Canada Gun Laws Are Failing Citizens as Gun Crimes Surge

In Canada, despite stringent gun control measures and a recent national handgun freeze, firearm-related crime continues to surge, highlighting potential gaps in the current strategy, particularly around handguns and the illegal gun market from the U.S., as reported by the Toronto Star and Breitbart.

In 2022, police-reported crime statistics from Statistics Canada indicated a 10 percent increase in gun-related crime from the previous year, with a total of 9,198 victims. This rate was also 60 percent higher compared to 2013. Handguns were the weapon of choice in 63 percent of gun-related homicides.

The federal government has taken several steps to curb this violence, including expanding background checks, banning 1,500 models of assault weapons, and imposing a national handgun freeze, which prohibits the sale, purchase, or transfer of handguns within Canada. Additionally, $250 million has been allocated to address the root causes of gun and gang violence.

However, Toronto Star contributor Shaquille Morgan highlighted the continuing challenge of illegal guns entering Canada from the U.S., which represent a significant portion of crime-related firearms. According to Public Safety Canada, about one-third of Canadian guns used in crimes between 2017 and 2021 were illegally exported from the U.S., with 85 percent of crime-related handguns in Toronto traced back to the U.S.

Morgan suggests that an effective strategy might include targeting gun smuggling at the Canada-U.S. border through zoned and randomized routine searches, focusing on hotspots with unpredictable routines while maintaining non-discriminatory practices.

Furthermore, there is a pressing need to focus on the roots of gun-related crime in communities where violence has become normalized. The $250 million in federal funding is seen as a start, but it is likely insufficient to make a meaningful and sustained impact. Morgan advocates for multidisciplinary, human-centered, and innovative strategies that offer benefits outweighing the costs of illegal gun ownership or use, rather than merely imposing longer prison sentences which may not address the fundamental issues driving individuals to own or use illegal guns.