Justification for seizing guns in Canada...

M

Manedwolf

Moderator
Thu, June 28, 2007
Guns seized after shoplifting arrest
UPDATED: 2007-06-28 01:52:54 MST


By DOUG MCINTYRE, SUN MEDIA

Thwarting a shoplifter ultimately led to police seizing a huge cache of firearms, including three loaded guns from a vehicle.

About 9 p.m. Monday, cops took a man into custody for shoplifting at a store in the 1800 block of 16 Ave. N.W.

The suspect directed them to a vehicle in the adjacent parking lot for his personal documentation, where police found a man and a woman with open liquor and a loaded handgun.

A further search of the vehicle unearthed another loaded handgun in the glove compartment, a loaded shotgun in the trunk and several boxes of ammunition.

The owner of the vehicle, 33-year-old David Silliker, has been charged with several weapons offences.

Cops also seized a collection of more than 50 firearms from his Deer Run home in the city's southeast.

Staff Sgt. Kathy Grant said the latter cache was taken in the interest of public safety.

"Because he had the loaded handguns and the loaded shotguns in his vehicle, that raises suspicion, so that's why we took the extra step to seize the other ones," she said.

"The firearms that were seized from the residence were registered, so there were no charges laid from the seizure of those."

Police are still investigating why the loaded weapons were in the vehicle.
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But they kept them, of course. In the interest of public safety.

Not saying he wasn't up to no good, but that's for the courts to decide, I thought. Seizing legal weapons before any charges are filed? Well...I guess that's how Canada is.
 
That's exactly how Canada is. Very difficult for a law abiding person to get guns. Very easy for a BG to get them. At least a few years ago when a reporter for the Sun in Ottawa (the capital) was able to buy a gun on the 'street' in less than 5 hours for approx $400.

B

Dec 15, 1791
 
"The firearms that were seized from the residence were registered, so there were no charges laid from the seizure of those."
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Just absolutely mind-boggling.

"We seized the shoplifter's house and car. They were legally owned, so no charges were laid from the seizure of those." What's the difference?
 
You guys crack me up. If the shoplifter had been found shot by a citizen in his car full of loaded weapons you would be trumpeting from the rooftops how wonderful it was that a BG was dead.

Apparantly in the world of online firearms aficianados killing someone is always better than taking their guns.

Criminals with loaded weapons and alcohol are not law abiding citizens and while I don't think we should shoot them for being criminals and stupid I sure am not going to lose any sleep over the fact that they are at least temporarily disarmed.

Of course they seized the weapons while investigating! If they were my neighbors I would hope they were in jail until we found out what the hell was going on.
 
So, you go to target and while there buy a new pair of sunglasses

then head across town/street to Wallmart to pick up some ammo... when you walk in the store you put your new sunglasses in your pocket.... while headed to the back you pass the sun glass display and look and see you paid 50 cents more for the new glasses at targets.... then head back to the ammo dept.... pick up that white box of 45 acp and head out the store after paying... some 18 year old highschool drop out on pot up in the 'video survelance center' decides you looked questionable and the store security guys finds those 'new' sunglasses in your pocket... Cops are called.... you think maybe the receipt for the sun glasses might be in your car.... so everyone goes to check...cops note the 45acp ammo... and look around your car while you look for the paper work....
sounds questionable to me... let's check your car... damn you've got a gun in there.. and more ammo. lets check your home.... you've got an 'armory' and a stock pile of thousands of round of ammo....

Sure is 'good' we took another 'bad guy' off the street. that's how it will play out in the paper.
 
Blume357,
+1

Home raided, weapons siezed, car searched, etc. as fallout from a shoplifting charge.
 
Hard to see any justification in taking all the gun since they weren't 'part' of the shoplifting. Doubt that the consfiscation will decrease shoplifting, or anything else for that matter. That being said, there should be no tolerance for open booze and a loaded gun in the same vehice. Open booze doesn't belong in a vehicle and booze and guns don't mix. Still struggle with taking the weapons from home.
 
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Of course they seized the weapons while investigating! If they were my neighbors I would hope they were in jail until we found out what the hell was going on.
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Well, vote for Hillary or Obama and your wish will come true.

It might come and bite YOU in the posterior someday, too.
 
If a cop comes to my car and finds two of my friends drinking an three loaded weapons without proper paperwork you can bet your butt I am going to jail until it gets sorted out.

I have a very low tolerance for people who treat guns in a cavalier manner and don't display an appropriate sense of safety.

Any person with alcohol and loaded weapons in the same car is dangerous and stupid. Dangerous stupid people are the very people who should have their guns taken. Defending the right of dangerous stupid people to handle guns in a dangerous and stupid manner is to risk non gun owners to assume that all gun owners are dangerous and stupid.

Every time zealots defend the indefensible they lose credibility. Having three loaded weapons and open alcohol containers in a car is indefensible.
 
Justme, I was commenting on the gun ownership situation in Canada only. Not at all on what sounds like real BG. It's very different there.

On a happier note it's Canada Day in 30 min.:) Still have to love the old homeland.

B

Dec 15, 1791
 
I have never lived in Canada, although I lived in Maine for 10 years and liked to drive up to Quebec city whenever I got a chance. I liked it a lot, but then I didn't live there.

I'm not sure I get your point, at least I don't see the connection between this particular incident and oppressive govt regulations on fire arms. I'm not saying that they don't exist in Canada, just that I don't see the connection.

As far as I could tell from the brief description you provided I would expect that virtually every US cop would act the same way, with the possible exception of searching the house.

My guess is that a US cop who caught a shoplifter who then had three loaded weapons and open ETOH containers in their car would consider the possibility of drug traffic. They would then get a warrant and search the guys house based on what they found in his car.

I would be willing to give a shoplifter the benefit of the doubt until everything was investigated, I would be much less lenient with the weapons charges. I am of the opinion that the prosecution of those breaking gun laws helps ensure that law abiding citizens get to keep theirs.
 
Perhaps I was just reminded of the dichotomy between law abiding citizen and other less law abiding being able to obtain guns in Canada. I read an article like that and see how the BG's seem to be armed and how difficult it is to protect oneself from these people in Canada. Again maybe not very related to the original post.

B

Dec 15, 1791
 
Some of the comments here seem so extreme at times I sometimes assume people are being sarcastic only to feel like an idiot when I figure out they aren't.
 
The suspect directed them to a vehicle in the adjacent parking lot for his personal documentation, where police found a man and a woman with open liquor and a loaded handgun.
Click to expand...

My guess is that upon seeing the open container and handgun -presumably it was stupidly in plain sight- the cops reacted appropriately. Arrest everyone and start sorting it out. Very likely the driver/shoplifter's ID came back as also being a gun owner since Canada's C-68 mandatory registration scheme has centralized all ownership records (in a boondoggle that has ballooned to 16 times it's original budget estimate).

Canadian laws are different and I can't comment on them. Howver, in the U.S., in many states, an open container inside a car not being operated and on private property is not illegal. Unless one of the guns was revealed during the retreival of the man's documents, all the cops might have been able to do is tell the passengers they were now pedestrians.

With today's computerized records keeping and networking of police & state systems, you can expect that if you get arrested for something, even minor, while carrying a gun, they'll find out if you have more and ask for a warrant to seize those guns too. Once there is a weapons violation, the cops like to prevent you from doing it again.
 
My only point was that on the face of a newpaper article,

which I usually find when connected to one are not acurate, that all this happended because the guy was arrested or being held on shoplifting... yes, all concerned are probably low lifes who deserve what they get....but there is the possibility, as I discribed.... that the same thing (excluding the open container) could happen to anyone of us...
 
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