Trudeau Files Bill C-21 as New Law to Criminalize Gun Owners

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TheGunBlog.ca — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau proposed Bill C-21 today as a new law against federally licensed gun owners, as he works to weaken citizens, hurt the firearm market, and kill modern shooting sports.

The draft law is broad, complex, and misguided.

Bill C-21 Info

How Bill C-21 Hurts You If It Becomes Law

A. All Gun Owners

  • You risk jail for any or all of your guns under the new firearm-classification regime to simplify prohibitions and confiscations.
  • You risk immediate gun confiscation and warrantless police search and seizure under the expanded “red-flag” system that allows anyone (your doctor, your ex, your kid’s teacher, …?) to ask a judge to order confiscation.
  • You risk instant gun-licence suspension under the expanded “yellow-flag” system.
  • You risk new or increased jail for buying, selling or importing guns without the proper paperwork (“straw buying,” “trafficking,” “smuggling”).
  • You risk jail for unpinning an ammo mag.

B. Handgun Owners

  • You risk jail unless you move to a new town or turn in your handguns if your municipality criminalizes handgun ownership, storage or transportation.
    • The mayors of Vancouver and Surrey in British Columbia said today they will criminalize handgunners.
    • Many other mayors are campaigning to eliminate handgun owners.

C. Gun Owners Targeted By 01 May 2020 Confiscations

  • Lockup Option (Confiscation at Death, No Payment): You risk jail unless you satisfy new paperwork and storage rules to keep your blacklisted guns until death, or until a future government repeals the confiscation order.
  • Payoff Option (Confiscation By April 2022, With Payment): No info on how little money the government will offer you to surrender your guns for destruction by 30 April 2022.

D. Businesses, Airsoft, ATCs

  • You risk jail if your business depicts violence in gun ads.
  • You risk jail if you buy or sell certain airguns and airsoft guns.
  • The RCMP takes over Authorizations To Carry (ATC) for self-protection from provincial CFOs.

Reject the Giant Blank Cheque

  • Bill C-21 omits crucial details on how it would work, leaving cabinet to define the specifics if the law passes.
  • Asking members of parliament to vote on open and undefined legislation is like asking them to sign a giant blank cheque.
  • The rule of law requires legislation to be clear, certain, consistent, defined, predictable, and easy to understand and apply. Bill C-21 isn’t.
  • Bill C-21 should be defeated.

Bill C-21 Context

  • Bill C-21 targets Canada’s 2.2 million men and women with a firearm Possession and Acquisition Licence (PAL) authorized by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and 4,500 firearm businesses.
  • The new punishments build on past policies and promises of the governing Liberal Party as it works to suppress safe and responsible citizens who have guns for protection, hunting, sport, and other legitimate uses.

Demonize and Disinform

  • Trudeau, Minister Bill Blair and their Liberal colleagues used today’s media briefing on their latest attacks to paint hunters and sport shooters as violent attackers, or accomplices.
    • “Getting these weapons off our streets and out of the hands of criminals means less violence,” Trudeau said. “We’re not targeting law-abiding citizens who own guns to go hunting or for sport shooting.”
  • The Liberals advertised Bill C-21 and its new crimes aimed at responsible citizens as public safety, without any evidence for the claim.
  • Nothing in Bill C-21 will stop any attacker.

Opposition to Bill C-21

  • Conservative Party: Opposed, without pledging to repeal if elected to government.
  • Alberta Government: Opposed

Will Bill C-21 Become Law?

  • Prospects for Passage
    • Likely: If it gets enough support from the NDP, Bloc Québécois, and Green Party, which are hostile to gun users.
    • Unlikely: If the government passes the bill before the next election, which many people expect this spring.
  • Prospects for Defeat
    • Unknown: If the NDP or Bloc Québécois vote against the bill.
    • Likely: If the government fails to pass the bill before a possible spring election.

Bigger Picture: Criminal By Default

  • Canadian politicians designed the laws on personal gun ownership to be complex, confusing, costly and punitive. They invented laws to punish honest people.
  • Every gun user is targeted by the Criminal Code, and the law says every gun owner is a criminal unless you have the right paperwork.
    • Everyone who buys, sells, owns, uses, transports, imports, or exports any firearm at any time risks criminal charges or jail, even if you did nothing harmful.
  • Many sections of the Criminal Code treat gun owners as “guilty until proven innocent,” a violation of fundamental principles of justice.

Bill C-21 Resources

Text

Source: Parliament of Canada

Technical Briefing

Source: Department of Public Safety

Présentation Technique

Source: Department of Public Safety

Legislative Summary in Plain English

Source: Library of Parliament

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