The Surrey Police Union has slammed Justin Trudeau over his claim that the Liberals' gun ban achieved its intended goal.They argued that the policy did little to prevent firearms from making their way into Canada from the United States.."The federal handgun freeze fails to address the real issue: the surge of illegal firearms coming across our borders and ending up in the hands of violent criminals," the union wrote in a post on X."Our members are on the front lines of gang violence daily, risking their lives to protect the public. How can we truly ensure community safety when 85% of seized firearms are traced back to the US?".The Toronto Police Association was among the first to counter Trudeau's claim, calling his statement "out of touch.""Criminals did not get your message," they said. "Our communities are experiencing a 45% increase in shootings and a 62% increase in gun-related homicides compared to this time last year. What difference does your handgun ban make when 85% of guns seized by our members can be sourced to the United States?".‘OUT OF TOUCH’: Toronto police destroy Trudeau’s gun ban claim .Tony Bernardo, executive director of the Canadian Shooting Sports Association (CSSA), told the Western Standard he understood police unions' frustrations."It must be beyond maddening to see the government behaving this way, where such real problems rear their heads," he lamented.Bernardo argued that "going after lawful Canadians is not going to solve the problem with criminals," explaining that, "it doesn't take much intellect to figure out that people who lawfully register and store their firearms and use them at shooting ranges are not the same people that are shooting up the streets of Toronto at night."He confirmed the aforementioned claims that 85% of handguns come illegally across the border from the US, noting that the other 15% are mostly "taken from the police military across the country.""Maybe 25 to 35 come out of the civilian market, and many of those have been modified to become prohibited," Bernardo added, "but that gun could be said to be coming from Canada, even though it's a crime gun."
