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Posted by: kwflatbed


Photo by Herald staff
Machete attacks are erupting across the Bay State. Law enforcement are officials worried about the savage weapons, which can be bought in stores for as little as $25 with no questions asked.

Unregulated weapons used in at least 7 attacks in ’08

An eruption of machete attacks in cities across the Bay State has law enforcement officials worried about the savage weapons, which can be bought in stores for as little as $25 with no questions asked.
Since the start of 2008, there have been at least seven machete attacks in Boston, Lynn, Springfield and Chicopee, according to police reports and news accounts.
The brazen and bloody assaults include a daytime attack on a 15-year-old on City Hall Plaza in Boston, an after-school brawl that nearly severed the right thumb of a 16-year-old Lynn boy and a nighttime ambush on two people in Springfield. In total, the attacks have sent nine people to the hospital with serious injuries.
Nationally, attacks have been reported against police in New York and in Connecticut, Florida and California.
“It’s obviously a very dangerous implement. It can cause severe damage when wielded against another human being,” said Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley. “We’re very concerned when we see any uptick in violent crime. It has not yet reached epidemic proportions. It’s certainly something to pay attention to.”
Unlike firearms and certain kinds of swords and blades, the sales of machetes are not regulated. State law carries a 2- to 5-year prison term for anyone convicted of carrying a stiletto, dagger, dirk knife, switch knife, blowgun, blackjack, metallic knuckles, nunchaku, zoobow, kung fu sticks or a manrikigusari. Machetes aren’t on the list.
On Friday, a Herald reporter was able to purchase a sharp machete with an 18-inch blade for $25 from Kenmore Army & Navy Store in Downtown Crossing without any questions asked.
“As long as it’s not double-edge blade, dagger, dirk, stiletto or anything spring-activated, they can sell it,” said Boston Police Superintendent Daniel Linskey.
Cities such as Boston and Lynn have ordinances that prohibit people from carrying a blade longer than 2 inches. The Boston ordinance, introduced by Conley when he was a city councilor, also prohibits the sale of a knife having a blade with a length of 2 inches or more, an ice pick or straight-edged razor or razor blade fitted with a handle to those under 18. Street sales of the weapons are banned under the ordinance, which carries a civil fine of $300 per offense.
But enforcement of the ordinance can be confusing. If someone caught with a knife claims its use is for hunting, fishing or food preparation, an officer might not be able to confiscate it. With machetes, Linskey said, law enforcement is staring at a cultural divide.
“People involved come from cultures that use machetes like people use hammers and knives,” said Linskey, who described the three machete episodes that unfolded in Boston last month as “isolated incidents.”
“Some come from either South America or tropical islands where machetes are something that is as common as a lawnmower is here,” Linskey said.
That divide is manifesting itself in a frightening way among members of the El Salvadoran MS-13 gang and the Hispanic 18th Street gang, which have a foothold in parts of East Boston, Malden, Revere and Chelsea. “These two groups are well-known for gratuitous violence using knives and machetes,” Conley said. “It is a peculiar trend with those two groups.”
Lawrence Police Chief John Romero said he’s open to tighter regulations of machetes. He said the incidents of machete attacks in Lawrence are few, but “very vicious.”
“Why would anybody be carrying a machete in Massachusetts? What would be the purpose?” Romero said.

More on machetes:

• + Outbreaks of violence</SPAN>
• + Cheap and dangerous</SPAN>

http://bostonherald.com/news/regiona...icleid=1085266

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Posted by: HousingCop

Quote:

“Why would anybody be carrying a machete in Massachusetts? What would be the purpose?” Romero said.

Because they make a great toothpick. How about a 5 day waiting period to purchase one especially if you're covered in MS13 tatts? Why don't we legislate bricks, empty bottles, hammers, candlesticks and other various blunt instruments that can be used as deadly weapons? The point is, people will use whatever is handy to kill their opponent.

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Posted by: Wolfman

Romero has obviously never had to navigate through my backyard after a few months of landscaping neglect...

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Posted by: adroitcuffs

LOL, during my last shift, I drove by a guy who was using a machete to hack away at the shrubs he was cutting down in his front yard! Normal behavior in that 'hood.

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Posted by: Crvtte65

$8 at the coleman outlet store in Wrentham

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Posted by: misconceived

$13.00 in "Lynn Lynn City of Sin" Walmart.

Shocking.

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Posted by: SgtAndySipowicz

MS-13's favorite tool of trade........

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