NO, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO REGISTER YOUR HANDS WITH THE POLICE
The first time I ever heard this, I think it was on an episode of Happy Days. I know, I just dated myself. One of the characters was talking about someone being a black belt and having to register their hands with the police as deadly weapons. I’ve heard it a few times since, but always as a joke. Someone at a party hears you’re a black belt, and they saunter over. “So, I hear you’re a black belt. Did you have to register your hands with the police as deadly weapons?” Everyone has a laugh, of course, and you pretend you haven’t heard this line a thousand times already. Well, apparently, it’s not just a joke where some people are concerned.
A MYTH THAT WON’T DIE
A few weeks ago, while researching for my new book, an unrelated page popped up. Some guys were seriously debating whether or not you have to register your hands as deadly weapons. They weren’t being facetious. They had been told by someone that they absolutely had to and were quite concerned about it. Some of the smarter posters tried to assure them they didn’t have to. Others were adamant that yes, they certainly did. Let me slip this in here. Relax, you do NOT have to register your hands with the police as deadly weapons, no matter what belt you have. It also doesn’t matter what style you’ve studied.
THERE’S NO LAW
There’s no law, at least in this country, that I’m aware of that says your hands must be registered with the police as weapons when you get a black belt. Now, that doesn’t mean you can’t get in trouble if you use your skills in a fight. There are actually cases where boxers and martial artists have been given harsher sentences because the prosecutor has found out about their martial arts training. I actually delve into one in some detail in my upcoming book.
THE ONLY TIME YOU MIGHT REGISTER THEM
So everyone relax. You do not have to walk in, or call, your local police and let them know you’ve just got your black belt. The only time they’re going to be interested in “registering” them for you is if you’ve committed a crime. At that point, they’ll take your fingerprints and enter them into the system, and it won’t matter if you’re a black belt or not. If you’ve committed any type of crime, they’ll be only too happy to register them.
POLL THE POLICE
It would actually be a fun exercise to see how many cops manning the front desk, or phones, at work have fielded an inquiry like this. I’m sure, based on what I read, that there’s been some. I’m not blaming the kids, either. There are so many charlatans in the martial arts and so many myths that won’t die, the kids have almost no chance.
