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Weapons Offences Lawyers Greater Toronto Area (GTA)
If you were charged with a weapons offence in the Greater Toronto Area, contact a GTA criminal defence lawyer.
Defending You Against the Weapons Offence Charge in the GTA
Weapons-related charges are some of the most serious criminal offences in Canada. Many of the firearms offences under the Criminal Code of Canada carry a mandatory minimum sentence.
Often, people in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) face weapons-related charges when they are completely innocent. Other times, people end up being arrested for a firearms offence because they didn’t understand their legal rights.
It’s true that Canadian gun laws can be quite complicated. For this reason, it’s important to discuss your case with an experienced criminal lawyer in the GTA.
Our knowledgeable lawyers at Lawyers From The Six can protect your rights and freedom if you are facing charges for any type of firearms offence.
What are weapons offences?
The Criminal Code of Canada recognizes many different types of offences involving the use, storage, and possession of firearms. Also, what constitutes a weapon for sentencing purposes depends on the circumstances of the particular offence.
While a firearm is almost always treated as a weapon in the eyes of the law, Section 2 of the Criminal Code defines a weapon as any object designed to be used to cause bodily injury or death as well as threaten or intimidate another person.
It means that even a baseball bat or objects such as bottles or rocks can be viewed as “weapons” to charge someone with a firearms offence in Canada. When facing charges for a weapons offence, it’s vital to discuss your case with a GTA criminal lawyer.
Types of firearms offences
The most common types of weapons offences are:
- Unauthorized possession of a weapon
- Pointing a gun
- Unsafe storage of a weapon
- Careless use of a firearm
- Carrying a concealed firearm
- Use of a weapon in the commission of a criminal offence
- Possession of firearms for a dangerous or illegal purpose
- Possession of prohibited or restricted weapons
- Discharging a firearm
- Weapons trafficking
What are the penalties for weapons offences?
Many of the weapons-related charges are treated as a “hybrid offence” under the Criminal Code. It means that the offence can be prosecuted as either an indictment or a summary conviction, depending on the nature of the offence and the level of risk to public safety.
Typically, punishment for first-time offenders is less serious unless the offence is severe. Such offences are associated with the following penalties:
- 1. From six months to five years of incarceration; and/or
- 2. A $5,000.00 fine.
More severe types of firearms offences are punishable by:
- A minimum sentence ranging from six months to three years or a maximum sentence of 10 years; and
- A fine of $5,000.00.
It’s vital to contact a GTA weapons offence lawyer if you were charged with a firearm offence in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Our criminal defence lawyers at 647-830-3083 will review your particular charge in order to identify the weakness in the Crown’s case and prepare an effective defence.
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