Canadian Criminal Sentencing/Offences/Careless Use or Storage of a Firearm
| Careless Use or Storage of a Firearm | |
|---|---|
| s. 86 of the Crim. Code | |
| Election / Plea | |
| Crown Election | Hybrid |
| Jurisdiction | Prov. Court SC Judge + PI (I) SC Jury + PI (I) (536(2)) |
| Summary Dispositions | |
| Avail. Disp. | Discharge (730) Suspended Sentence (731(1)(a)) |
| Maximum | 6 months jail or $5,000 fine |
| Indictable Dispositions | |
| Avail. Disp. | same as summary |
| Maximum | 2 years (first) 5 years (second or more) |
| References | |
| Offence Elements Sentence Principles Sentence Digests | |
Legislation
[edit | edit source]Careless use of firearm, etc.
86. (1) Every person commits an offence who, without lawful excuse, uses, carries, handles, ships, transports or stores a firearm, a prohibited weapon, a restricted weapon, a prohibited device or any ammunition or prohibited ammunition in a careless manner or without reasonable precautions for the safety of other persons.
...
Punishment
(3) Every person who commits an offence under subsection (1) or (2)
- (a) is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment
- (i) in the case of a first offence, for a term not exceeding two years, and
- (ii) in the case of a second or subsequent offence, for a term not exceeding five years; or
- (b) is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction.
R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 86; 1991, c. 40, s. 3; 1995, c. 39, s. 139.
– CCC
See also: Firearms Act, SC 1995, c 39 and Storage, Display, Transportation and Handling of Firearms by Individuals Regulations, SOR/98-209
Application
[edit | edit source]Factors
[edit | edit source]Mitigating Factors
[edit | edit source]- Youthful offender
- guilty plea (early or late plea, amount of court resources saved)
- no prior record or no related record
Ancillary Orders
[edit | edit source]- Weapons Prohibition Orders
- 491 Weapon Forfeiture Order (Mandatory)
- DNA Order
- 462.37(2.01) Forfeiture of Property (Discretionary)
Ranges
[edit | edit source]- R. v. Grice, 2008 ONCJ 476 -- $500 fine -- found accused was videotaping ex-wife in shower, found carelessly stored .22 cal rifle.