Brass knuckles are not outright illegal in Mississippi, but carrying them concealed in public is. Mississippi Code § 97-37-1 lists “metallic knuckles” among the weapons you cannot carry concealed on or about your person, and a first conviction is a misdemeanor punishable by a $100 to $500 fine and up to six months in jail.1Justia. Mississippi Code 97-37-1 – Deadly Weapons; Carrying While Concealed; Use or Attempt to Use; Penalties; “Concealed” Defined Owning a pair, keeping them at home, or storing them in your car is a different matter, and the statute carves out exemptions for all three.
Owning Versus Carrying
The statute targets concealed carry, not possession. You do not violate § 97-37-1 just by owning brass knuckles. The offense triggers when you carry them hidden on your person in a public place without an applicable exemption.1Justia. Mississippi Code 97-37-1 – Deadly Weapons; Carrying While Concealed; Use or Attempt to Use; Penalties; “Concealed” Defined
The law’s definition of “concealed” was written with holstered firearms in mind: a weapon in a visible sheath, belt holster, shoulder holster, scabbard, or carrying case is not considered concealed. Brass knuckles don’t fit any of that in practice. If they’re in your pocket or up your sleeve, they’re concealed, and the statute applies.
What About Plastic or Polymer Knuckles?
The statute names “metallic knuckles” specifically.1Justia. Mississippi Code 97-37-1 – Deadly Weapons; Carrying While Concealed; Use or Attempt to Use; Penalties; “Concealed” Defined Plastic, carbon fiber, and polymer knuckle-style devices are not listed by name. That is not a green light. The same statute also prohibits carrying any concealed “deadly weapon” as a catchall, and a prosecutor can argue that hard polymer knuckles built to increase striking force qualify. The material loophole is thinner than it looks.
Where You Can Legally Keep Brass Knuckles
Anyone over 18 can legally carry a concealed deadly weapon, including metallic knuckles, in three places:1Justia. Mississippi Code 97-37-1 – Deadly Weapons; Carrying While Concealed; Use or Attempt to Use; Penalties; “Concealed” Defined
- Inside your home and on the real property attached to it.
- Inside your place of business and its associated property.
- Inside any motor vehicle.
A separate exemption covers legitimate weapon-related sports activities such as hunting, target shooting, or fishing, along with travel to and from them. Brass knuckles don’t fit any recognized sporting use, so this exemption is unlikely to help.
Section 97-37-1 opens with “Except as otherwise provided in Section 45-9-101,” Mississippi’s concealed carry license statute. That section is written around firearm permits, and it is not clear that a concealed carry license extends to non-firearm weapons like brass knuckles. Assume it does not.
Penalties for a Concealed-Carry Conviction
A first offense under § 97-37-1 is a misdemeanor. The court can impose a fine between $100 and $500, up to six months in county jail, or both, with the judge choosing where within that range your sentence lands.1Justia. Mississippi Code 97-37-1 – Deadly Weapons; Carrying While Concealed; Use or Attempt to Use; Penalties; “Concealed” Defined
If brass knuckles are used to hurt someone, separate assault charges follow, and the fact that Mississippi classifies the weapon as deadly works against you at sentencing. A misdemeanor conviction also creates a criminal record that Mississippi does not automatically expunge, so it can surface on background checks for years.
School Property Is a Separate, Stricter Rule
Bringing brass knuckles onto school grounds is its own offense under § 97-37-17, and it applies whether the knuckles are hidden or in plain view. The penalties are steeper: a fine of up to $1,000 and up to six months in jail.2Justia. Mississippi Code 97-37-17 – Possession of Weapons by Students; Aiding or Encouraging
“Educational property” is defined broadly to cover public and private school buildings, campuses, athletic fields, recreational areas, school buses, and property operated by school boards, colleges, or universities.2Justia. Mississippi Code 97-37-17 – Possession of Weapons by Students; Aiding or Encouraging Adults who help or encourage a minor under 18 bring brass knuckles onto that property face the same fine and jail exposure.
Selling or Giving Knuckles to Minors or Intoxicated People
Mississippi Code § 97-37-13 makes it illegal to sell, give, or lend any weapon whose concealed carry is prohibited to someone under 18 or to someone you know to be intoxicated. Because brass knuckles are named in § 97-37-1, they are covered.3Justia. Mississippi Code 97-37-13 – Deadly Weapons; Selling, Giving, or Lending to Minors or Intoxicated Persons A conviction carries a fine of up to $1,000 and up to one year in county jail, actually a harsher jail maximum than the first-offense concealed-carry penalty.
Self-Defense Doesn’t Cure an Illegal-Carry Charge
Mississippi is a stand-your-ground state. Under § 97-3-15, a person who is not the initial aggressor and is not engaged in unlawful activity has no duty to retreat before using defensive force in a place they have a right to be.4FindLaw. Mississippi Code Title 97 Crimes 97-3-15 The statute talks about defensive force generally, not just firearms.
Self-defense applies to the use of force, though, not to the possession offense. Someone illegally carrying concealed brass knuckles who then uses them defensively might beat an assault charge and still be convicted for carrying the weapon in the first place. Worse, because stand-your-ground protection requires that you not be engaged in “unlawful activity,” an illegal concealed-carry can undermine the defense itself.4FindLaw. Mississippi Code Title 97 Crimes 97-3-15 Keeping brass knuckles at home for protection is legal. Putting them in your pocket and heading downtown is not.