May 8, 2020
OSHAWA: On May 5, 2020, CSSA and CSAAA issued a joint news release showing Justin Trudeau and Bill Blair – either through gross ignorance or gross incompetence – banned 12-gauge and 10-gauge shotguns under the 20mm maximum bore diameter restriction in SOR/2020-96.i
Minister Blair’s denied this via social media, saying,
“Both 10 and 12 gauge shotguns are under the 20mm provision, and thus not subject to the prohibition. Our government is taking action to protect Canadians by banning assault-style weapons – not those used for hunting.”ii
“The truth matters,” Minister Blair said.
We agree 100%.
The truth matters.
This morning, the RCMP confirmed the first 12-gauge shotgun prohibited under the new Order-in-Council.
The deadly evil weapon? An old Iver Johnson single-shot, fixed choke 12-gauge shotgun with a 2 3/4″ chamber. That’s right, a standard old farm gun.
RCMP Technical Unit Supervisor Tim Hobbs confirmed this firearm would be classified as prohibited in a phone call with a prominent firearms dealer.
See this firearm being measured – see for yourself:
That’s why we asked for the legal opinion of one of Canada’s top firearm lawyers, Edward L Burlew LL.B.iii
Solomon Friedman LL.B., another respected lawyer well-versed in firearms law, agrees with Mr. Burlew’s opinion.
“Your standard 12-gauge shotgun, most people think it has a bore of 18.5 millimeters,” he told CBC Radio, “but modern shotguns are actually over-bored – they’re larger than 18.5 millimeters to allow you to screw in attachments called chokes. It’s very common. Most modern shotguns are made that way and that they are almost all larger than 20 millimeters.”iv
If Minister Blair doesn’t want to listen to the opinion of two experts in Canadian firearms law, perhaps he will agree with the experts in one of the agencies he oversees.
The Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) Memorandum D19-13-2, issued May 29, 2019, defines BORE as:
- the inside of the barrel of a firearm, from the throat to the muzzle, through which the projectile travels.v
By the CBSA’s definition, it may be all 12-gauge and 10-gauge shotguns – not just those with removable chokes – are now Prohibited firearms because they do not consider the forcing cone, the “throat” of the barrel, which exceeds the 20 mm maximum bore diameter specified in SOR/2020-96.
Will Minister Blair is support the CBSA opinion that meshes with two of Canada’s top legal experts in firearms law?
Or will he toss them under the bus because he can’t admit he made a huge mistake?
We demand Minister Bill Blair immediately rescind SOR/2020-96 until such time as he can figure out what he’s doing.
It’s clear he hasn’t figured out what he’s doing yet, and all Canadian hunters and sport shooters may pay the price for his incompetence.
Fixing this particular (among many) problem requires the addition of two little words: “except shotguns.”
That it is so easy to fix yet Blair refuses to make the change, tells us the wording was intentional. Minister Bill Blair promised to call us the next day to clarify the OiC.
Two and a half days later… we’re still waiting.
More to come.
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i https://myemail.constantcontact.com/For-Immediate-Release—Trudeau-and-Blair-BAN-12-Gauge-and-10-Gauge-SHOTGUNS-.html?soid=1124731702303&aid=qVZNyF4JSg4
ii https://www.facebook.com/williamsterlingblair/posts/2636002193286684
iii https://s3.amazonaws.com/CSSA/PDF/SOR2020-96-CSSA-Legal-Opinion-re-12-gauge-shotguns.pdf
iv https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/1734575683738
v CBSA Memorandum D19-13-2 | Importing and Exporting Firearms, Weapons and Devices – Page 2. https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publications/dm-md/d19/d19-13-2-eng.pdf | HTML Version: https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publications/dm-md/d19/d19-13-2-eng.html
