From: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Cdn-Firearms Digest) To: cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Subject: Cdn-Firearms Digest V8 #879 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 Tuesday, January 3 2006 Volume 08 : Number 879 In this issue: Toronto Star: Faith in ending violence; Column: The case for more police resources and stiff penalties for Ottawa Citizen Editorial: Cameras are not the answer Big Apple become safest big city in the United States Column: Maybe it's time we asked Michael Moore to return... Letter: . . . anyone but us. Times Colonist Editorial: Try enforcing the laws Letter: Don't blame the U.S. for Toronto killings Montreal reported its lowest number of homicides on record last ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 09:56:24 -0600 (CST) From: owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Majordomo User) Subject: Toronto Star: Faith in ending violence; PUBLICATION: The Toronto Star DATE: 2006.01.03 EDITION: ONT SECTION: News PAGE: B1 BYLINE: Moira Welsh SOURCE: Toronto Star ILLUSTRATION: Tannis Toohey Toronto Star Cecilia McCaughey, left, of HolyRedeemer Church in Pickering, holds a rosary during a prayer session yesterday with the GTA Faith Alliance at Nathan Phillips Square.; WORD COUNT: 782 - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Faith in ending violence; 'We are not going to sit back and let 2006 become like 2005'; City's church leaders pray, then announce extensive plan Response to gangs includes 400 mentors for at-risk youth - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ A coalition of Toronto faith leaders plans to make the fight against guns and gangs personal by finding 400 mentors for at-risk youths, and opening 70 drop-in centres and after-school programs in their churches. The action plan was announced yesterday during a prayer walk that ended at the Yonge St. memorial for 15-year-old Jane Creba, an innocent bystander killed during a Boxing Day gunfight. "We can no longer sit back as a community and see our young people die in the streets," said Rev. Don Meredith, chair of the GTA Faith Alliance. "Every week there is going to be something done within the faith community to eradicate this problem of gun violence." The pastors' campaign against gangs began with a series of emotional prayers at Nathan Phillips Square yesterday. The turnout was not large - about 30 pastors and churchgoers attended - but organizers like Pastor Al Bowen said the event was arranged over the weekend and intended mainly for church leaders. "Each leader here represents hundreds of people. Did we bring all of our foot soldiers here today? No. We're not speaking to thousands, we're speaking to God," Bowen said. Gangs and guns have badly shaken the city over the past year. In 2005, there were 78 homicides, with 52 related to guns, including the death of Creba. She was shopping with her sister on Yonge St. on Dec. 26 when gangs began shooting at each other. Six other people were wounded. The first homicide victim of 2006, 21-year-old Dillan Anderson, was found dead in his car on New Year's Day, another victim of a shooting. The names of the pastors at yesterday's prayer walk aren't familiar to most people in the city, but they are the men who have long been working on the front lines with black youths or pushing politicians for change. Bowen is well-known in Rexdale for his work with troubled youth and their families. Brash and outspoken, he posts bail for young men and runs a program for them out of his church, the Abundant Life Assembly. Meredith created the GTA alliance of about 40 multi-faith leaders. They operate behind the scenes, trying to get politicians to work on the issue of crime, and families - especially fathers - focused on their children. He organized next week's visit by Rev. Eugene Rivers, one of the architects of the so-called Boston Miracle, which saw police and pastors working together in the 1990s, forcing homicide rates to drop dramatically, although recent cutbacks in community programs led to another increase in crime. Wayne Russell is pastor of Liberty Christian Church, the police chaplain at 23 Division and chair of the Etobicoke Strategy, a new group of police and ministers that, on a smaller scale, is using the Boston model in Rexdale. They will be knocking on doors together to talk to families, organizing mentor programs for young men, many of whom are fatherless, and trying to get jobs for young people. And evangelist, Brian Warren, ordained with the African Methodist Episcopal Church and a former Toronto Argonaut football player, is organizing a meeting of 1,000 men on Feb. 4 at the Canada Christian College to challenge them to work within troubled communities. Pastors like Bowen said they announced their action plan yesterday without waiting for politicians to offer support or funding. Despite announcements by Prime Minister Paul Martin for a ban on handguns and a proposed Criminal Code change making it harder