and carrying a knife... it's quite important here
It sounds like NY state's laws on knives are broad and vague. While the law pays specific attention to a few particular kinds of knives (like switchblades) a 3-inch blade that doesn't meet any specific criteria can be judged an illegal "dangerous knife" if the owner says it's necessary for protection, even if it was never used or even brandished as a weapon. https://www.akti.org/state-knife-laws/new-york/
We're in this weird world where you can carry a gun around and it's considered your right to do so, and but carrying a pocketknife or a leatherman might be a crime. You can wear a t-shirt with a hate-speech slogan, and you can wear kkk robes, but the minute you put on the hood that obscures your face, or god forbid a ski-mask, that's when you've apparently crossed a line. How did we get here?
By someone always pushing the current boundaries as far as they’ll go.
If I walked down the street in the middle of the day, 3o years ago, with a ski mask on, in August - the police are going to want to ask me what might be going on.
The police flashing this statement like an advertisement for the mask law is a little gross to me. My civil liberties Spidey-sense goes off.
Well... it's New York, so it's unreasonably difficult to carry a firearm (at least, relative to basically every other US state).
That said, there are many states where you can carry a handgun without a permit, but certain kinds of knives are illegal.
> but the minute you put on the hood that obscures your face, or god forbid a ski-mask, that's when you've apparently crossed a line. How did we get here?
Hoods have been used at least since the mid-19th Century as a means of concealing identity while committing crimes. Aside from the KKK, they were also used by groups like the Baldknobbers: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bald_Knobbers
Anti-mask laws were historically a response to this sort of thing.
It looks like outside of NYC, no permit or license or registration is required to carry a rifle or shotgun in the state of New York. The handgun "pistol license" requirements have recently been revised after the previous version were slapped down by the courts -- license applicants can no longer be required to provide a "proper cause" for why you need a permit. So you can walk down the same block this guy did carrying a shotgun, but not a knife.
https://www.nraila.org/gun-laws/state-gun-laws/new-york/ https://www.timesunion.com/capitol/article/supreme-court-ord...
> The circumstances in the Richards case were that the defendant was a casual street vendor seeking to interest a buyer to purchase a Sponge Bob balloon. His persistence led to a police intervention wherein a knife with a 3-inch blade was discovered in his back pocket. The description of the knife did not place it in either category of knives restricted in New York. He explained the purpose for his possession of the knife:
>> That’s for my protection. I need it because of drug dealers. I make $500 a week and drug dealers are out to get me.
> The defendant did not display or brandish the knife, which had remained in his pocket. He was charged with criminal possession under § 265.01 and with disorderly conduct. The court, guided by the reasoning of the case of Matter of Jamie D, observed that a dangerous knife is one that may be used as a weapon, and since the defendant stated that it was for his protection, his purpose made it a weapon, and therefore a dangerous knife.
I.e. carrying a small blade becomes illegal, even if never used as a weapon, or displayed in threat, if the person carrying it mentions defense as a reason for having it. IIUC, there's no established lower-bound on what kind of knife can be considered "dangerous" on these grounds -- if I carry a tiny keychain pocket knife and say that it is for protection, I can be judged to have an illegal "dangerous knife." That seems pretty silly.