FAST AS LIGHTNING

New York’s Ban on Nunchucks Ruled Unconstitutional

Were banned in 1974 after being popularized by kung-fu movies.

A federal court has ruled that New York’s ban on nunchucks is unconstitutional under the Second Amendment. The traditional martial-arts weapons were made famous by Bruce Lee, and have been banned in the state since 1974. Judge Pamela Chen issued her ruling Friday in federal court in Brooklyn that the ban is unconstitutional. The plaintiff, James Maloney, started his legal action after being charged with possession of nunchucks in his home in 2000. He said he wants wants to teach a form of martial art that he created—using nunchucks—to his sons. The ruling went over the history of the ban, and said it “arose out of a concern that, as a result of the rising popularity ‘of Kung Fu movies and shows,’ ‘various circles of the state’s youth’—including ‘muggers and street gangs’—were ‘widely’ using nunchaku to cause ‘many serious injuries.’”