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By LegalMatters Staff • If you carry a firearm while committing a criminal offence that will be considered an aggravating factor when it comes to sentencing.
The possession of a firearm during a crime is punishable by a maximum 14-year prison sentence and it does not matter if no one was harmed or if the firearm was a replica.
“If you fire a weapon and hit someone, you can be charged with discharging a firearm with intent,” says Ottawa criminal lawyer Céline Dostaler. “This charge is laid if it can be shown that you intended to injure someone during a crime or you were preventing your arrest. The maximum penalty is also 14 years in prison.”
Pointing a weapon at someone “without lawful excuse” is illegal, she says, with the maximum penalty being five years in prison.
“The defences available to people facing firearms charges depend on the circumstances,” says Dostaler. “In all cases, it is a good idea to speak to a criminal lawyer who can review the evidence against you and suggest your best options.
She says a lawyer may be able to negotiate with the Crown to have the charges reduced so the offender receives a lighter sentence.
“That may be an option if you are a first-time offender and if no one was physically harmed during the crime,” Dostaler explains.
She says a lawyer can also study the police investigation to see if provisions under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms were violated.
“A key principle is that you have the ‘right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure,'” says Dostaler.
