July 28, 2005
Mistaken Identity Leads to Thumb Severing by Machete
A teenager's thumb was severed during a machete attack yesterday afternoon. A group of boys thought that Robert Bell had stolen a cell phone (the papers report the gang was mistaken), and when Bell left summer school in the Bronx, the gang hit him with a baseball bat and then slashed his left hand. One person had walked by the bleeding Bell and didn't really react, "I thought [the thumb] was fake. That's why I didn't pay it any mind." The gang ran away, and Bell was taken to a hospital for surgery to reattach the thumb.
There had been a machete murder on a subway platform this past April, which just makes Gothamist wonder why are people walking around with machetes. Are machetes being sold everywhere? We supposed if you really want to get your hands on one, you can, but sheesh, this is nuts. Or should we be carrying around machetes or those canes with the swords in them? Let's hope the police are okay with looking for machetes during their bag checks along with homemade bombs in faux-Tupperware.
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Kids suck.
If you ran into a cop carrying your new machete, you'd be arrested instantly.
Public Safety Statute 10-133
Formerly 436-5.1
Possession of knives or instruments.
"It shall be unlawful for any person to carry on his or her person or have in such person's possession, in any public place, street or park any knife which has a blade length of four inches or more."
I carried my Samurai Sword home and the police didnt give me any problems.
They probably didnt want to risk annoying me . . .
This just goes to show you that if people are violent they will make do with whatever they have, be it guns, knives, rocks, bricks, cars....
Laws will only help to put violent people away, after the fact. There needs to be more attention paid to the root causes of violent behaviour.
I smell Machete Checkpoints soon. "Stop Maam MACHETE CHECK!"
I carry a retractable baton in my bag (like this one: http://www.wle.com/products/W289.html). I never wondered if it's illegal. It's not a knife, just a miniature bo-stafff which retracts. What do you think?
Yes, retractable batons are illegal in New York state, just like nunchaku. You can be arrested for criminal possession of a weapon if they stop you for a bag search on the subway.
Machette's?? WTF?? Was he Hutu or Tutsi? Is this africa? Who the f()ck uses a machette?
Expandable batons AND nunchuks or illegal?? DAMN!!! What bout just walking around with a baseball bat with a nail sticking through the end?? Can I still carry that it my bag?
I've said it before - please limit your machete activity to only when the dead rise from the grave. Thanks.
I carry one of these so I can skewer machete-totin' misanthropes from a distance. It also comes in handy when I'm running late. I get all 'Crouching Tiger' on the subway: swipe my Metrocard and float down the stairs above the heads of all those commuters exiting the train I need to board. I usually get a seat, too.
I work out at a gym in Brooklyn. This is no Crunch--a lot of the kids who go there are Latin Kings. They've been telling me for a while that gangbangers in the neighborhood carry machetes. Easier to get than guns, apparently, and pretty damn tough-looking to boot. Doubt they give a rats about public safety statutes. Kids...go figure.
Seriously though - expandable batons, nunchucks, bo-staffs, ninja stars, knife blades over 4 inches, slingshots, etc. are illegal in this city. WTF? Law-abiding citizens can't carry these things around, but criminals can! I like knowing I have something in my bag in case I need to tap the keg of whoop-ass, but what am I supposed to carry?
I have a friend who ties a lock to the end of an athletic sock, 'cause who knows when you need to clock someone. Plus, you can always claim it's for the gym... I think that's the ticket for me. It's lighter than a 3 foot flashlight, too.
Man, it's a jungle out there.
(Sorry. Someone had to.)
Just carry Pepper Spray, it's legal for quite some time. You can buy it at your local pharmacy where they will log your purchase in to a book.
Or, just go to any gun show out of state and get all the pepper spray, expandable batons, auto knives, brass knuckles labled as a paper weight and stun guns you want. Handguns are a no no, long guns legal outside of NYC, don't bring them here.
I would stay with the pepper spray, all the others are too close contact.
Oh, a machete is one of the best tools for clearing thick brush if you're in the woods. How else are you going to find that hidden water fall gem that's waiting for you after a long hike?
I don't see the need to carry weapons.
Just learn the fine art of Kung Fu or Ninjitsu and you should be well prepared for any attack.
I find that the Tiger Claw fighting style is more then sufficient to subdue evil doers up to no good.
I had a friend who took Krav Maga, Israeli Kung Fu. He loved it, and some guy actually tried to start a fight with him on the street for no reason, and my friend did a quick takedown and nerve cluster strike. Seriously, and it gave my friend a chance to just slip away and avoid getting into more trouble
The classes are taught several places in the city, and it only takes 6 weeks to get comfortable with some of the moves.... I've thought about it for fun. Then again, I could just carry a machete...
what's with all this close contact stuff?
Distance is your friend, that and I'm too old to fight a young guy.
Just spray the attacker with pepper spray and run away.
what's with all this close contact stuff?
Distance is your friend, that and I'm too old to fight a young guy. yes, you too will get old.
Just spray the attacker with pepper spray and run away.
Yes, and so are machine guns, hand grenades, nerve gas and nuclear weapons. Maybe we should lift all the prohibitions, by your reasoning.
How about a little yarn with those KNITTING NEEDLES!!!
One could also crap their pants when confronted by a maniac with a machete in hopes that the stench will keep the attacker at bay. Crap twice, if the maniac has a really thick, curly mustache.
Yes, and so are machine guns, hand grenades, nerve gas and nuclear weapons. Maybe we should lift all the prohibitions, by your reasoning.
I thought that Gothamist readers were well-trained in the detection of sarcasm, but apparently not.
I walk around town with a cutlass tied to my belt. But I'm also always dressed as a pirate so cops just think I'm on my way to a costume party and the weapon's a fake. Arrrgh.
One word- Shibumi
Dude,
Since when do sarcastic posts start with "Seriously though..."?
Since when do sarcastic posts start with "Seriously though..."?
a) When you're talking about nunchucks, ninja stars, and bo staffs
b) When your handle is "dude"
c) When you're being sarcastic.
a) Only nitwits call nunchaku "nunchucks," shuriken "ninja stars" and bo "bo staffs." (Aside from the redundancy, any dictionary can tell you the correct plural form of "staff.")
b) Funny, I thought "huh" posted that message. Unless you're one of those people so fond of your own writing that you have multiple handles so you can argue with yourself.
c) Only in your own mind. Nobody else with a brain would do such a thing.
I am trained in the deadly art of Fuego de Culo. This was passed down through a prestigous line of taco chefs from Mexico. Any attacker comes near me, I incinerate them with the Asstec Breath of Death. And all I have to do is carry a spicy taco from Jackson Heights and a Bic lighter.
a) Only people who take themselves way too seriously would have actually written what you just did.
b) I'm actually a ninja - I can appear anywhere as anyone.
c) I vote you remove the "Bright" from Brightliner.
a)dude, I fully concur with you on a), b), and c).
b)We should just kill everyone in NYC with or without machete carrying cards.
c)Yes, above is just for sarcasm effect so please don't get all up on my ass on it. Thanks for your cooperation.