April 14, 2018

To the Chairman and Members Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security (the Committee) 131 Queen Street, Sixth Floor House of Commons, ON K1A 0A6 E-mail: [email protected]

Dear Sirs and Madams:

Re: Bill C-71 – An Act to amend certain Acts and Regulations in relation to firearms

To date, Canadians often have been presented with all-or-nothing often-politicized arguments on the subject of gun ownership, frequently influenced by events over our border. We may be satisfied that we are “better” than our neighbours to the south. But compared to other G-7 and select other countries (see table below), we are not. We can do better. We must do better.

Firearm-related death rate per 100,000 population per year (G-7 and select other countries) Country Deaths/100k Homicides Suicides Accidental Unknown Guns per 100 people United States 11.96 4.62 7.10 0.15 0.09 101.05 France 2.83 0.21 2.16 0.04 0.41 14.96 2.05 0.45 1.52 0.05 0.02 25.33 Norway 1.75 0.10 1.63 0.02 0.00 31.30 Sweden 1.47 0.19 1.20 0.06 0.01 31.60 Italy 1.31 0.35 0.87 0.09 0.02 11.90 Australia 1.04 0.18 0.80 0.02 0.01 13.70 Germany 1.01 0.07 0.84 0.01 0.08 30.30 United Kingdom 0.23 0.06 0.15 0.00 0.02 2.80 Japan 0.06 0.00 0.04 0.01 0.01 0.60 Canada's position 3rd worst 2nd worst 4th worst 3rd worst

My comments on the following pages are measured against key points in the main MP speeches when Bill C-71 was at second reading. The first major response speech on Bill C-71 spoke to the long-gun registry (no longer exists) and the following: • The safety of Canadians must be the top priority of any government • The importance of going after criminals/crime and reducing the cross-border inflow of guns • Putting no undue burden on law-abiding citizens.

The second response speech supported the bill, commented on the lack of opportunity for debate and other procedural issues, and emphasized the following: • The need to balance the interests of those who want more gun control due to tragedies that have occurred and those who hunt, enjoy target shooting, and/or want to protect themselves and their community • The importance of efficiency for gun-owners and gun-related businesses.

I believe that that both gun-owners and people concerned by gun-related deaths are likely to agree on the majority of concerns and on practical solutions if they willingly work together. In this regard, I have the following comments:

1. I support the proposed legislation’s measures to address illegal handguns and assault weapons and unlawful use of legally held firearms, but the proposed legislation does not meaningfully address guns in the hands of a small percentage of people in periods of great personal stress, and I

believe that it should. If this cannot be addressed in amendments to Bill C-71, I strongly

recommend that the Committee propose further work on the subject in its Report on the Bill. 1

Page

1

With respect to the requirement for gun sellers not already doing so to keep records, electronic storage methods, including ones not connected to the internet, can be used at very low cost and I hope agreement among affected parties can be concluded soon.

2. I call upon the Committee to make the following recommendations in its Report on the study of Bill C-71, and, where noted, ask the government to respond later to the Committee, as follows:

i. The Committee should recommend development of a proposal for periodic unintrusive background check/reference measures aimed at addressing the issue of a gun-owner struggling with mental health issues. What is evident from the U.S., and well-known in Canada, is that mental health can and has lead to gun-related deaths; in Canada, many gun-related deaths are suicides, which also calls for more resources being dedicated to mental health issues. And this is why those transferring gun ownership through sale (or gifting/willing) privately or at gun shows must check licenses.

Data shows that a once-in-a-life time background check at the first time of licensing will not reveal issues, including mental health issues, that develop later. Attachment 1, an internet- sourced analysis of Canadian deaths resulting from shootings of multiple people in the past 50 years, shows that 12 or more of the 29 cases appear to be primarily mental-health-driven; the brief Appendices C and D to a 2010 Canadian Firearms Program Evaluation (http://www.rcmp- grc.gc.ca/pubs/fire-feu-eval/appc-eng.htm; http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/pubs/fire-feu- eval/appd-eng.htm) provide additional examples, for example, cases of domestic violence, that everyone on the Committee can agree is a considerable concern. The likely increase in stress due to adjustments that have to be made due to huge changes in the way people work (the “uberization” of jobs, the gig economy), as well as pressures from social media and fake news, mean that there may be increased mental health cases and reasonable solutions should be discussed ahead of time. Below are three approaches that try to sensitively address the issue.

o Targeted checks: While mental health issues can occur at any time, two age groups that may permit targeted responses occur, first, in the late teens/early twenties, when bipolar disorder and schizophrenia symptoms may manifest themselves, and, second, as people’s mental faculties later decline. There may be other areas where targeted checks may be warranted.

