There are bigger issues than the seizure of town’s firearms, Redford says

Cal gar y — Premier Alison Redford said Friday she’s disappointed that the RCMP’s seizure of unsecured firearms in the evacuated Town of High River has become a controversy.

News of the Mounties actions in the town that has been worst-hit by southern Alberta’s unprecedented floods angered local residents and set off a reaction across Canada — including a negative comment from Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s office.

But Redford said there are bigger issues to deal with a week after flooding hit the province.

“Let’s just make it very clear — the provincial government did not take away anyone’s guns,” she said at an event in Calgary. “The RCMP went in and secured a community that has been evacuated and as part of that work … they went into houses where there were firearms that weren’t properly secured. And as opposed to leaving them sitting on fireplace mantles in a town that has been evacuated, they secured those guns. There was no suggestion that people will not be able to have their guns back again. I really hope that we can focus on more important matters at hand, like getting 12,000 people back into High River.”

Earlier, a spokesman for Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the guns should be returned to their owners.

“We expect that any firearms taken will be returned to their owners as soon as possible,” said press secretary Carl Vallee, who added that the Mounties should be dealing with more pressing matters.

“We believe the RCMP should focus on more important tasks such as protecting lives and private property,” Vallee said. Critics were quick to complain that the Harper government should not be dictating how the Mounties should conduct their operations.

Redford noted Harper toured the devastated area by air with her last week. “I think he saw the devastation and the impact in the community. I’m certain there are people in the Prime Minister’s Office who have an opinion about this. I’m not going to comment any further.”

An RCMP official said any guns removed from homes were not properly stored. Police forced their way into several homes to look for flood victims, pets and anything that might pose a threat to returning residents. RCMP spokeswoman Const. Francine Hennelly said when officers entered homes to search for people, “if we identified any pets or hazards, we would respond accordingly.”

“We seized any firearms that were noted that were in plain view,” she said. “We seized what we saw that could potentially be a hazard Anything properly stored in gun lockers were left.”

When asked whether all of the guns should be returned, even if they were improperly stored or found to be illegal, Vallee referred questions to the Alberta government. “In Alberta, the RCMP operate under the provincial government’s authority,” he said.