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Contribution to Public Safety
Commissioner of Firearms - 2009 Report
- Firearms-Safety Training
- Outreach to Aboriginal Communities
- Enhanced Screening of Firearms-Licence Applicants
- Continuous Eligibility Screening of Firearms-Licence Holders
- Firearms-Licence Refusals and Revocations
- Firearms Prohibitions
- Inspections
- Firearm Disposals
Firearms-Safety Training
The Canadian Firearms Safety Course (CFSC) is a fundamental firearms-education and safety-training component of the CFP. It was developed in partnership with the provinces and territories as well as organizations with an ongoing interest in hunter education and firearms safety. The CFSC was first implemented in 1994 by the Department of Justice to provide instruction on the safe handling, use, transportation and storage of both restricted and non-restricted firearms.
With the introduction of the Firearms Act in 1995, modifications to the firearms-safety training provided to firearms owners and users were required, and a separate firearms-safety training course with a focus on restricted firearms (including handguns) was developed. Both the revised CFSC and the Canadian Restricted Firearms Safety Course (CRFSC) were introduced in 1999.
The Act states that anyone wishing to acquire non-restricted firearms must pass the CFSC test, while anyone wishing to acquire restricted firearms must pass both the CFSC and the CRFSC tests. In 2009, there were 83,287 CFSC graduates and 22,773 succeeded at the CRFSC.
The RCMP CFP is responsible for the continued development, implementation, evaluation and revision of national firearms-safety standards and the CFSC and CRFSC, while each province or territory is responsible for the delivery of the courses.
| Course | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Firearms Safety Course | 55,908 | 62,612 | 72,421 | 83,225 | 83,287 |
| Canadian Restricted Firearms Safety Course | 10,620 | 12,489 | 15,382 | 20,149 | 22,773 |
Outreach to Aboriginal Communities
The CFP provides firearms services to Aboriginal people and their communities, particularly in remote and rural areas of the country. Always aiming to improve the quality of these services, the CFP has conducted research studies and committed to programs and service-delivery projects with Aboriginal people and communities in mind.
One priority is the integration of the CFP's Canadian Firearms Safety Course into a broader curriculum in reserve schools. Another commitment is the translation of the safety course into Inuktitut so that it can be presented in that language. A third is research into a community-based program for centralized storage of firearms as a method to increase firearms safety within those communities.
The goal of these efforts is to increase public safety in Aboriginal communities by increasing safety awareness among those who have access to firearms.
Enhanced Screening of Firearms-Licence Applicants
The CFP makes every effort to ensure individuals who pose a potential public safety risk do not acquire or have access to firearms.
In an effort to reduce firearms violence in Canada, the CFP employs an in-depth security screening process for first-time restricted firearms licence applicants. It includes interviewing the applicant and his or her references, as well as Internet screening.
A recurring trend with firearms crime and violence is pre-event advertisement via the Internet. The CFP therefore proactively searches the Internet to establish leads for police and firearms officers to initiate or assist in investigations and to identify public safety issues prior to crimes being committed.
Continuous Eligibility Screening of Firearms-Licence Holders
All current Possession Only Licences, Possession and Acquisition Licences and Minor's Licences are recorded in the Canadian Firearms Information System (CFIS), which automatically checks with the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) every day to determine whether a licence holder has been the subject of an incident report in CPIC anywhere in Canada.
All matches generate a report entitled Firearms Interest Police (FIP) that is automatically forwarded to the relevant Chief Firearms Officer for follow-up. Some of these reports require no further action, but some prompt a review of the individual's firearms licence, resulting in its revocation and the seizure of any firearms.
This continuous-eligibility screening reduces the likelihood that an individual who has been identified as a potential risk to public safety will be permitted to retain possession of firearms.
| Province/Territory | 2009 |
|---|---|
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 2,162 |
| Prince Edward Island | 162 |
| Nova Scotia | 4,684 |
| New Brunswick | 3,640 |
| Quebec | 35,463 |
| Ontario | 21,415 |
| Manitoba | 5,155 |
| Saskatchewan | 3,501 |
| Alberta | *10,192 |
| British Columbia | 9,217 |
| Yukon | 245 |
| Nunavut | 136 |
| Total | 95,972 |
*Note: Total for Alberta includes confirmed FIP events occurring in the Northwest Territories.
Firearms-Licence Refusals and Revocations
When individuals apply for a firearms licence, they are subject to a variety of background checks. They are screened to identify potential risks to public safety based on the initial application, and their continued eligibility is screened throughout the life of the licence to identify any public-safety risks that may arise over time.