▪ One option would be annual reference and background checks for those below 25. Increasing the age at which a gun may be bought to 21 was suggested by students in the recent Florida killings. Attachment 1 shows 14 or 15 of 29 – 50% of multiple gun-related homicides and woundings in Canada – were committed by young men 25 and younger.

▪ Another option is re-affirming that doctors, and extending their permission to breach privacy to other professionals and individuals in positions to see people displaying behaviours of concern, are permitted to and must report concerns to family or authorities, just as they do when a sight or mental impairment, such as Alzheimers, may cause driving accidents. Clearly, few cases of declining mental faculties will be of concern, but it is critical to make it clear that people have a right and a responsibility to raise in confidence to those in authority any issue involving a party that they may believe could exhibit poor judgement in terms of gun use (Attachment 1 includes at least two examples when this could have been done). Similarly, the army, police or security guard companies that reject individuals due to concerns regarding personality

disorders, or people at shooting ranges who see people demonstrating behaviours of

concern, should have a mandatory requirement to report this. 2

Page

2

▪ A final option is more frequent checks for owners of multiple guns. Nine, or a third of the 29 cases in Attachment 1, involved multiple weapons. While police must always enter precarious situations assuming there will be guns, the proposed legislation should provide for a way for the authorities to require gun shops to check their records when an issue is only just emerging. Given computer records, this is not onerous.

o Responsibilities of reference-givers: In the case of the Dawson College shooting, the murderer had acquired four guns using family members as references. Was it one family member? If more, did the others knew how many guns he had? It is important that people who provide references – being people who presumably know the individual well – have some responsibility to advise the authorities if they see that behaviour later becomes erratic and concerns them. ii. The Committee should conclude that the need to provide references should be extended to renewing licenses. The renewal of licenses can now be done online and efforts are being made to make the process as efficient and simple as possible, but there is no space for two references as apply when a person gets a license. A quick search on the internet finds few material complaints in terms of obtaining or renewing a license : https://www.quora.com/How-easy-is-it- to-get-a-handgun-in-Canada; http://www.howtogetagun.ca/. And the requirement to get a reference more frequently should not be onerous. No reasonable person objects to being required to provide passport references periodically (that is, just name, address, and basic contact information). Responsible law-abiding gunowners should have the same desire to have only competent (skilled and mentally sound) individuals able to own, and continue to possess, a gun by requiring two references to be provided. iii. The Committee should recommend the government consider recent highly-publicized American high-school students’ recommendations to ban assault-type weapons and bumpstocks, and raise the age of purchase if there is no intention to continue background checks until age 25. Some non-restricted guns in Canada may seem to those less familiar with guns to be quite close to military assault weapons (https://www.huntinggearguy.com/rifle- reviews/top-10-non-restricted-black-rifles-in-canada/). It is likely that many gun-owners would agree with this. The U.S. National Rifle Association (NRA) has stated that it believes devices such as bumpstocks, that are designed to allow semi-automatic rifles to function like fully-automatic weapons, should be subject to additional regulations (https://home.nra.org/joint-statement). iv. The Committee should recommend an expansion to the RCMP website to include clearer tables identifying the main provisions of federal, provincial – and, if relevant, municipal – laws relating to gun ownership and data regarding gun crime. An example of greater clarity I found helpful, if not perfect, summarized gun laws in California. While this state has more strict gun control laws than most in the U.S. or Canada, this example is provided purely because of the clarity of its presentation (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_laws_in_California).

