New York’s ban overruled, but possession of nunchucks is still a felony in California — for now

A federal court has ruled New York’s ban on nunchucks unconstitutional more than 40 years after the state outlawed the weapon.

U.S. District Judge Pamela K. Chen wrote in a Friday ruling that nunchucks are protected under the Second Amendment, referencing a 2010 Supreme Court ruling (McDonald et al v. Chicago) that extends the amendment’s reach into state laws, as reported by the Washington Post and others Tuesday.

Martial arts enthusiasts, rejoice. Nunchucks had been banned in the Empire State since 1974.

But what the rest of the country?

Following the recent ruling, Massachusetts, Arizona and California are now the three states that ban not just use, but possession of the weapon. Because the ruling involved a federal court and invoked the Second Amendment, there may now be solid precedent for those states’ bans to be overturned.

As stated in Section 22010 of the California penal code: “... any person in this state who manufactures or causes to be manufactured, imports into the state, keeps for sale, or offers or exposes for sale, or who gives, lends, or possesses any nunchaku is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year,” with possession a felony offense.

Notably, the Sacramento County man who was charged with the September murder of sheriff’s deputy Mark Stasyuk this September had a long criminal history that included a pivotal felony conviction involving nunchucks.

During an April 2008 nuisance call in West Sacramento, police officers searched the vehicle of Anthony Lemon Paris, who will next appear in court February 2019 for the shooting death of Stasyuk and attempted murder of another deputy at a Rancho Cordova Pep Boys store.

During the 2008 search, officers found found a loaded Glock handgun, ammunition, marijuana, an illegally modified Ruger rifle and a set of homemade nunchucks.

Paris, who had worked as a security guard, claimed the nunchucks were actually a broken security baton. They were, in fact, two wooden dowels connected by rope, as The Bee reported.

A Yolo County jury in a 2010 trial was hung on most counts, but convicted Paris of felony nunchuck possession, as well as enhancements to that crime.

An investigation into court and criminal records by The Bee determined that the nunchuck conviction ended up listed on Paris’ rap sheet as a misdemeanor, a mistake on which the California Department of Justice declined to comment, citing privacy laws.

Paris went on to face two misdemeanor charges in 2016 after Citrus Heights police found him with a loaded handgun in his car, court records show.

Law enforcement experts indicated to The Bee that the nunchuck mistake potentially had implications on Paris’ later encounters with law and the seriousness with which his later firearms incidents were handled. Because felons are barred from owning firearms, the 2016 firearms charges could have been charged as felonies rather than misdemeanors, had the 2010 felony been properly recorded.

Most statistics involving violent crimes do not break down weapon categories. A 2017 FBI uniform crime report found that out of about 811,000 reported aggravated assaults in the U.S., just over 31 percent involved “other weapons,” which includes weapons aside from firearms, cutting instruments or personal weapons (such as fists or feet).

The most recent statistics published online by the California Department of Justice, using data from 2001 to 2006, found that aggravated assaults making use of “other dangerous weapons” dropped year-over-year, from 51,000 total in 2001 to about 29,300 in 2006.

Nunchucks’ popularity peaked in the 1970s, thanks in part to their use by martial artist Bruce Lee. They were later featured prominently in the “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” TV shows and movies.

In Northern California, the Anderson Police Department controversially added nunchucks to its nonlethal weapons arsenal.

In states that allow them, nunchucks are most commonly used in martial arts classes.

This story was originally published December 19, 2018 at 3:00 AM.