FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE –
December 7, 2022
RCMP Caught Lying to Parliament
Canadian Firearms Program Technical Specialist Murray Smith Misleads MPs
OTTAWA – Today, Tony Bernardo, Executive Director of the Canadian Shooting Sports Association, issued the following statement regarding comments made by the RCMP’s Murray Smith at the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security.
“Members of Parliament require impartial expert advice while they deliberate on legislation. Canadian Firearms Program Technical Specialist Murray Smith had an important duty to inform Members of Parliament about technical firearms issues. Unfortunately, he took the opportunity to spread ideologically-based misinformation.
“When asked an intelligent question by Liberal MP Taleeb Noormohamed about the ridiculous prohibition of a .22 plinking rifle, Smith misled the committee by saying that the Mossberg 715T rifle was a variant of the AR-15 rifle and bore no resemblance to the Mossberg 702.
“The reality is that the Mossberg 715 shares no common parts with the AR-15. It is a Mossberg 702 rifle with a plastic shell designed to have a similar look to the AR-15.”
“If Mr. Smith does not know these simple facts – available to anyone remotely acquainted with firearms – it raises serious concerns about what qualifications he has to be considered a “technical specialist.”
“The CSSA calls on the RCMP to immediately correct the record. Following recent scandals where the RCMP put the interest of its Liberal political masters first, we believe it would hurt public confidence in the RCMP to see yet another case.
“Misleading Parliament does not show our elected representatives, nor the people who sent them there, the respect that they deserve.
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