With respect to data, when opposing sides present different numbers ostensibly for the same time period, we have a problem. In the U.S., some argue that the number of times gun ownership has prevented a crime is under-stated as those who scare off a criminal may not report it or the media is biased against reporting it. As a famous person once said, there are ‘lies, damn lies and statistics’, but let key data be public, accessible and sourced to credible parties – and allow individuals to question it – so that people can see for themselves and draw their own conclusions. For example, it should include in an easily accessible location a clear

indication of whether the guns used in crimes were legally held (it was not possible to find this

out in many of the cases in Attachment 1), the number of gun thefts from private gun-owners 3

(see v. below), etc. as this will help identify solutions. Page

3

v. The Committee should consider encouraging sporting, hunting and other associations representing responsible gun-owners to develop and widely publicize common-sense good practice. Examples are improved storage of guns to address the fact that thefts of domestic guns reportedly are increasing. As well, the associations could recommend their members voluntarily request the purchaser or receiver of a gun to show the appropriate Possession and Acquisition License, as it seems that the requirement to request this was eliminated.

vi. The Committee should recommend no further delays in implementation of the Firearms Marking Regulations and consideration of a requirement for barrel striation, microstamping, or other identifying marks. Implementing the Firearms Marking regulations after multiple delays is the right thing to do, and meets commitments with respect to both the United Nations Firearms Protocol and Organization of American States convention requirements. Considering ways to prevent and make it easier to solve gun crime, even if a marking system leads at times to a law-abiding responsible gun-owner whose gun was stolen, has still been identified by police officers as helpful.

vii. All parties represented on the Health and Public Safety Committee should commit that whatever government is in power will more publicly announce legislative or regulatory changes amending then existing legal protections that affect public safety. Changes that reasonable persons, with neutral views on gun-ownership would consider could lead to a reduction in personal safety or be more onerous, should be explained in plain language agreed on by all parties, and sent via an MP letter or e-mail to constituents, enabling them to comment if they wish.

Conclusion

With apologies for an overused pun, there is no ‘silver bullet’ to solve the public safety issues of gun crimes. It requires multiple approaches and it was not to be expected that Bill C-71 would include all of them. Most importantly, however, it requires good will and respect on all sides of the discussion.

I believe my recommendations respect the concerns raised in respondent speeches referenced on page 1 as listed below:

• Canadians’ safety must be the top priority of any government and the population as a whole – I concur

• The importance of going after criminals/crime and reducing the cross-border inflow of guns – I agree with government efforts to: • Make sure the Canadian Border Services Agency has the authority and resources to address the problem of guns coming from the U.S. • Continue efforts to manage gang and other forms of organized criminal gun-related activity • Address growing gun thefts from law-abiding gunowners.

• No undue burden on law-abiding citizens/importance of efficiency for gun-owners and gun- related businesses – I think that requirements (1) to provide references when guns are renewed (as for passport renewals) and more frequently for younger Canadians and (2) to report concerns regarding individuals with mental health issues who may have access to guns to authorities, are not onerous. Registered gun sellers presumably would prefer checking if they have sold long guns to PAL number licensees to a long-gun registry that gunowner associations

and their members opposed.

4 Page

4

• The need to balance the concerns of those who are anti-gun due to tragedies that have occurred and those who hunt, enjoy target shooting, and/or want to protect themselves and their community – This can best be dealt with by bringing together reasonable people of differing views where they can agree on the goal first and avoid ‘playing politics’ to find a solution.

I would be pleased to elaborate on any of my comments. I look forward to seeing Bill C-71 enacted and other recommendations promptly moving forward for discussion.

Yours truly,

B. Amsden

Toronto, Ontario

5 Page

5

Multi-person Shooting Cases Canada – Past 50 years (Mh = mental health; Dv = domestic violence; Em = employee on co-workers; Bg = biker gang; O = other