for those charged with gun offences to get bail, Bowen described most political responses as little more than "hot air." "Right now the guns are there and nothing is stopping the people who possess the guns from the mentality of using them," he said. "We in the church groups can do something. We can take volunteers and put them in the community to walk about. I do know that when you have a physical presence - other than the gangs - walking the streets, you can't take their guns from them and you might become a target yourself, but at least you are challenging them as to who controls the turf." Toronto Councillor Jane Pitfield, who is running against Mayor David Miller in next fall's municipal election, joined the pastors in their walk. "I am here to support their efforts. I know they have been working for years. I know they are frustrated, they are angry. I know they don't often feel the support of politicians." Yesterday morning at Nathan Phillips Square, surrounded by reporters' microphones, Meredith made this prediction for the new year "We are going to rattle all of the politicians. We need to provide hope to our families and we are not going to sit back and let 2006 become like 2005." ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 09:56:54 -0600 (CST) From: owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Majordomo User) Subject: Column: The case for more police resources and stiff penalties for drug dealers Sender: owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Precedence: normal Reply-To: cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca PUBLICATION: The Province DATE: 2006.01.03 EDITION: Final SECTION: Editorial PAGE: A14 BYLINE: Balwant Sanghera SOURCE: Special to The Province ILLUSTRATION: Colour Photo: Balwant Sanghera, who lives in Richmond, is aspokesman for the Sikh communities of the Lower Mainland. WORD COUNT: 253 - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The case for more police resources and stiff penalties for drug dealers - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ There is a strong perception that our laws, especially those dealing with serious crimes, are quite lenient. Everyday, one comes across a number of such incidents that reinforce this perception. In this context, the current election campaign is an appropriate forum to bring these issues to the forefront. Canada is a very caring, inclusive and compassionate country. Our Charter of Rights and Freedoms truly reflects this. In addition to welcoming new immigrants with open arms, Canadians are also very generous to those seeking asylum. However, it is very unfortunate when some of these people begin to abuse Canadian hospitality. Just in the past few weeks there have been some glaring examples of such abuse. A number of individuals convicted of committing serious crimes and ordered deported continue to flagrantly abuse the system. Such individuals need to be either behind bars or turfed out. We need to send a strong message to the world that people who flout our laws will be forced to suffer the consequences. The same goes for the drug dealers and other criminal elements. Our lawmakers need to take a serious look at tightening such laws. In order to do so, there has to be an integrated approach. Such an approach must include prevention, deterrence and rehabilitation. Lately, the drug trade -- drug abuse and drug trafficking -- seems to be the major cause of a lot of crime. The police and media must be commended for their very proactive approach in dealing with these problems. However, they can do only so much. Providing police with more resources and stiff penalties for drug dealers should go a long way in addressing this issue. At the same time, we need to support any police and community driven initiatives directed at prevention. Both prevention and enforcement must go hand in hand. The current federal election campaign provides a good opportunity for all of us to highlight these issues. Hopefully, such a discussion and debate will bring about much needed changes in giving Canadians a better sense of safety and security. We deserve it. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 09:57:27 -0600 (CST) From: owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Majordomo User) Subject: Ottawa Citizen Editorial: Cameras are not the answer PUBLICATION: The Ottawa Citizen DATE: 2006.01.03 EDITION: Final SECTION: News PNAME: Editorial PAGE: A12 SOURCE: The Ottawa Citizen WORD COUNT: 511 - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Cameras are not the answer - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Aiming surveillance cameras on public streets in response to Toronto's Boxing Day shootings would mean leaving policy to the gut, not the mind. Yet Ontario's minister of public safety, Monte Kwinter, says the option is on the table and he's been interested in it since seeing cameras in action in Israel recently. Worse, the man whose duty it is to oppose the government, Progressive