Etobicoke, ON -(AmmoLand.com)- Canada’s national police force has chosen to continue its unabated attack on our nation’s law-abiding firearms community.
This time its ire is directed at one of the most common and inoffensive firearms owned by Canadians: the Ruger 10/22 rifle. To be more specific, the attack is on the rifle’s magazines.
With the sweep of a bureaucratic pen, the crew in the firearms’ lab has declared that for the little Ruger rifle any magazine that holds over ten shots is now PROHIBITED. Apparently the logic is that the magazines can also fit the obsolete Ruger Charger pistol. As such they are being considered handgun magazines and must be limited to ten rounds.
They are wrong of course.
The law says in Section 3 (2) (magazine restrictions) of the Criminal Code Regulations:
(2) Paragraph (1)(a) does not include any cartridge magazine that
(a) was originally designed or manufactured for use in a firearm that
(i) is chambered for, or designed to use, rimfire cartridges
Most of the magazines in question were for sale decades before the Charger pistol was even thought of. They are clearly designed for the Ruger 10/22 RIFLE, and therefore are exempt from the restrictions.
Although these magazines are only for the little .22 LR rimfire, this is no small thing. Hundreds of thousands of these magazines are in circulation in Canada and have been for many years — without incident. Owners have been plunged, without even the courtesy of a public announcement, into serious criminality. Possession of a prohibited device is a very serious crime. Nice of them to tell us – but deceit and entrapment seem to be the RCMP’s stock-in-trade.
It is puzzling why the RCMP seems to relish widening the animosity between itself and Canada’s lawful, licensed gun owners. Indeed, the actions of the RCMP seem to indicate utter contempt for our community. Undoubtedly, the RCMP will reap what it sows.
What should owners of these magazines do? The answer is nothing. We have received nothing official regarding the status of these magazines, although we are certain it is coming. Individuals should not attempt to pin or otherwise limit the magazine’s capacity as that could prove dangerous. As well, transporting a prohibited device without the proper paperwork can land one into criminality very quickly. Do nothing to the magazines – don’t move them and don’t use them. Even giving them away could constitute trafficking in prohibited devices.
Hang in there! We are currently examining several options with our sister organizations and members of the industry, and we will need your participation. An announcement of our actions will come within the next few days.
Meanwhile, write a letter (paper is best, but email works) expressing your outrage to the Prime Minister of Canada, The Rt. Hon. Justin Trudeau; to the Public Safety Minister, the Hon. Ralph Goodale; and, of course, to your own federal Member of Parliament. Please don’t waste time with petitions. Direct communication is the only sure fire route. Express (politely) how you feel about another unwarranted attack on our community by the seemingly incompetent firearms’ lab, and request that steps be taken to reverse this attempt to turn hundreds of thousands of Canadians into instant criminals.
You can find the contact information for MPs and Minsters here:
About CSSA:
The CSSA is the voice of the sport shooter and firearms enthusiast in Canada. Our national membership supports and promotes Canada’s firearms heritage, traditional target shooting competition, modern action shooting sports, hunting, and archery. We support and sponsor competitions and youth programs that promote these Canadian heritage activities.
For more information, visit the website at www.cdnshootingsports.org.
Can those former Californians get the rest of the current Californians to become near future Canadians?
Mexican-Canadian, yeah, it has a certain ring to it. I like it.
Who knew that so many Californians had migrated to Canada? The creation of senseless laws that solve a nonexistent problem is their giveaway. That and tailgating.