I just posted a Blackhawk Be-Wharned knife review at our sister site, GunsHolstersAndGear.com.
Knives in law enforcement have been somewhat controversial recently. Frankly, I do not understand why. After all, a knife is a common tool that is carried and used by millions of people in the United States every single day. Why should it be any less useful for a police officer?
Part of the issue is the perception that a police officer using a knife in self-defense would somehow be seen as an unreasonable use of force per se. Never mind what the laws state, or what courts have determined in the past. In the minds of many, the simple act of using a knife to defend one’s self is horrible.
The thing about a police officer using a knife for self defense is: it is a seriously last ditch effort to save one’s life. No police officer I have ever met would look to close the reactionary gap to knife distance to use the knife. If deadly force is needed, the officer would much rather use a firearm – a tool that offers greater distance – that is accepted by the public and that he or she has received training with.
Here’s my bottom line: every police officer should carry a quality blade to use as a tool. That tool can be used for a myriad of reasons on each and every patrol shift. However, that tool should also be available for use by the officer as a self defense tool if the circumstances are such that deadly force is reasonable. Purpose built self defense knives are also completely acceptable for law enforcement officers.
The one thing that I wish departments would do is to incorporate some knife training into annual defensive tactics classes. Officers aren’t expected to use a knife for self-defense on any regular basis, but it is a foreseeable act.