Conservative leader John Tory, says he thinks cameras are a good idea, particularly in high-risk areas. Cameras are tempting because they're inexpensive compared to hiring more police officers, require little maintenance, and don't make mistakes. Their advocates say their mere presence discourages criminals from committing crimes, knowing they'll be on tape. Cameras have this effect, though, because they remind everyone who passes by that the authorities are watching everything they do. That's how a police state keeps people under control, not how a free society keeps citizens safe. Nobody who's out in public can expect privacy, but that's not the same as concluding it's reasonable to surveil a city block based on nothing more than a generalized suspicion that somebody might eventually get up to no good there. On private property, businesspeople and homeowners can do what they like - -- you always have the option of not shopping in a store or not visiting a friend in a place where you feel harassed. Security chiefs in charge of public buildings where there are specific concerns might fairly use cameras to keep an eye on multiple locations at once. But walking down a public street shouldn't require you to consent to being taped by police. The security cameras Mr. Kwinter saw in Israel were installed in response to the longstanding threat of suicide bombers, who have killed hundreds of innocent people over the years. As shocking as the Toronto shootings were and as horrified as all Canadians have been by the death of 15-year-old Jane Creba, the danger to shoppers on Yonge Street isn't on the same scale. Mr. Tory, who seems to think he's still running for mayor of Toronto, says cameras could be installed in high-risk areas. The heart of Toronto's shopping district, through which millions of people pass safely every year, wouldn't qualify. If the corner of Yonge and Dundas streets is high-risk, so is just about anywhere in Canada. If Mr. Tory is suggesting surveillance cameras belong in the poor neighbourhoods where most gang violence originates, he should be clear about it -- and acknowledge that they would have been all but useless in stopping Jane Creba's death or helping the police catch the people responsible for it. The shootings shattered the holiday peace of millions and took the life of an innocent young woman. Naturally Canadians are looking for ways to prevent such a horror from ever happening again. Politicians are happily obliging. The immediate aftermath of the crisis is a time when we're all tempted to rush to conclusions about what we ought to do in response. We risk sacrificing important liberties in pursuit of ends we aren't certain how to reach. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 09:58:34 -0600 (CST) From: owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Majordomo User) Subject: Big Apple become safest big city in the United States PUBLICATION: The Kingston Whig-Standard DATE: 2006.01.03 EDITION: Final SECTION: National / World PAGE: 28 BYLINE: Harry Mount SOURCE: The Daily Telegraph DATELINE: NEW YORK WORD COUNT: 237 - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ New York City crime rate drops for 17th year in a row: Fewest number of murders recorded since 1963 helps Big Apple become safest big city in the United States - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ NEW YORK - The crime rate in New York has dropped for the 17th consecutive year, with the fewest number of recorded murders in the city since 1963. Over the past year, there have been 537 murders, down from 566 in 2004, and a peak of 2,245 in 1990. Rape, assault, burglary and car theft have all tumbled, with subway crime down by five per cent, according to New York Police Department statistics. New York is now the safest big city in America, while other major cities, including Boston, Houston and Philadelphia, are witnessing soaring crime rates. Vast areas of the city that were once no-go areas are now no-murder areas. In 2005, eight precincts recorded no murders, including Central Park, which was once infamous for night-time killings. The fall in crime began under the former mayor Rudolph Giuliani in the mid-1990s, when he introduced his "zero tolerance" policies, whereby police clamped down hard on all crimes, from subway fare dodging to illegal gun possession. Giuliani put more police in crime-ridden areas, increasing patrols and getting officers out from behind their desks. Crime dropped 57 per cent under Giuliani, and has fallen a further 20 per cent in the past four years under Michael Bloomberg, the media billionaire who began his second term on Sunday. Bloomberg has increased police numbers and his police commissioner, Ray Kelly, has introduced "Hercules" teams - heavily armed, black-clad special forces-type units - into crime blackspots. Police academy recruits have been sent to problem areas where they are accompanied by more experienced officers. The number involved in this operation will be doubled to 1,200 next month. Bloomberg said: "Every year, experts say we can't drive crime down any further, but happily the NYPD proves them wrong and breaks another record." ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 09:58:35 -0600 (CST) From: owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Majordomo User) Subject: Column: Maybe it's time we asked Michael Moore to return... PUBLICATION: The Toronto Sun DATE: 2006.01.03 EDITION: Final SECTION: Editorial/Opinion PAGE: 22 BYLINE: PAUL STANWAY WORD COUNT: 534 - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ '05: OUR WAKEUP CALL? YEAR OF THE GUN MAY FORCE CANADIANS TO DEMAND NEW RESPECT FOR LAW AND ORDER - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Maybe it's time we asked Michael Moore to return to the True North to update the rosy picture of Canada he painted for his Oscar-winning gun-control diatribe, Bowling For Columbine. Moore would likely point out that compared to the 11,000 gun-related homicides in the U.S. each year, our homicide stats compare very favourably to those of our southern neighbour. He might mention that Chicago -- with roughly the same population as Toronto -- registered more than 400 murders in 2005, as opposed to the 78 in Canada's largest metropolis. But you know what? There's little comfort to be found in statistics that show it could be a lot worse, because in the Canadian context it's bad enough. Americans have become so inured to deadly shootings that the issue barely registered in the last presidential election. But recent gunplay has assured that it's about to become a major issue in the current Canadian federal campaign. And it should, because while crime rates across Canada have generally been falling, violent crime is now going in the opposite direction. Canada's murder rate peaked in the mid-1970s, and by 2003 had fallen to a 30-year low of 548 homicides. But last year there was a disturbing reversal, with a total of 622 homicides. Statistics Canada says 81 of those deaths were known to be a direct result of involvement in activities such as drug trafficking and gang membership. And the number of deaths resulting from gun violence is also rising. In 2004, Statistics Canada reported 172 fatal shootings across the country -- 11 more than 2003 and 20 more than 2002. But cold statistics don't tell the whole story. It's the sheer callousness of many of the shootings that so outrages people. In Edmonton, 18-year-old Sara Easton was out celebrating her birthday when she was killed in a drive-by shooting. In Ottawa, two foreign students were gunned down in a Chinatown karaoke bar. In Vancouver, two men walked into a crowded restaurant and opened up with automatic weapons. And in Toronto, 15-year-old Jane Creba was shot to death while Boxing Day shopping with her mother and sister. In Laval, Que., Constable Valerie Gignac was gunned down by a man known to be hostile to police. And in Mayerthorpe, Alta. the Mounties suffered their worst ever loss with four officers killed by another well-known cop-hater. Last year was not a good one for a country that boasts of its civility and peacefulness. So what do we do? Alberta's solicitor general, ex-Calgary cop Harvey Cenaiko, thinks we need more law enforcement and is lobbying for the money to hire dozens of new officers. "We support increasing police resources across the country," says Cenaiko. "We've seen a marked increase in the last few years in gun violence." At the other end of the spectrum, Paul Martin has pledged federal money for various social programs to end the "exclusion" of immigrant youth from mainstream Canadian society. There is no single solution to the increase in violent crime. But the one thing we must clearly do, and quickly, is use the law to send an unequivocal message to young men that the justice system will come down hard on violence and the use of weapons. Canadian courts must mirror public revulsion and not be afraid to use stiff sentences as a deterrent. It's clear by now that the justice system no longer provides much of a deterrent to violent crime, particularly when it involves young offenders. Ask a cop if the system holds any great fear for the young gangsters they have to deal with. Perhaps 2005 will be the year that convinces Canadians to demand renewed respect for law and order. We can only hope. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 09:59:16 -0600 (CST) From: owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Majordomo User) Subject: Letter: . . . anyone but us. PUBLICATION: GLOBE AND MAIL DATE: 2006.01.03 PAGE: A12 BYLINE: THOMAS MOSS SECTION: Letter to the Edit EDITION: Metro DATELINE: Oshawa, Ont. WORDS: 153 - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Handling gun violence - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ We seem to think the answer to Toronto's street shootings lies with the mayor, the police, the courts, the penal system, the federal government . . . anyone but us. But public officials are powerless to legislate or punish people into becoming decent, law-abiding citizens. They can't solve the problem, but we can, by getting involved with at-risk youth. This would do more to undermine the lure of gangs than all the police and politicians combined. If we -- as churches, as service clubs and as individuals -- reach out to these young kids before the gangs get to them, we can break the cycle. I've called Big Brothers (only because it's the first group that came to mind) to ask how I can help. I wish I'd done it years ago, because if we really want to end violence on the streets we have to stop moaning and take action. