The CCFR Week in Review

Trudeau blames Harper government for rising gun violence

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau used a Toronto Raptors event on Thursday to launch partisan attacks against the Conservatives, blaming the rise in gun violence on the government of former prime minister Stephen Harper.

Trudeau gave a short speech alongside president of the Toronto Raptors Masai Ujiri in Toronto at an OVO Athletic Centre announcement.

During his remarks, Trudeau made several digs at “Conservative politicians” for allegedly stoking fears around violent crime.

Read more at True North here

Feds urged to draft firearm rules ahead of 1st National Day Against Gun Violence

Two prominent gun-control groups are urging the Liberal government to proceed without delay in drafting regulations that will flesh out firearm legislation being reviewed by the Senate.

They say in a letter to Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino that it could “cost lives” if the government allows the process to drag on for years.

The letter, dated May 29, is signed by Heidi Rathjen, co-ordinator of PolySeSouvient, and Ken Price, spokesperson for Danforth Families for Safer Communities.

The groups also lay out several detailed recommendations for crafting regulations on the future classification of firearms, a ban on large-capacity magazines, a national handgun freeze and protection orders to assist victims of domestic violence.

In addition, they want the government to follow through on a commitment to toughen regulations on storage of guns by owners and retailers to prevent firearm theft.

In an interview, Mendicino said the immediate priority is getting the bill through the Senate so it can receive royal assent before Parliament’s summer break.

“First things first. Let’s get the bill passed,” he said.

“I am going to spare no effort. This has been my top legislative objective since taking on the role of minister of public safety."

Mendicino expects similar resistance from Tories in the upper chamber. “They want to do everything they possibly can to stall this legislation, and we can’t let that happen.”

The groups point to a previous, more modest Liberal gun-control bill, C-71. Though it was adopted in 2019, enabling regulations did not emerge until two years later and the measures came fully into effect only in 2022.

“We strongly urge that the government proceed with a sense of urgency to draft and adopt these new regulations so that they coincide as much as possible with the coming into force of Bill C-21 and will take effect before the next federal election.”

The government proposes to use existing regulation-making authorities under the Firearms Act to close a regulatory gap that allows a gun entering the Canadian market to potentially be misclassified, meaning appropriate restrictions would not be placed on the firearm.

The government says the new system would ensure it is aware of the presence of new makes and models of firearms before they are available for sale and that classifications are applied correctly.

Read more at Global News here

Quebec announces a further $5.7 million to combat gun violence and organized crime

Quebec is allocating $5.7 million to intensify police presence in "strategic locations" in the Montreal region.

Public Security Minister François Bonnardel made the announcement on Monday at the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) headquarters in Montreal.

The additional funding will be used to step up the fight against organized crime and armed violence in the region, he announced alongside representatives of various police services.

"More specifically, the money will be used to set up an intervention team dedicated exclusively to the fight against organized crime. It will be made up of 10 SQ officers who will work in collaboration with other police forces," said the Public Security Minister.

These officers will conduct "visibility operations" in bars, cafés and other public places known to be frequented by organized crime and gangs. They should be in the field on Oct. 1.

Read more at CTV News Montreal here

Brazen shooting prompts Mounties to host public outreach event

Ten days after shots rang out at a busy Coquitlam shopping complex in broad daylight, Coquitlam RCMP held a public outreach event to address public concerns.

The event took place at the Burke Mountain Discovery Centre, about a minute drive from where the shooting happened.

“This is an opportunity where residents, as well as businesses, can come and speak to our officers and our staff, which include Victim Services, block watch, any community support services,” said Cpl. Alexa Hodgins.

Kay Yoon was nearby when the shooting happened. Concerns about the public display of violence compelled her to attend Saturday’s event.

“We were out with kids, and it was kind of kind of scary to know that that happened so close to our neighborhood,” she said. “We just wanted to know to see if they have any strategies and plans in place so that we could feel safer in the neighbourhood.”

While Coquitlam RCMP have not said if this is gang-related and described the shooting as an isolated, targeted incident, they have recently formed a Gang Enforcement Team.

“Our gang task force was created with already existing detachment resources within the last couple months,” Hodgins said. “Coquitlam RCMP reallocated our resources to target violent offenders as well as persons-related crimes that have a nexus to criminal activity.”

