Criminals in Lederhosen?

In Austria, a new “Knife-Carrying Prohibition Act” is expected to enter into force in the future. However, the draft legislation provides for a long list of exceptions. The issue of carrying a traditional costume knife will be particularly interesting. Accordingly, carrying such a traditional knife is to be considered lawful from the moment a person wears lederhosen that have a dedicated sheath for storing a traditional costume knife. As a logical consequence, there would therefore effectively be nothing preventing the carrying of such a knife, for example at the Wiener Wiesn, unless the organiser explicitly prohibits the carrying of any weapon.

Whether the law will lead to lederhosen becoming increasingly popular in criminal circles remains to be seen.