COLUMN: TOUGHER SENTENCES, NOT GUN AMNESTIES
Date: Sep 26, 2006 9:13 AM
PUBLICATION: The Edmonton Sun
DATE: 2006.09.26
EDITION: Final
SECTION: Editorial/Opinion
PAGE: C11
BYLINE: PAUL STANWAY, SPECIAL TO THE EDMONTON SUN
WORD COUNT: 627

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TOUGHER SENTENCES, NOT GUN AMNESTIES

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There’s nothing wrong with the provincewide gun amnesty announced
yesterday by the Alberta government, but don’t expect a lineup of Mercs
and BMWs as gangbangers drop by police headquarters to hand in their
semi-automatics.

Last year, when a young Toronto woman was gunned down while out shopping
on that city’s Yonge Street, the first thing Toronto police did was
announce an amnesty for anyone wanting to turn in an illegal firearm.
They’d done this before, with the last amnesty bringing in only a
handful of weapons, but I guess it was worth another try.

A gun amnesty is the default position for politicians and police chiefs
under pressure from citizens to do something – anything! – to control
random gun violence. It’s easier than persuading the courts to start
handing down sentences that reflect public concern.

So during the month of October, Albertans who have unwanted firearms and
ammunition hanging around the house, garage or barn can call any police
station or RCMP detachment and somebody will come by to pick it up – no
questions asked. Well, provided the weapons have not been stolen or used
during a criminal offence.

Alberta Solicitor General Harvey Cenaiko says gun amnesties have worked
in other provinces, and he’s right. Earlier this summer B.C. residents
turned in more than 3,200 guns and 96,000 rounds of ammunition, a rocket
launcher (no kidding) and an AK-47.

Will that stop gun violence in Lotus Land? With fewer guns available for
theft, it might make a dent in the problem. But as Calgary police Chief
Jack Beaton noted yesterday, it would be naive to believe an amnesty
will curb gang violence – because gang members won’t turn in illegal
weapons.

He might also have added that gang members – the guys responsible for
the random shootings that most frighten law-abiding people – have the
money and the contacts to ensure they get the weapons they want.

“Any way that we can help make our communities safer, I believe it’s
important for us to do that,” chimes in Edmonton top cop Mike Boyd. “I
know there are some people who say a gun amnesty won’t be useful, but if
there’s one way that we can help save a life or prevent serious injury,
shouldn’t we be trying every single measure available to us to do that?”

Of course, although Boyd’s suggestion that we also have a knife amnesty
might be a tad difficult to administer. How many knives do you have
around your house? I did a quick check around the kitchen and found 43
items that might be deemed “edged weapons.”

Nevertheless, if you’ve got an old machete in the cupboard or a skinning
blade you no longer use, by all means turn ‘em in. In a society where
people develop murderous rages over minor traffic infractions, the fewer
potential weapons around the better.

The problem is that availability of weapons is only one factor in their
illegal use. The illicit drug trade is clearly a major generator of
violence – and we could argue all day about what causes young men,
primarily, to conclude that a life of crime and violence trumps one
based on education and hard work.

No one has all the answers, yet most people are willing to give ideas
like a gun amnesty a try – even if, like me, you’re not particularly
optimistic about the outcome.

The problem is that if you’re a criminal with a gun and you don’t hand
it in, where’s the downside? Is any court in Alberta going to hand down
a heavier sentence because somebody didn’t take advantage of this
amnesty?

Of course not. The one thing we seem unwilling to try, as a society, is
much tougher sentencing for violent criminals – an end to the system of
1,001 excuses and mitigating circumstances that erodes public confidence
and emboldens thugs.

I’m not suggesting we copy Singapore and execute drug dealers, but we
might think about returning to a system in which the use of a weapon
automatically invites a seriously long prison sentence.

Of course, that’s assuming Alberta’s gun amnesty is more than just a bit
of political window dressing and we’re actually serious about deterring
violent crime.