Read more at CTV News Vancouver here

London man arrested for carrying loaded gun in downtown core

A 19-year-old London man has been arrested for being found with a loaded handgun in the city's downtown core over the weekend. 

London police say they were called to a business in the area of Carling and Richmond streets at approximately 2:50 a.m. on Sunday. They found the suspect who ran and was apprehended a short distance away without incident. 

The man had a quantity of drugs on his person in addition to the loaded firearm. 

The 19-year-old has been charged with the following: 

• Two (2) counts of possession of a prohibited or restrict weapon or device;
• Possession of a loaded regulated firearm;
• Unauthorized possession of a prohibited or restricted firearm;
• Careless storage of a firearm, weapon, prohibited device;
• Handle firearm, weapon, prohibited device or ammunition in a careless manner;
• Carry concealed weapon;
• Resist arrest; and,
• Possession of a Schedule I substance for the purpose of trafficking

Read more at CBC News here

.22 Caliber Single Shot Credit Card Sized Firearm Seized During Welland Firearms Investigation

On May 26th, 2023, at 8:34pm Niagara Regional Police Service (NRPS) officers assigned to 3 District (Welland / Pelham) responded to the intersection of East Main Street near Duncan Street, in the City of Welland regarding a motor vehicle collision.

Upon arrival, officers learned that a white 2015 Nissan Versa bearing Ontario registration #CVPE348 was driving erratically on East Main Street when it collided with a 2020 Chevrolet Trailblazer.  The two occupants of the Nissan Versa fled the collision scene on foot and were tracked to a nearby residence located on Crowland Avenue near York Street, in the City of Welland.  Both occupants were located and placed under arrest.

As this was occurring, an independent witness came forward and reported that the two occupants of the Nissan Versa were seen shooting at and attempting to run over two unknown male individuals riding BMX bicycles prior to the collision.  The unknown cyclists have yet to be identified and are encouraged by detectives to come forward.

As a result of the information surrounding the involvement of a firearm, detectives assigned to the 3 District Criminal Investigative Branch immediately assumed carriage of the investigation.  Judicial authorization was sought, and two search warrants were obtained.  The first was executed on the Crowland Avenue residence and resulted in the recovery of a 12-gauge double barrel shotgun and a single shot .22 caliber credit card sized firearm.  A third suspect, who was inside the residence at the time of the search warrant was also arrested.  The second search warrant was executed on the seized Nissan Versa and resulted in the recovery of two pellet guns, pellets, and dog repellent.

Read more at the Niagara Police Service website here

Spooked by crime, Ecuadoreans train to carry guns for self-defense

Spurred by rising violent crime and increased gang activity, a growing number of Ecuadoreans are learning to use guns in the hope of protecting themselves from crime, four firearm instructors and their pupils said.

Dozens of people are training at the country’s few shooting ranges, after conservative President Guillermo Lasso signed an April decree allowing civilians to carry guns for self-defense after completing a strict approval process.

The decree is part of efforts by Lasso – who dissolved the national assembly and called early elections last week amid an impeachment attempt – to reduce soaring violence on the streets and in prisons, which the government blames on drug gangs.

Despite several state of emergency declarations and other measures, violent deaths rose 69% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023 in Guayaquil, considered the country’s most dangerous city, to 555 killings.

Ecuador ranked as one of Latin America’s most violent countries in 2022, with fewer homicides than Colombia but more than Mexico, according to InSight Crime. A wider regional uptick in violence has seen surging interest in guns for self protection even in Chile, one of the region’s safer countries.

“People want to arm themselves and protect themselves because insecurity is really high right now and security forces can’t cope,” said Mario Quinatoa, an instructor at the Ceforsin gun range in Quito.

Former President Rafael Correa banned civilian possession of firearms in 2011, citing insecurity, and gun ranges have only been open to those who participate in shooting as a sport and security guards and bodyguards in training.

Gun imports are also prohibited, but the government is evaluating requirements for who might be allowed to sell them.

“You won’t be able to go to the corner store and say ‘give me a pistol or a revolver’, you have to comply with requirements,” National Security Secretary Wagner Bravo told Reuters. “We are not transferring the responsibility to the citizen for them to be the neighborhood policeman, it’s for self-defense.”

Read more at National Post here