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 09:59:50 -0600 (CST) From: owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Majordomo User) Subject: Times Colonist Editorial: Try enforcing the laws PUBLICATION: Times Colonist (Victoria) DATE: 2006.01.03 EDITION: Final SECTION: Comment PAGE: A10 SOURCE: Times Colonist WORD COUNT: 277 - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Try enforcing the laws - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Killings and violent crime were a feature of the Christmas holidays, not only in Toronto, but across Canada. An apparent wave of shootings, stabbings and other homicides has become an election campaign issue, particularly in Ontario's urban ridings. Conservative Leader Stephen Harper has declared that a crackdown on violence and crime will be a priority if he is elected prime minister. The federal Liberals have endorsed a proposal by Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and Toronto Mayor David Miller to make it harder for those accused of gun-related crimes to be released on bail. Toronto, where a man was shot to death just hours into 2006, had 78 homicides last year -- but it is not Canada's murder capital. In 2004, Winnipeg had 4.9 murders for every 100,000 people. Edmonton's comparable murder rate was 3.4, Regina's 2.8, Vancouver's 2.6 and Toronto's 1.8. Yet in New York where violence once was commonplace, the crime rate dropped in 2005 for the 17th consecutive year. Fewer people were killed in 2005 in that city than in 1963. Boston, Houston and Philadelphia's crime rates are soaring, and New York is reportedly the safest big city in the U.S. The "zero tolerance" policy introduced by former mayor Rudolph Giuliani in the mid-1990s, and built upon by the current mayor, Michael Bloomberg, is credited for this astonishing reversal. Police have clamped down on even minor crimes like subway fare-dodging. More officers have been hired; neighbourhood patrols have been increased; heavily armed teams strike at criminal hangouts. Politicians in Canada can demand tougher sentences, gun restrictions and new laws to curb violence and killing but, as New York has shown, nothing works better than law enforcement. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 09:59:59 -0600 (CST) From: owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Majordomo User) Subject: Letter: Don't blame the U.S. for Toronto killings PUBLICATION: The Windsor Star DATE: 2006.01.03 EDITION: Final SECTION: Editorial/Opinion PAGE: A7 BYLINE: Patrick J. Sexton SOURCE: Windsor Star WORD COUNT: 111 - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Don't blame the U.S. for Toronto killings - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Re: Toronto shootings. I find it hard to believe that David Miller, a mayor of a big city, can blame this on the U.S. I think the mayor is just trying to take the blame off himself. First, it's not our border portals or custom officers that lets them into your country. In my opinion, you should look at the way they are getting into your country. Maybe, mister mayor, you should shake down the gangs in your city and get them off the streets. There are all kinds of ways you can start to look at the problem, but you take the easy way out and blame it on the U.S. PATRICK J. SEXTON Flat Rock, Mich. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 10:00:44 -0600 (CST) From: owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Majordomo User) Subject: Montreal reported its lowest number of homicides on record last year. Sender: owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Precedence: normal Reply-To: cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca PUBLICATION: Montreal Gazette DATE: 2006.01.03 EDITION: Final SECTION: News PAGE: A1 / FRONT BYLINE: AARON DERFEL SOURCE: The Gazette WORD COUNT: 718 - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Montreal gains 'safe' rep as killings drop - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The tale of two cities couldn't be starker. Montreal reported its lowest number of homicides on record last year. Toronto, by comparison, witnessed an explosion in gun violence and gang-related killings. In the words of Montreal police chief Yvan Delorme, Montreal is gaining a reputation as a "safe international city" - with all crime indicators on the decline. In the words of Toronto