Knife in teenager’s bag

[MM]

I found a knife in the bag of a 13 yr old teenager when I was cleaning. I am not the parent but I work for the family. What should I do?

[142857]

Telling the parents is the right thing to do. But it risks drama.

If I needed the job I would not say anything.

[MM]

I just put the questionable items where the parents can see them. I never said anything . They never said anything. But that gave me som cooling down time.

They know the kid has a knife but it is different to keep it on a shelf or take it on a camping trip but not in a handbag when she goes out with her friends. But I suppose they should talk to their kids abou the proper handling of knives. The blade is not long enough to be illegal to carry but she could do some damage with it. More likely someone attacking her woild take it of her and use i one her. Best stradegy is to run away or avoid a confrontation.

[Grey Area]

You were cleaning the inside of the teenager's bag?

[142857]

I assume MM was looking for stinky clothes in the bag.

[MM]

I clean her room all the time.

[Silver Freeborn]

i used to bring a small knife places in my purse because teenagers, especially those who look like girls, can be in a lot of danger in the big bad world. I don’t now, but I have other things like my emergency flashlight/windshield shatterer/seatbelt slicer(protected blade, so it can’t be exposed but it is also useful for cutting paper in a jif)

[MM]

The problem with a small girl having a knife is that a larger person can take it away from them and then they have the weapon. A small girl thinks she is confident because she has a hidden weapon is not a good idea. She would be in much trouble if she did use it to wound someone.

Better to run away from trouble or avoid it in the first place.

[d_olson27]

A lot of teenagers (and adults) carry knives just as a tool. Personally, I don't think of the one I carry as a weapon. Although, if I were to be attacked, I wouldn't hesitate to use it as one, just like any other nearby object within reach.

I don't know. As long as the parents don't object, I'm just not seeing anything worth worrying about here.

[142857]

I would strongly recommend against most people carrying a knife for protection. It's a potentially dangerous escalation and you really only want to introduce a deadly weapon to a situation if you plan to use it and you are skilled in its use. Or you have very good general hand-to-hand combat skills. Which most people don't have.