Chief Firearms Officers play a key role in the process of authorizing individuals to acquire or retain a firearms licence. Under the Firearms Act, they are authorized to refuse an application for a licence or revoke a firearms licence, based on their assessment of the individual's risk to public safety.
In 2009, 515 firearms licences were refused and 2,085 firearms licences were revoked.
There are a variety of reasons for refusals and revocations, the most common being a court-ordered prohibition or probation. Refusals and revocations are recorded in CFIS, a national database, and thus cannot be evaded by moving from one jurisdiction to another.
| Year | Refusal | Revocation |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 515 | 2,085 |
| 2008 | 462 | 1,833 |
| 2007 | 440 | 1,748 |
| 2006 | 391 | 2,064 |
| 2005 | 345 | 2,286 |
| Total | 2,153 | 10,016 |
| Reason | Refusal | % | Revocation | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Court Ordered Prohibition / Probation | 228 | 44% | 1,651 | 79% |
| Domestic Violence | 29 | 6% | 61 | 3% |
| Drug Offences | 20 | 4% | 29 | 1% |
| Mental Health | 50 | 10% | 137 | 7% |
| Potential Risk to Others | 155 | 30% | 250 | 12% |
| Potential Risk to Self | 107 | 21% | 234 | 11% |
| Provided False Information | 76 | 15% | 20 | 1% |
| Unsafe Firearm Use and Storage | 21 | 4% | 58 | 3% |
| Violent | 54 | 10% | 73 | 4% |
| Total | 515 | 2,085 |
*Note: Because a refusal or revocation can be influenced by more than one factor, the total percentage for all categories of frequency may equal more than 100 per cent.
CHART 5: Reasons for Firearms Refusals (2009)*
- Court Ordered Prohibition/Probation - 44%
- Domestic Violence - 6%
- Drug Offences - 4%
- Mental Health - 10%
- Potential Risk to Others - 30%
- Potential Risk to Self - 21%
- Provided False Information - 15%
- Unsafe Firearm Use and Storage - 4%
- Violent - 10%
CHART 6: Reasons for Firearms Revocations (2009)*
- Court Ordered Prohibition/Probation - 79%
- Domestic Violence - 3%
- Drug Offences - 1%
- Mental Health - 7%
- Potential Risk to Others - 12%
- Potential Risk to Self - 11%
- Provided False Information - 1%
- Unsafe Firearm Use and Storage - 3%
- Violent - 4%
*Note: Because a refusal or revocation can be influenced by more than one factor, the total percentage for all categories of frequency is more than 100 per cent.
Firearms Prohibitions
Courts are required, by the Firearms Act, to notify Chief Firearms Officers of all firearms prohibition orders in their jurisdictions. Firearms-licence applicants are screened and compared against prohibition orders. If applicants are subject to prohibition orders, they are refused a firearms licence and issued a notice of refusal with reasons.
If an individual in possession of a firearms licence is the subject of a prohibition order, the individual's licence is revoked by operation of law and he or she is instructed by the court to turn in the licence and dispose of all firearms. Upon receiving notification from the courts, the Chief Firearms Officer administratively revokes the individual's licence.
The Registrar of Firearms revokes registration certificates of registered firearms in these cases and provides instructions to the individual on how to dispose of firearms. The Registrar also refuses any pending application to register firearms and advises police regarding the revocation.
Firearms prohibition orders are captured in the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) Persons File and form part of the background and continuous-eligibility checks. The CFP also relies on information from municipal, provincial and federal courts in determining whether an individual is a potential threat to public safety. A match against a court order may result in the firearms officer conducting an investigation which could lead to a revocation or a change in licence conditions.
CHART 7: Firearms Prohibitions (Cumulative) (2005-2009)*
- 2005 - 58,709
- 2006 - 176,206
- 2007 - 208,851
- 2008 - 254,036
- 2009 - 279,104
*The significant increase from 2005 to 2006 is the result of the CFP's use of the CPIC system as the source of statistics for the number of persons prohibited from possessing firearms as of 2006. The variance is further explained by new mandatory prohibitions for certain drug offence charges and convictions which came into effect at that time.
Inspections
Seized Ammunition
Chief Firearms Officers are responsible for performing inspections of and approving shooting clubs and ranges within their jurisdictions in order to ensure their safe operation and compliance with the Firearms Act. In the interest of community safety, they are also authorized to inspect firearms businesses or individuals in possession of a large number of firearms to ensure safe storage and handling requirements are met.
Firearm Disposals
The CFP closely monitors the disposal of registered firearms. This information can be crucial during firearms crime investigations.