homicide Detective Savas Kyriacou: "Toronto has finally lost its innocence." He made that remark after a 15-year-old girl, Jane Creba, was shot dead in the crossfire of a Boxing Day gun battle on Yonge St. between rival street gangs. Ronald Melchers, a criminologist at the University of Ottawa, suggests the sharp contrast in violence between the two cities stems from the radically different social policies of Quebec and Ontario in the 1990s. "During the 1990s - which is the time when these kids who are now waving guns around in the streets of Toronto were in childcare and early elementary school - there were tremendous cutbacks by the Ontario government," Melchers said in an interview yesterday. "Schools were cut to the bone by the Mike Harris government. Childcare was virtually devastated. All these things had to have some impact, and they had the impact, of course, in the neighbourhoods where you found the poorest populations. And these are now the neighbourhoods where these kids are coming from. "During that time," Melchers added, "Quebec had gone exactly in the opposite direction, with a very aggressive construction of an early child-care system and support of schools' capacities to specifically integrate immigrant children." Indeed, Quebec's child-care program has been cited by Ken Dryden, federal minister of social development, as a model for a national childcare policy. The number of homicides in Montreal dropped last year to 35 from 42, or 16 per cent. In Toronto, the number of murders jumped to 78 from 62 - an increase of almost 26 per cent. Gun-related shootings were four times more prevalent in Toronto than Montreal. Prime Minister Paul Martin has blamed weapons smuggled illegally from the United States for much of the gun violence. Melchers attributes Toronto's nearness to the U.S. border and a spillover effect of that country's war on drugs for many of the shootings. "American policy on drugs has had two kinds of impacts," he explained. "First of all, a lot of the activity moved from the U.S. side (Buffalo) to the Canadian side, and that resulted in a boom in drug offending, and the kind of criminality that is related to that, beginning in the 1990s. "The other effect is the exportation of gangs, guns and drug culture from the United States, and that has grown up tremendously since the U.S. war on drugs," he said. Montreal has also experienced its share of gun violence, mainly between outlaw biker gangs. But the war between the Hells Angels and the Rock Machine has subsided since its peak in the mid-to-late 1990s, with the arrests of Hells leader Maurice (Mom) Boucher and other bikers. Since then, community policing - with its emphasis on more street patrols - has expanded in Montreal, and the city's economy has improved - - factors that might help explain the declining homicide rate. "It's probably due to a greater police presence," said Montreal police Constable Anie Lemieux. Montreal's homicide rate is in line with the national trend. The Canadian rate stood at 1.95 per 100,000 residents in 2004, the last year for which complete figures are available. Montreal's homicide rate last year was 1.94. Toronto's was 3.12. Despite all the attention on Toronto, Winnipeg bears the notorious distinction of being the most murderous city. Its homicide rate was 4.89 in 2004. (Although Regina's rate was 4.98, it is not considered a large city, and so it's not fair to use it for comparison purposes, Melchers said.) For all the concern about Toronto, that city's homicide rate had also been steadily declining until last year. In 1991, Toronto reported a record 88 homicides. Montreal's record stands at 104, in 1975. Although the news media tend to dwell on murder and mayhem, Melchers noted violent crime has been gradually decreasing across Canada in the past couple of decades. The reason might be the aging of the population. Lest anyone jump to the conclusion Toronto is fast becoming like a typical U.S. metropolis, U.S. statistics show Canada's largest city is still much safer. Boston, with a population of 600,000, reported 75 homicides last year, of which 49 were gun-related. In Toronto, with a population of 2.5 million, 52 of the 78 homicides were gun-related. There were 445 homicides in Chicago, 195 in Washington, D.C., and 268 in Baltimore. Other Montreal homicide statistics: - - Montreal police solved 21 homicides last year, and four from previous years. - - Conjugal violence was blamed in 12 homicides. A settling of accounts was the reason for another dozen. - - There were two incidents of Russian roulette. - - Seven homicides resulted during fights between individuals. - - Sharp objects were used in 37 per cent of the homicides. Guns accounted for 34 per cent and physical force for 29 per cent. aderfel@thegazette.canwest.com ------------------------------ End of Cdn-Firearms Digest V8 #879 ********************************** 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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