Statement: The Control of Firearms and the Impact of Gun Violence on our Communities

The use of firearms in the commission of a crime is an issue all Canadians are concerned about. As Ontario’s police leaders, we listen carefully to members of all of our communities and work with community leaders and public policy-makers on proactive measures to ensure everyone in Ontario can live and work safely in their communities without fear. 

The OACP also recognizes that many Ontarians are responsible gun owners. 

Ontario’s police leaders support a prohibition on all military-designed assault rifles. In our view, these weapons have no place in our communities and should be reserved for use by Canada’s military and law enforcement. 

In our discussions with public-policy makers at all levels of government, our association has and will continue to raise concerns about handguns crossing the Canadian border from the United States of America. We believe that this is the root source of illegal guns used in the commission of violent crimes. It is an issue that must be addressed by Canadian policy-makers. Part of the solution may be for municipalities to have the ability to augment federal restrictions on handguns. 

The OACP also believes that our border security partners require more resources, new authorities, offences, and penalties in order to stop the importation of illegal firearms into Canada. We also support new resources for law enforcement organizations to specifically target illegal firearms as well as new offences and penalties for individuals who choose to put our communities at risk by importing, possessing, and using illegal firearms in the commission of a crime. 

Ontario’s police leaders are aware of public concerns about the ability of police services when it comes to tracing firearms that may be associated to criminal activity. We note that some police services in Ontario do keep statistics related to this for investigative purposes and can provide data on such firearms. Police services comply with all Provincial reporting obligations. 

The OACP supports the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police’s (CACP) Special Purpose Committee that is currently looking at gaps in the data, including a possible new data collection regime. We are in favour of discussions with public-policy makers regarding establishing a national system to support the tracing of firearms, however a system of this nature must come with appropriate funding.