A .40 calibre Smith & Wesson Sig Sauer pistol. Photo: Bruce Forsyth collection.
October 2020
Thoughts and prayers. We all hear that from our politicians when yet another innocent citizen dies at the hands of gun-toting gang-bangers, followed by the usual calls for banning guns.
Gun bans, and declarations of gun-free zones, are all that our politicians really seem interested in doing to help solve the gun violence plaguing our major cities, most of which is mostly gang-related, especially in Toronto. Sure, there are arrests made and guns seized, but these are on a level of tokenism.
While arrests and seizures are certainly good, these gang-bangers are being released on bail and getting their hands on another illegal gun before the ink on their arrest report is even dry. It’s a classic example of putting your finger against a hole in a dike while the rest of it crumbles around you.
Police are no longer allowed to conduct street checks, and combined with the disbandment of the Toronto Police TAVIS unit, the gun-toting thugs have become more emboldened and the shootings are occurring more often and the shooters are getting more and more brazen. No longer afraid of being stopped and searched by police, these thugs are carrying their illegal guns more frequently and thus, have them ready when they encounter a rival gang member.
The reality is that there is no magic solution that is needed to resolve this plague, but some things will help:
Start publicly naming the gangs and their members. It’s not like authorities don’t know who the gangs are. It’s just the system has become handcuffed and paralyzed to shut them down.
Much of the crime emanates from a few parts of town, so concentrate police resources in those areas. In conjunction with that, drop political correctness narratives when fighting crime and criminals. They aren’t helpful.
Clean up the city parks and cripple the drug trade there.
Bring back a TAVIS-style gang strategy and utilize modern technology to resume carding and collect needed intelligence.
Introduce no bail for serious violence and make violent criminals serve full sentences without parole.
Pay terrorized community members handsomely to testify against thugs and have a real witness protection and relocation program to help avoid retaliation. Open the jail cells again. Build more.
Upgrade the TCHC housing units and complexes, including making them gated communities where you must identify yourself to come in and out. Create a program to help residents purchase their units, thus giving a pride of ownership.
Hand out lengthy sentences for offences with a gun, whether fired or not, starting with simple possession, and go up from there. We also shouldn’t be afraid to designate gang-bangers as dangerous offenders and confine them to prison indefinitely.
These ideas likely won’t end gang and gun violence, as easy money and power can be very strong motivators, but it certainly will have a positive impact of community safety.
It will also be a better solution than punishing law-abiding gun owners.
Sources: https://torontosun.com/news/local-news/warmington-wild-weekend-of-shootings-like-a-civil-war, https://torontosun.com/opinion/columnists/goldstein-police-undermined-as-toronto-gun-violence-skyrockets, Man arrested for carjacking 20 minutes after his release from jail – National | Globalnews.ca.
