From: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Cdn-Firearms Digest) To: cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Subject: Cdn-Firearms Digest V6 #582 Reply-To: cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Sender: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Errors-To: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Precedence: normal Cdn-Firearms Digest Thursday, October 16 2003 Volume 06 : Number 582 In this issue: Man faces firearms charges Minister questions mayor's war on drugs: 'No magic bullets,' says Anne GANG INCIDENTS ON DECLINE Activists denounce SQ probes Hunter hopes RCMP will bag him for breaking gun law Gun disputed Vehicular attacks on police limited to city: Forensics tests can save lives Naval museum guns make party a blast Cops shoot emu eight times ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 08:20:29 -0600 (CST) From: "Breitkreuz, Garry - Assistant 1" Subject: Man faces firearms charges PUBLICATION: The Province DATE: 2003.10.16 EDITION: Final SECTION: News PAGE: A3 COLUMN: B.C. Briefing SOURCE: News Services DATELINE: KELOWNA - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= Man faces firearms charges - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= KELOWNA -- RCMP have arrested a 23-year-old Westbank resident after a driver told police a man in a blue Toyota Tercel was waving a handgun at other vehicles. Police pulled the man over in downtown Kelowna on Tuesday and found a pellet gun inside his car. He faces firearms charges. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 08:21:42 -0600 (CST) From: "Breitkreuz, Garry - Assistant 1" Subject: Minister questions mayor's war on drugs: 'No magic bullets,' says Anne PUBLICATION: Edmonton Journal DATE: 2003.10.16 EDITION: Final SECTION: CityPlus PAGE: B1 / Front BYLINE: Andy Ogle, with files from Keith Gerein SOURCE: The Edmonton Journal DATELINE: EDMONTON NOTE: Ran with fact box "Drug stats", which has been appended tothis story. - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= Minister questions mayor's war on drugs: 'No magic bullets,' says Anne McLellan - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= EDMONTON - Health Minister Anne McLellan says she understands the frustration over drug-war slayings in Edmonton that last week led Mayor Bill Smith to tell drug pushers and users to get out of town. "It's frustrating for all of us who live in this community. This isn't only an Edmonton issue, it's an issue in Canada and elsewhere," the Edmonton MP said Wednesday. There are no simple answers in fighting the illicit drug trade and organized crime that handles much of it, she said. "Let's face it, the Americans declared a war on drugs a long time ago and most people have declared that war has failed," McLellan said. "We need to acknowledge the problem, we need to get better information about the extent of the problem and then we have to figure out what the strategies are that are actually effective in combatting the drug trade and the illegal use of drugs. "It is about information and education, it is about law enforcement, it is about reaching those who are addicts and getting them treatment and support so that hopefully they can break the habit." Ottawa's national drug strategy, with $247 million in funding over five years, will be used to work with communities, police, doctors and researchers . "I really do believe much of that strategy has to be driven from the grassroots," she said, "and it has to be local communities, local governments, organizations in the community who understand what's happening there." Finding ways to break the back of organized crime also has to be part of any strategy, she said. "It's a complex problem. There are no magic bullets." The mayor's warning to drug traffickers and users was sparked by the Oct. 8 slaying of 17-year-old Richard Prasad. Prasad, who was shot to death, was the third gangland-style killing in the past month. Police suspect his death was linked to illegal drugs. Two men have been charged but there haven't been arrests in the other recent slayings. Deputy police chief Mike Bradshaw, speaking Wednesday to the police commission, said a disturbing trend is developing when it comes to gang brutality. "There seems to be a growing number of people involved in gang activity who are arming themselves quite heavily," Bradshaw said. "We are also taking more guns off the street than ever before." Eleven attacks, including the three homicides since July, he said, involved firearms. Bradshaw said the good news is community groups and the police are starting to work together more effectively to deal with the issue. A steering committee involving dozens of groups is close to being formed. It will come up with a co-ordinated approach to preventing gang activity, he said. aogle@thejournal.canwest.com DRUG STATS - - As temperatures climbed this past summer, so too did incidents of gang violence in Edmonton, police statistics show. - - Although overall gangland crime went down slightly in July, August and September from the three spring months, occurrences of violence jumped to 35 from 26. - - Deputy police chief Mike Bradshaw presented the statistics to the city's police commission on Wednesday, saying gang violence typically reaches its peak during the summer months. - - "These gang guys are not stupid. They don't want to be outside when its 10 or 20 below, just like everyone else." ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 08:21:58 -0600 (CST) From: "Breitkreuz, Garry - Assistant 1" Subject: GANG INCIDENTS ON DECLINE PUBLICATION: The Edmonton Sun DATE: 2003.10.16 EDITION: Final SECTION: News PAGE: 16 - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= GANG INCIDENTS ON DECLINE - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= The number of gang-related incidents in the city actually dropped in the past three months, even though gang violence is on the rise, the Edmonton Police Commission heard yesterday. Police were investigating 41 gang-related incidents between July and September, compared to 44 incidents between April and June, deputy chief Mike Bradshaw said. But 35 of those more-recent incidents included violence, compared to 26 of the incidents during the second quarter, he noted. "There are a number of people involved in gang activity who are arming themselves quite heavily, and the increased use of firearms, of course, is a significant concern for us," Bradshaw said. Many of those guns are coming up through the United States, he added. "Having said that, I can tell you we've taken more guns off the street than we ever have, so we're having some success in that regard." ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 08:24:09 -0600 (CST) From: paul chicoine Subject: Activists denounce SQ probes Activists denounce SQ probes Demerger advocates far from only targets IRWIN BLOCK The Gazette Thursday, October 16, 2003 The Sûreté du Québec has been busy in the past year gathering information on activist groups - and not just demerger advocates. André Trépanier, a lobbyist for the Regroupement des comités logement et associations de locataires du Québec, an umbrella group of 32 housing organizations, yesterday recalled the SQ poking around in June. Trépanier's group campaigned to maintain a cap on rent increases and to expand housing for people with limited incomes. The first contact was a phone call in March from SQ Sgt. Pierre Beauchemin, seeking information on a protest planned for Quebec City, Trépanier said. "He wanted to know who would be at the protest, how many were expected, how many buses." Next came a call from the same officer prior to a demonstration the group had planned for June. "He asked for all kinds of information and actually offered to help arrange a meeting with the (municipal-affairs) minister," Trépanier said. "I was quite surprised and told him we can arrange these meetings on our own. But Beauchemin insisted on being present." Trépanier said he considered the SQ's involvement unusual because normally it is municipal police that contact groups about such issues as traffic tieups during demonstrations. But beyond that, he was upset because he felt the SQ was investigating his group for no legitimate reason, he said. "I told him the last time we spoke, 'Stop watching me. We are good people. We are not causing problems. You're wasting public funds and should be checking on people more dangerous than us.' " As more revelations about the SQ investigations came to light yesterday, Premier Jean Charest offered assurances his government is in charge of the force. "La Sûreté du Québec is the provincial police and ... we are the government responsible for their actions." While the government does not get involved in day-to-day police operations, Charest said, "when these type of incidents are brought to our attention, we ask the officers to account for them." Another organization contacted by the SQ recently is the Chantier de l'économie social, an umbrella group of more than 150 social organizations. Jean Robitaille of the Chantier said he got a call from Madeleine Martel of the SQ Sept. 12, a day before the group was to deliver a letter at a Quebec Liberal Party meeting on keeping $5-a-day day care. "We had asked for a meeting with Premier Jean Charest, and I thought she was with his security detail," Robitaille said. "She then gave me the number of Det.-Sgt. François Panneton (the same officer who has contacted demerger activists), and I thought he was Mr. Charest's security guard and I called him." Panneton suggested that instead of meeting Charest, the activists meet two of Charest's advisers. It was only later that Robitaille learned Panneton worked in the intelligence and security section of the SQ, not for the premier's office. "This has to stop," he said. Viviane Corriveau of St. Constant belongs to a group campaigning for a northern route for a completed Highway 30. She said she is furious that she was called by Denis Ferland of the SQ on Sept. 21. Ferland told her he was worried about possible breaking of windows during demonstrations, she said, adding: "We are not the type of people to break windows, and I wonder where we are going when it comes to freedom of expression. "For me, it is inconceivable that in Quebec, a democratic