Date Name Age Location Dead, hurt Weapons Comments Mh Dv Em Bg O 1 15-Aug-67 Victor Hoffman 21 Shell Lake, 9, 0 .22-calibre Browning Released from a mental hospital just three weeks 1 Saskatchewan pump-action repeater before the rifle 2 28-Aug-72 William Lepine 27 Kettle Valley, 6, 3 • .22-caliber rifle Escaped from secure psychiatric hospital; suffered 1 (aka William British Columbia • .30-caliber rifle from schizophrenia, believed he was chosen to McConnell) save the world by killing the victims 3 01-Sep-72 Dale Nelson 31 Creston, British 8, 0 7 mm caliber bolt Reportedly physically abused his wife; known to 1 murders Columbia action rifle become aggressive and unpredictable when he drank to excess and to use LSD; fell into a depressed state in early 1970 and unsuccessfully attempted suicide; spent two months at Riverview Hospital in Coquitlam 4 28-May-75 Michael Slobodian 16 Brampton 3, 13 • .444-caliber lever- Note to his family saying he was "fed up with life" 1 Centennial action rifle and "he was going to eliminate two teachers" and Secondary, • .22-caliber semi- get revenge because he hated the school system Brampton, Ontario automatic rifle 5 27-Oct-75 Robert Poulin 18 St. Pius X High 1, 5 Shotgun Rejected from officer training program for poor 1 School, Ottawa, eyesight and a chest deformity; obsessed with sex Ontario and pornography; had been suicidal at least three years prior to attack 6 02-Aug-82 David Shearing 24 Wells Gray 6, 0 .22 caliber Told board he suffered from low self- 1 Provincial Park, esteem as a child and had been having violent, B.C. sexual fantasies from the time he was 14. 7 08-May-84 Denis Lortie 25 National Assembly, 2, 11 • 2 x C-1 submachine Army corporal, suffered from paranoid 1 City, guns (9mm NATO) schizophrenia; physically and sexually abused by Quebec • Inglis pistol (9mm) his father 400 rounds of ammunition 8 24-Mar-85 Jacques Pelletier, varied Lennoxville, 5, 0 • Handguns Biker-gang-related 1 Luc Michaud, Quebec • Shotguns Réjean Lessard, Robert Tremblay 9 06-Dec-89 Marc Lépine 23 École 15, 14 Semi-automatic rifle; Anti-feminist; abused as a child; described as 1 Polytechnique purchased legally intelligent but troubled; his suicide letter said he

- 6 -

Date Name Age Location Dead, hurt Weapons Comments Mh Dv Em Bg O massacre, tried to join Canadian Army 1980-81 but was , Quebec rejected because he was "anti-social"

10 03-Feb-92 Patrick 29? Ontario Glove 3, 0 Semi-automatic rifle, Disgruntled employee, was six when his mother 1 Dombroskie Manufacturing Co. 60 rounds of died of breast cancer and his father, an alcoholic, on Dotzert Court, ammunition was unable to care for him and his two brothers near Conestoga Mall. 11 07-May-92 Freeman Daniel 23, McDonald's 3, 1 .22 caliber pistol, Robbery gone very wrong 1 MacNeil, Derek 18, 18 restaurant in other Wood, Darren Sydney River, Nova Muise Scotia, 12 24-Aug-92 Valery I. 52 Concordia 4, 1 • Snub-nosed .38- Long demonstrated disruptive behaviour vs 1 Fabrikant, University calibre 5-shot students, staff members, other academics, ranging revolver from "undesirable to intolerable", which university • 6.35mm Meb pistol had struggled to deal with; as early as 1989, two with 6-round people reported him saying, "I know how people magazine get what they want, they shoot a lot of people" • 7.65mm Bersa pistol had emigrated from USSR after being fired from with 8-round succession of posts for his threatening and magazine disruptive behaviour large amount of ammunition 13 06-Apr-96 Mark Vijay Chahal 30 Vernon, B.C. 9, 0 • 12-gauge shotgun Spousal abuse reported to abuse by ex-wife; 1 • S&W 40-calibre police said they were powerless to deny the semi-automatic firearms certificates to Chabal as spouse had pistol asked them not to conduct a full investigation into • S&W 38-calibre the case revolver 14 06-Apr-99 Pierre Lebrun 40 OC Transpo, St. 4, 2 Remington 760 .30-06 Employee; had been the subject of bullying for a 1 Laurent, Ottawa, rifle stutter; bachelor with no criminal record, Ontario struggling with depression; co-worker later committed suicide admitted gunman had talked to him about place for a best shot at some managers 15 28-Apr-99 Todd Cameron 14 W. R. Myers High 1, 1 .22-calibre rifle; Had suffered severe bullying at school, including 1 Smith School, Taber, hundreds of rounds of having been doused with lighter fluid and Alberta ammunition threatened to be set alight when in first grade; had become "reclusive and extremely fearful” by

