist or assisted - opening knives (i.e. knives with closure - biased springs that require physical force applied to the blade to assist in opening the knife). </P>

Is it illegal to carry a knife in your car