Study Claims Smuggling Real Culprit in Gun Deaths
Study Claims Smuggling Real Culprit in Gun Deaths
It draws troubling conclusions about the will of Canadian law enforcement agencies to tackle the smuggling problem, adding that, "of guns brought in for this market, perhaps only one in 14 is recovered within a year."
Its research brings into question previous gun control measures, and suggests they might be having unforeseen consequences, concluding that "both violent criminals and otherwise law-abiding citizens are buying handguns off the black market."
The Institute notes that the study, which was intended as an investigation of alcohol and tobacco smuggling, comes at an interesting time, with Justice Minister Alan Rock's Bill C-68 in the midst of hot debate.
Bill C-68 would force the registration of all firearms, expand police authority to search for and seize illegal firearms, create an "open-ended" amendment system for the passage of further "gun control" legislation, and permit the confiscation of weapons by the police without compensation to the owner.
The Institute says that, "there are a number of problem areas in the gun control controversy where information about the black market might be pertinent." It added that, "what we have to say about the black market reinforces the notion that, in their haste to push new legislation through, the Government has the wrong target in its sights."
The Mackenzie Institute's report, which was based on an eight month study of the Canadian firearms black market and drew from over 700 interviews with gun owners, police officers, smugglers, natives and others, also confirms previous reports which suggest that it is exceptionally easy for any citizen to obtain an illegal firearm, and that "anybody can get a pistol in a few days off the street."
Almost 40 percent of the taxi drivers in four major urban centres interviewed for the study said they had been approached by individuals selling handguns. A similar account was reported in The Globe and Mail by a gang member who refused to be identified. He said he could easily obtain a handgun within 24 hours: "Probably less than that, 10 hours. If you know the right people." He continued, saying "Guns are the easiest things to sell in Canada today."
Reservations Big Conduit
The report draws extensively from RCMP information on their efforts to stem the flow of guns while attempting to eliminate the smuggling of other contraband. The majority of their work is centred in and around the Akwesasne, Ganiengeh and Kahnawake Indian reservations in southern Quebec. Reports from the RCMP in June of this year state that it is doubling the strength of the smuggling strike force along the Quebec-United States border. The largest contingent of officers from the newly formed Border Investi gation Branch will be positioned near the Akwesasne Mohawk reserve, a key crossing-point for contraband.
The Institute reports that while the figures on the numbers of homicides and armed robberies in major Canadian centres are stable, the number involving illegal firearms is increasing--despite previous, controversial legal restrictions on firearms.
According to Sgt. Peter Morgan of the Peel Regional Police, "a few years ago, most armed robbery suspects did not use firearms. Indeed, most only claimed to be armed. Now, more robberies than not have a firearm present." The rate steadily increased in those regions studied.
The organization's findings confirm last year's annual report by the Organized Crime Committee for the Criminal Intelligence Service of Canada, which said that, "the demand for and use of illegal weapons on the streets of Canada has increased dramatically."
The Committee found that since firearms are a readily available commodity through both legal and illegal sources in the U.S., weapons smuggling is developing into a serious problem; it is both encouraged and exacerbated by its ties to other organized crime activity, including the trade of illegal cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs.
The Committee also reported the results of Project Gunrunner, a highly successful undercover joint force operation initiated by the Peel Regional Police Intelligence Bureau and involving five other police departments, Canada Customs, the U.S. Customs Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
The investigation revealed that most guns used by Canadian criminals are smuggled in from the U.S.--indeed, 16 of 17 guns purchased on the Canadian black market by undercover officers were "hot." A similar operation in Quebec, Project Canon, resulted in the seizure of 42 firearms which had been illegally imported into the province from the U.S.
It was discovered that handguns purchased for $100 in Detroit could be resold for more than $500 in Canada, and that most of the guns purchased in the United States come from legally registered dealers, some of whom have full knowledge the guns will be smuggled into Canada.
Prior to Operation Gunrunner, police believed most firearms used to commit criminal acts were legally-owned guns that had been stolen during break-and-enters and then peddled on the street.
The Mackenzie Institute's comprehensive array of statistics concerning firearms distribution and acquisition enables it to discern the direction in which the gun trade is heading. One of these predictions is that the current trend towards fearful citizens turning to criminal purchases out of desperation to protect themselves will continue.
"The trend in firearms acquisition is towards that of private citizens possessing guns of all types for personal protection," it claims. It appears that increased use of firearms in criminal activity is causing an escalation in the possession of illegal firearms by "law-abiding citizens." "The study found many Canadians are bypassing existing laws to buy handguns which may never be used for violent criminal purposes. . . . This is a direct consequence of existing gun-control laws impacting the normal deman d for firearms," it reports.
The gun control legislation as proposed by Alan Rock is inadequate for controlling not only the passage of firearms across borders, but also among the public at large, the report argues.
Using its detailed research into the structure of the Canadian firearms black market, the institute suggests a host of public policies to address the problem of violent crime.
Adequate gun control legislation should serve primarily to "choke off" the black market, it suggests, in order to restrict and eventually eliminate the distribution of illegal firearms.
It reports of lax border inspections--on the orders of bureaucratic superiors--and corrupt gun dealers in the U.S. as being a central problem in the distribution network.
Customs officials must proceed with more thorough inspections at border crossings, it advises, and police officials must follow through on traces for unlawful dealers. It endorses increased cooperation with American officials to stem the flow of firearms and tougher sentencing on both sides of the border for all those involved in every level of smuggling operations.
Presently, having already passed Third Reading in the House of Commons, Bill C-68 is residing in the Senate awaiting debate. It has been passed to the Senate Justice and Legal Affairs Committee for further study. The committee is expected to report in early Fall after the House resumes following its summer recess. The length and intensity of debate on the Senate floor, and what information it incorporates therein, will be anybody's guess.