cuchulainn
Member
sniff sniff, I smell a trend.
from the Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/serv...wguns0802/BNStory/National/?query=gun+control
from the Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/serv...wguns0802/BNStory/National/?query=gun+control
Crackdown on Illegal Arms Urged in Ontario
By UNNATI GANDHI
Tuesday, August 2, 2005 Updated at 12:43 PM EDT
Globe and Mail Update
Ontario Progressive Conservative leader John Tory is calling on his political counterparts to join him in a crackdown on illegal guns and those who use them in response to this weekend's six shootings in Toronto, three of which were fatal.
Mr. Tory said Monday that provincial and city leaders must come together to convince the federal government that stricter security at borders and tougher minimum sentences could be part of the solution.
"It's time for Ontario and Canada to close the border to illegal guns," he said.
"Police officials say this week's outbreak of violence was completely random. That means too many guns in the hands of too many people."
Aside from the three gun-related homicides last weekend, the week prior featured six separate shootings in the Toronto area on Monday and an execution-style killing in broad daylight in Mississauga last Tuesday.
Mr. Tory is calling on Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty to join with him and other leaders such as Mayor Miller in a non-partisan approach to fixing this "escalating problem."
"The status quo is not an option. We need to send a strong message to people who bring guns into our country or even think about using them for criminal purposes."
The Premier was not available for comment Tuesday, but a spokesman said Mr. McGuinty had met with the Canadian ambassador to the United States, Frank McKenna, last Wednesday and raised the issue of gun control.
"The issue of guns from across the border was discussed, in the context of keeping the border open to trade but closed to criminal activity and guns from the south," Chris Morley said.
A spokesman for Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services Monte Kwinter said there are several programs already in place with the federal government to prevent gun-related crimes from occurring.
"Attorney General [Michael Bryant] has set up an anti-gun and -gang unit that's made up of senior police with experience and expert knowledge. Similarly, a crown prosecutor has been assigned to work full time with the Toronto gun task force," said Andrew Hilton.
The Canadian Border Services Agency says more than 5,400 illegal firearms were seized in the past five years from people trying to smuggle them in from the United States.
According to a recent report by the Criminal Intelligence Service Canada, there is no way to accurately estimate the scope of the illegal firearms market in Canada.
The report also says organized crime groups are heavily involved in the illegal gun trade, and highlights the easy availability of weapons in many U.S. states.
In the past, Mr. Miller has cited numbers from the Toronto Police saying half the guns used in crimes on the streets of Toronto come from the United States, many of which are smuggled across the border.
