Judges Reject Conviction of Man with Ninja Sword

SALEM, Ore. (CN) - A man carrying a ninja sword should not have been convicted of carrying a concealed weapon, the Oregon Court of Appeals ruled.

James Turner was riding his bicycle when a police officer noticed "three or four inches" of a sword handle between his back and backpack.

The officer removed it and found another sword in the other compartment of a double sheath. He was arrested and convicted of carrying a concealed weapon.

Judge Turner overturned the verdict, saying evidence of the second sword should have been suppressed.

The officer "could readily identify the sword as a sword, based on the visible portion of it," the judge wrote.

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