- 7 -

Date Name Age Location Dead, hurt Weapons Comments Mh Dv Em Bg O early teens; mother said he had shown signs of depression throughout childhood; had been watching coverage of Columbine massacre eight days prior 16 14-Jun-02 Peter Kiss 30 Grimsby, Ontario 5, 0 Semi-automatic Drove over border from U.S.; domestic violence; 1 handgun victim had feared violence

17 01-Nov-04 Dustin Paul 24 Penticton Indian 3, 2 Handgun Bush party; snorted cocaine in attempt to sober 1 Reserve, B.C. up from 35 bottles of beer

18 03-Mar-05 James Roszko 46 Mayerthorpe, 4, 0 Heckler & Koch 91 Known as an unstable loner; numerous stolen 1 Alberta semi-automatic rifle vehicle parts and a marijuana grow-op found on the premises 19 08-Apr-06 Wayne "Weiner" , 56, Iona Station near. 8, 0 • Rifle Biker-gang-related; lead had convictions for three 1 Dwight Mushey, 36, Shedden, Ontario • Shotgun counts of assault causing bodily harm, three for Michael Sandham other • Handgun assault, three for possessing unregistered weapons and more than a dozen counts for various weapons (40 odd guns and rocket launcher at his farm), property and breach/escape charges 20 13-Sep-06 Kimveer Gill 25 Dawson College, 2, 19 • Carbine rifle Deemed unsuitable for military service and 1 Montreal, Quebec • Glock pistol voluntarily discharged • Shotgun • Fourth gun had restricted firearm license 21 15-Dec-11 Derek Jensen 21 Claresholm, 4, 1 • Heckler & Koch 9- Volatile on-and-off relationship with girl friend; 1 Alberta mm handgun scout leader, dedicated uncle, honours student, • 12-gauge shotgun; and avid outdoorsman Winchester rifle all registered 22 15-Jun-12 Travis 22 Edmonton, Alberta 3, 1 Handgun, legally held Trainee armed guard; short of money; well-liked 1 Baumgartner with no criminal record; were “there signs of potential danger missed by the security company that hired him and put a gun in his hand”? 23 16-Jul-12 ? ? Scarborough, 2, 23 Unknown Block party 1 Ontario

- 8 -

Date Name Age Location Dead, hurt Weapons Comments Mh Dv Em Bg O 24 05-Apr-13 Robert Charron 49 Les Racines de vie 2, 0 Shotgun Love triangle? 1 Montessori, Gatineau, Quebec 25 04-Jun-14 Justin Bourque 24 Moncton, New 3, 2 • Rifle Forced to move out at parents' request after 1 Brunswick • Shotgun dispute over his purchase of a second firearm and his "inappropriate behaviour"; "he's always seemed to have a problem with authority. Issues with parents, bosses, police..."; reportedly held anti-government and anti-authority views, had a fascination with conspiracy theories, and talked about killing other people and himself; two days before the shooting, Bourque ranted against all figures of authority to his father, during which he was described as becoming "paranoid” 26 22-Oct-14 Michael Zehaf- 32 Parliament Hill, 1, 3 .30-30 Winchester Habitual offender and drug addict; had been 1 Bibeau Ottawa Model 94rifle; how observed by acquaintances and mosque staff gun obtained not exhibiting erratic behaviour’; previous criminal determined charges and convictions, history of drug abuse, and lack of fixed address would have prevented him from receiving a Canadian Firearms Licence 27 29-Dec-14 Phu Lam 53 Edmonton, Alberta 8, 0 Gun legally registered “Well known to police,” had criminal record back 1 in 1997; reported to September 1987, including arrests for domestic stolen in 2006 in violence and sexual assault; allegedly, angered Surrey, BC when he found he was raising child that was not biologically his own 28 22-Jan-16 unidentified 17 La Loche, 4, 7 Shotgun, unauthorized ? 1 student Saskatchewan

29 29-Jan-17 Alexandre 27 , 6, 19 • CZ 858 rifle Expressed support for Marine Le Pen, Islam critic 1 Bissonnette Quebec • 9mm semi- Richard Dawkins, Donald Trump; had far-right, automatic pistol white nationalist, anti-Muslim views; frequently denigrated refugees, feminists online Total 12 6 2 3 6

- 9 -