Can I be charged with concealing a weapon?
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Can I be charged with concealing a weapon?
People are prohibited from carrying concealed weapons in Canada unless they are law enforcement officers.
Concealed weapons are those that are purposely hidden from the view of others. And the idea of carrying a weapon has a much broader definition than having it on one’s person. It could also include the weapon being within reach in a vehicle that you have care and control of.
Judicial decisions involving concealed weapons often reference a 1993 Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) judgment.
It involved a man who had been target shooting with a friend and took a rapid transit train home with his .22 calibre rifle wrapped in his jacket. He was found guilty of concealing a weapon by a lower court. That ruling was upheld by the SCC, which provided this rationale for not allowing firearms to be hidden:
“There is something extremely menacing and intimidating about the presence of a naked weapon. There is something even more sinister in the presence of a concealed weapon,” the judgment states. “All Canadians have the right to feel protected from the sinister menace of a concealed weapon … Canadians are well satisfied with the security provided by the close regulation of the ownership and use of firearms. They have every right to expect the concealment of weapons would also be prohibited or properly regulated.”
Those found with a concealed weapon could be charged under s.90 (1) of the Criminal Code. It states, “Every person commits an offence who carries a weapon, a prohibited device or any prohibited ammunition concealed, unless the person is authorized under the Firearms Act to carry it concealed.”
What is the penalty for concealing a weapon?
The maximum penalty for concealing a weapon is five years in prison if the charge is treated as an indictable offence, with lesser penalties given if the charge is prosecuted as a summary conviction.
Who is authorized to carry concealed weapons in Canada?
Only law enforcement officers can carry concealed weapons in Canada. Members of the Canadian military, peace and police officers are allowed to carry weapons though most of those firearms will be clearly visible and holstered unless circumstances warrant otherwise.
The Firearms Act lists three groups of citizens who can also carry firearms. They are:
- Security guards who handle or transport “cash, negotiable instruments or other goods of substantial value."
- Those who work in remote wilderness areas where “firearms are required for the protection of the life of that individual or of other individuals from wild animals."
- Those who work as licenced trappers. Members of all the last two groups must have federal firearms accreditation (for example, a Possession and Acquisition Licence, as well as provincial hunter accreditation.
Part 1 of the Act lists circumstances in which an individual restricted firearms or prohibited handguns can be used by citizens. Those circumstances are:
- If someone’s life is in imminent danger.
- If police protection is not sufficient in the circumstances.
- If the possession of a restricted firearm or prohibited handgun can reasonably be justified for protecting the individual or other individuals from death or grievous bodily harm.
What are considered to be weapons in Canada
A definition of a weapon is found in s.2 of the Criminal Code. It states that a weapon is any object that can be used:
- to cause death or injury;
- to threaten or intimidate; or
- to bind or tie up a person against their will.
Based on those first two points, concealed weapons can include handguns, knives, brass knuckles, nunchakus and pepper spray.
But some judges have ruled that not all knives, or even swords, should be considered weapons. For example, a Yukon man was acquitted of concealment of a weapon after he brought a sheathed ceremonial sword to a friend’s apartment as a Christmas gift.
Outside the building, he got into an argument with another man. Though the man with the sword took it out of its sheath and brandished it, the judge ruled that he did not “bring the sword to the incident intending to arm himself for a potential confrontation. He had the sword with him for an innocent and lawful purpose. His reaction was spontaneous, brief and … restrained.”
In explaining why the sword should not be considered a weapon, the judge stated: “a ceremonial sword, is not designed or created for utilitarian purposes unrelated to the concept of it being used as a weapon to kill or maim. At best, it can be said to be created and sold as a decorative ornament of sorts to hang on a wall or place in a display case, basically, a decorative ornament of something that originally seems to have as a main purpose being designed to be in the same sort of category as to kill or maim persons … any number of other manner of things, from opening letters on, could also be done with such swords and knives.”
What does the Crown need to prove to convict?
The Crown attorney must show that you knew you were carrying an object that could be considered a weapon and that you purposefully hid the item from view. Storing a registered firearm in a car’s trunk to transport it to a firing range would not meet that definition.
Even if you do not intend to use the item in a harmful way you can still be convicted of carrying and concealing a weapon.
For example, a man was charged with carrying a concealed weapon after he boarded a bus with an ornate Japanese-style dagger under his sweater. According to court transcripts, the driver noticed the knife protruding from the man’s front pocket when he boarded the bus and contacted security personnel.
After the man boarded a second bus he was stopped by security officers and asked about the weapon. He explained the ornamental dagger was a gift from his father, and that he was simply transporting it to his uncle’s house since his father no longer wanted him to have it in the house.
While the court ruled that there was no “evidence to directly support that the young person’s possession of the blade was for a purpose dangerous to the public peace,” it still found him guilty of concealing a weapon.
Contact me for assistance
While the law is clear that most Canadians cannot carry concealed weapons, legal arguments can be made about such matters as what constitutes a weapon and what is concealment. I have defended clients against an array of firearms-related charges in the Ottawa region. Contact me for a free consultation, in French or English.