society, members of an ordinary citizens group are called by the SQ." iblock@thegazette.canwest.com © Copyright 2003 Montreal Gazette ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 08:24:15 -0600 (CST) From: "Breitkreuz, Garry - Assistant 1" Subject: Hunter hopes RCMP will bag him for breaking gun law PUBLICATION: The Chronicle-Herald DATE: 2003.10.16 SECTION: NovaScotia PAGE: A4 SOURCE: Truro Bureau BYLINE: Cathy Von Kintzel PHOTO: Herald file ILLUSTRATION: Al Muir wants to be arrested so he can challenge Canada's Firearms Act. - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hunter hopes RCMP will bag him for breaking gun law - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Plymouth - Armed with an unregistered shotgun, hunter Al Muir hopes to bag a big one today - an arrest under Canada's Firearms Act. "At the very least, I'll probably lose my firearm," said Mr. Muir, an unlicensed owner who will take his single-shot, 12-gauge shotgun on a publicized bird-hunting trip, daring the RCMP to charge him. His prediction Wednesday afternoon was based on other members of his group, the Canadian Unregistered Firearms Owners Association, having firearms seized during similar hunts in Saskatchewan. The real trophy would be a criminal charge that would permit Mr. Muir and his lobby group to publicly challenge Canada's gun registry in court on the grounds it violates the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Specifically, rights to privacy, security of person, presumption of innocence, association, representation, mobility and freedom from unreasonable search and seizure. "We will never submit to this unjust law or surrender our liberty to a law which is based upon a lie; a law which can never deliver the false promise of increased security," he said. "The average law-abiding gun owner is not a danger. If you treat the criminals more severely who use firearms, then there's a possibility to control misuse." The non-violent protest and hunting trip is the Pictou County resident's latest attempt to be arrested. Last summer, he and other members of his group visited all provincial capitals with proof they owned unregistered guns. They weren't arrested. Mr. Muir will carry a shotgun shell but his firearm will be unloaded until he starts hunting on public land near the community of Lorne. He has a small-game hunting licence and notes that he's not out to break every law in the book, only the ones he feels are unjust. In preparation for today's event, he sent letters about his plans to Solicitor General Wayne Easter, the RCMP and the provincial Natural Resources Department regarding his hunting plans. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 08:24:42 -0600 (CST) From: "Breitkreuz, Garry - Assistant 1" Subject: Gun disputed PUBLICATION: The Moncton Times and Transcript DATE: 2003.10.16 SECTION: News PAGE: A9 COLUMN: Courts/Crime BYLINE: Police Beat Court News Gun disputed A Moncton area man was placed on two years' suspended sentence and supervised probation in Moncton provincial court yesterday after admitting to threats and firearms offences during an incident last month at his parents' home. Patrick Melanson, 20, was charged after an incident involving family members over a rifle he purchased and brought home. His mother did not want any firearms in the home and telephoned police to retrieve the weapon when she found it, which upset Melanson. The situation was further aggravated when Melanson learned he needed firearms acquisition and possession permits for the firearm and that he could be charged. No one was hurt in the incident. Provincial court Judge Anne Dugas-Horsman ordered Melanson to abstain from alcohol or drugs, attend both a detox and a mental health centres as well as complete an anger management course as part of the sentence. He is also prohibited from having any firearms for 10 years. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 08:25:06 -0600 (CST) From: "Breitkreuz, Garry - Assistant 1" Subject: Vehicular attacks on police limited to city: PUBLICATION: Edmonton Journal DATE: 2003.10.16 EDITION: Final SECTION: CityPlus PAGE: B7 BYLINE: Keith Gerein SOURCE: The Edmonton Journal DATELINE: EDMONTON - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= Vehicular attacks on police limited to city: deputy chief: Drug use may be partly to blame - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= EDMONTON - Deputy police chief Gerry Shimko says he is at a loss to explain a recent spate of incidents in which vehicles have been used as weapons against police officers. "It's a particular concern that seems to be localized to Edmonton," he said prior to Wednesday's police commission meeting. "We haven't heard of other agencies experiencing the use of vehicles in a lethal fashion." Despite the confusion over the attacks, Shimko said work is being done to prevent further incidents. He said Alberta Justice has appointed a special prosecutor to look into the problem and advise the courts to hand out stiff penalties to offenders. "I think an appropriate message has to be sent," he said. Shimko said officers are also considering using some new tactics