Gun sale comes amid gun control debate
Handguns expected to be a top seller during annual Shooter’s Choice event in Waterloo this week
WATERLOO — A local gun store anticipates thousands of people will come through its doors during an annual three-day sale this week, with handguns expected to be a top seller.
“Majority of the firearms that have been sold today and will be sold during the course of this sale will be restricted firearms — will be handguns,” said Ryan Simper, who handles marketing and communications for gun store Shooter’s Choice in Waterloo, on Thursday afternoon.
Simper said there has been a decline in hunting over the past decade, and handgun sales are up “exponentially” as men and women from a variety of backgrounds purchase them for target and sport shooting.
“That’s what we sell handguns for in Canada. There is absolutely no other reason in Canada to own a handgun,” Simper said.
“The only purpose the RCMP will allow someone to purchase a handgun for is for the purpose of targeting, shooting and collecting ... there is no purpose of self defence in Canada.”
The 11th annual sale comes at a time when politicians and police chiefs across the country are considering ways to curb gun violence in the wake of recent mass shootings in both Toronto and Fredericton.
Before new gun laws are introduced, there needs to be more education about how the gun laws in Canada actually work, Simper said, including how people can legally obtain a restricted firearm like a handgun.
“Most people don’t understand how our system actually works.”
“I’ve been speaking with a number of people today that dropped in to see what it’s all about and I’ve asked them if they know how the gun laws work in Canada,” Simper said. “The answer all the time was ‘no’ and I think that narrative needs to change.” .
Acquiring a gun in Canada is a multistep process and there are three classifications of weapons: non-restricted, restricted, and prohibited. Owners are required to have a separate licence for each firearm category.
A non-restricted firearm is a rifle, shotgun or combination gun that is not restricted or prohibited, while a handgun is classified as a restricted firearm, unless it is prohibited.
Gun owners must complete a certified safety course and background checks before getting their licence, and an additional safety test must be completed if they want to own a restricted handgun.
Gun owners also undergo a daily background check every 24 hours by the RCMP, known as “continuous-eligibility” screening.
“It’s those levels of training that most people don’t understand,” said Simper. “That’s what differentiates us from our American cousins, the fact it’s training, safety, training, safety, training, safety right across the board.”
The debate over gun control, primarily handguns, has been elevated following the July 22 mass shooting on Danforth Avenue in Toronto’s Greektown, when Faisal Hussain used a handgun to kill two and wound thirteen others before killing himself.
In response, Toronto city council has called on the federal government to ban handgun sales in the city, and for the province to ban the sale of ammunition in Toronto.
Just weeks later, four people — including two police officers — were killed on the morning of Aug. 10 in Fredericton, and the alleged shooter is now in custody.
The accused, Matthew Vincent Raymond, had a gun licence and police said a long gun was used in that attack.
Despite the recent shootings, Simper said Canada’s current gun laws work, including extensive background checks, training and licences.
“I will not speak out against the licensing system, it’s something we here at Shooter’s Choice believe in,” Simper said on Thursday.
“We believe in that level of training, and it brings the really responsible people into the sport.”
On Wednesday, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police concluded its annual conference in Halifax and said they will form a committee to analyze data related to gun violence.
According to annual statistics released by Waterloo Regional Police, there were 20 incidents of someone using a firearm or imitation firearm to commit an offence in 2017.
Last year there were also 17 occurrences of someone pointing a gun and three firearm discharges “with intent,” according to police.
There were also five reported breakand-enters that resulted in a stolen firearms last year, and six cases of unsafe firearm storage were investigated.
Simper welcomes the study of these and other gun statistics, but says law enforcement and politicians need to focus on gang violence and the illegal sale of guns from the United States.
“It’s worth looking at the statistics, because what they’re going to find is the truth — the fact that law-abiding citizens and responsible owners of firearms aren’t the ones committing crimes.”