Bikinis, surfboards and battle-axes?

HONOLULU (AP):

Hawaii’s tourist hotspot of Waikiki is known for bikinis, shopping and surfboards. But resident Andrew Roberts has recently introduced a different item on evening walks through his neighbourhood: a long-poled battle-axe.

Roberts, director of the nonprofit Hawaii Firearms Coalition, has been taking the 15th-century-style European halberd on strolls since May. That’s when Hawaii loosened its weapons laws in response to the US Supreme Court’s 2022 decision that Americans have a right to carry firearms in public for self-defence.

The so-called Bruen decision upended gun laws nationwide, but especially in Hawaii, which long had some of the country’s toughest restrictions – and some of the lowest rates of gun violence.

A subsequent federal appeals court ruling applied Bruen to the state’s ban on butterfly knives and found it unconstitutional. While that case and others related to Hawaii’s weapons laws continue to be litigated, lawmakers responded this year by passing a measure that generally allows deadly or dangerous weapons to be openly carried in public. Previously, anyone found armed with them was subject to immediate arrest.

The new law is providing opportunities for some to connect with Native Hawaiian and other cultures through traditional weapons. It’s also generating concern that as the display of weapons becomes more common, people will be more likely to use them.

In a statement, the Hawaii attorney general’s office stressed that the new law didn’t create a free-for-all when it comes to carrying weapons in public.

“The notion that you can just carry weapons however and wherever you want is simply not correct,” it said. “There are numerous existing laws and regulations that govern the use and possession of weapons in many respects. All of these laws will continue to be enforced.”

It remains a misdemeanour to carry the weapons in a concealed fashion, and the law increased the penalties for carrying them while committing a crime. It’s also illegal to carry a weapon in a way that threatens harm or terrorises other people.