in the field, but declined to give specifics due to security concerns. Over a month-long period from early September to early October, officers were allegedly targeted on six different occasions by people driving vehicles. The most recent incident was Oct. 8, when a 2004 Mazda veered toward an officer who was attempting to pull the car over for speeding. Police managed to avoid serious injuries in all of the incidents, except for two RCMP officers who were hospitalized with broken bones when they were struck down by their own cruiser when it was stolen from them. In three of the incidents, police fired their guns. Shimko said he thinks drug use is partly to blame for some of the incidents. "We are seeing that activity having a greater impact on the irrational behaviour of people." kgerein@thejournal.canwest.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 08:26:51 -0600 (CST) From: "Breitkreuz, Garry - Assistant 1" Subject: Forensics tests can save lives PUBLICATION: National Post DATE: 2003.10.16 EDITION: National SECTION: Editorials PAGE: A19 COLUMN: Letters BYLINE: D. G. Hepworth SOURCE: National Post DATELINE: REGINA, Sask. NOTE: D. G. Hepworth, former RCMP forensics expert. - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Forensics tests can save lives - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Re: RCMP Lab Swamped, Cases in Peril, Oct. 6; RCMP Deny DNA Labs in Disarray, Oct. 9; and Forensic Lab Reform, letter, Oct. 10. In the article of Oct. 9, Joe Buckle, RCMP assistant commissioner is quoted as saying, "I don't think the [Forensic Laboratory Services] are underfunded." Why then was it necessary to discontinue firearms examinations for provincial conservation officers involved in the investigation of poaching game and other wildlife infractions? By leaving these law enforcement agencies without access to any Canadian source for forensic service, he has declared open season for game poaching. Currently, there is approximately one-half the number of firearm specialists in the laboratory system there were five years ago. If adequate funding is in place, why then haven't steps been taken to replace all of those individuals lost? There is also great pressure being placed upon the frontline forensic workers to increase casework output to the maximum as quickly as possible. In 1998, the Kaufman report issued after the Guy Paul Morin inquiry warned that: "Overloading scientists through excessive work loads is a recipe for disaster. It can contribute to the conviction of the innocent and the exoneration of the guilty through sloppy or incomplete science." A recent study in the United States indicates that up to 34% of sexual assaults committed by a person unknown to the victim are committed by repeat offenders. Without DNA technology, there is little hope of solving these crimes. Many in the scientific community have known for years there is a solid business case for expending more resources into DNA technology. It has been the greatest advancement in crime fighting we've ever witnessed. One has to ask the question: If you could make an investment that had the potential to save Canadian taxpayers huge sums of money while preventing crimes and unnecessary human suffering, why wouldn't you? Canadians need an answer to that question. D. G. Hepworth, former RCMP forensics expert, Regina, Sask. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 08:28:28 -0600 (CST) From: "Breitkreuz, Garry - Assistant 1" Subject: Naval museum guns make party a blast PUBLICATION: Calgary Herald DATE: 2003.10.16 EDITION: Final SECTION: City & Region PAGE: B6 BYLINE: Leanne Dohy SOURCE: Calgary Herald ILLUSTRATION: Colour Photo: Mikael Kjellstrom, Calgary Herald / VolunteerBill Wilson mans a 20-mm Oerlikon anti-aircraft gun, to be displayed Sunday during the Naval Museum of Alberta's 15th anniversary celebration. - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= Naval museum guns make party a blast - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= Calgary's naval museum is bringing out the big guns this weekend for its 15th anniversary. The Naval Museum of Alberta Sunday will host a day-long party and the mounting of a display said to be the first of its kind in Canada. Three naval guns -- an 1896 Hotchkiss, a 20-mm Oerlikon and a modern-day Raytheon Phalanx -- will be exhibited together to showcase more than 100 years of military history. "It's the first time they've all been in one spot," says museum curator Frank Saies-Jones. "We've got the old Hotchkiss, used during the reign of Queen Victoria, that could only fire off one round every couple of minutes. That's followed by the Oerlikon, which was used on virtually every ship during the Second World War, and then the Phalanx, which can fire off 16,000 rounds in a matter of minutes." The Raytheon Phalanx is being loaned to the museum by the Calgary company that makes and maintains the gun system. It will be transported Saturday from the Raytheon Canada Naval Defence Systems Centre. Sunday's celebration will feature free admission to the museum all day, performances by the Tecumseh Band, hourly gallery tours and the hoisting of signal flags. There will also be a used book sale fundraiser on site. "Even though this is the largest naval museum in the country, and has been in existence for 15 years, it's still one of Calgary's best-kept secrets," Saies-Jones says. The anniversary party will run Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Naval Museum of Alberta, 1820 24th St. S.W., one block west of the Alberta Children's Hospital. ldohy@theherald.canwest.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 08:29:32 -0600 (CST) From: "Breitkreuz, Garry - Assistant 1" Subject: Cops shoot emu eight times PUBLICATION: Montreal Gazette DATE: 2003.10.16 EDITION: West Island SECTION: News PAGE: F12 BYLINE: ALYCIA AMBROZIAK SOURCE: The Gazette - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= Cops shoot, ram two emus: The flightless birds are aggressive and can kill a person: Surete spokesman - -------------------------------------------------------------------------= Surete du Quebec officials said they had no choice but to kill two errant emus by shooting one and deliberately running over the other. "There was a certain urgency - we didn't want someone hurt or even killed," SQ spokesman Ronald McInnis said last week, referring to the Sept. 23 shooting of an emu that had been wandering along Cote St. Charles Road in St. Lazare, as well as the ramming of another of the birds the next day in the Cedarbrook area of town. "Such animals can be dangerous," McInnis said. "They are aggressive and can kill a person. "The birds weigh about 250 pounds. and stand 6 feet tall and have strong claws." The swift-running flightless bird is native to Australia and is related to but smaller than the ostrich. Normand Cardinal, whose two emus went missing from his Ste. Marthe farm over a month ago, called police and told them to kill the ostrich-like birds if they could not catch them, according to the farmer's mother. Cardinal was unavailable for comment. "They're nervous animals and almost impossible to catch once they're loose," said the woman, who would only identify herself as Mrs. Fernand Cardinal. She said her son reported to police in early September that two of his emus had got out of their enclosures. "He told the police to kill them if they spotted them," she said. "I only hope they ate the meat." The first incident took place between 9 and 10:45 a.m. on Sept. 23 when the SQ received a call about an emu wandering along Cote St. Charles, McInnis said. "The animal had been spotted many times in the previous 30 days." Police did try to catch the bird but when that proved impossible, they shot it, eight times, he said. The next day, McInnis said, police received a call at 8:30 a.m. about another emu on Place Curie in the Cedarbrooke area of St. Lazare. "The (police officers) felt (the emu) was very aggressive and they knew there were people living in the area, so they didn't want to use their guns," McInnis said. "They tried to corral it using their cars. There were three cars on the scene, but they couldn't do it," McInnis said, adding that the animal appeared to be "crazy with rage." "So one of the officers used his car to hit the bird," McInnis said. The injured emu ran off into some nearby woods and has not been seen since. "We presume it has died," McInnis said. St. Lazare Mayor Paul Carzoli said he was told that the animals were a danger to public safety. "The police apparently called the department of wildlife when the emus were first spotted, but were told that emus are considered a domesticated animal and it was not under their jurisdiction," Carzoli said. "And as far as the ramming of the second bird, I don't think it was the police's intention to injure the emu. The intent was to get it down to ground and subdue it, but maybe it could have been handled differently." Carzoli said no one had complained to city hall about the incidents. aambroziak@thegazette.canwest.com ------------------------------ End of Cdn-Firearms Digest V6 #582 ********************************** Submissions: mailto:cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Mailing List Commands: mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Moderator's e-mail address: mailto:akimoya@cogeco.ca List owner: mailto:owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca FAQ list: http://www.magma.ca/~asd/cfd-faq1.html and http://teapot.usask.ca/cdn-firearms/Faq/cfd-faq1.html Web Site: http://teapot.usask.ca/cdn-firearms/homepage.html FTP Site: ftp://teapot.usask.ca/pub/cdn-firearms/ CFDigest Archives: http://www.sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca/~ab133/ or put the next command in an e-mail message and mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca get cdn-firearms-digest v04.n192 end (192 is the digest issue number and 04 is the volume) To unsubscribe from _all_ the lists, put the next five lines in a message and mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca unsubscribe cdn-firearms-digest unsubscribe cdn-firearms-alert unsubscribe cdn-firearms-chat unsubscribe cdn-firearms end (To subscribe, use "subscribe" instead of "unsubscribe".) 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