Gang Members and Gun Licenses.

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A recent call from ACT MP Nicole McKee raises an important question.

Ms. McKee has asked the Government during question time why known gang members are being issued firearms licenses when, she says, gang members should not be allowed to hold one.
The number of known gang members to hold a license rose from 11 to 12 recently.

Neville Dodd, president of Sporting Shooters Assn of New Zealand says the Police are figuratively shooting themselves in the foot by allowing licensed gang members to buy and then distribute ammunition to fellow gang members who are in possession of unlawful firearms.

“The law says you can’t buy ammunition unless you can show you have a current firearms license, so it is simple, a licensed gang member can supply the underbelly with however much ammunition they need. The question must be asked – how did Police come to issue firearms licenses to known gang members”.

McKee is adamant that known gang members should not be able to have access to ammunition and Dodd agrees. “I am right with her on this. Police must cancel the firearms licenses of known gang members & associates. Police have missed a beat on this. Cut off the supply of ammunition and the gangs use of firearms is neutralised. Police have the ability to act on this and so far they have not.” However, Dodd also has praise for the Police and what they are doing with respect to raids on gangs.

“The recent arrest of a gang leader who arrived in New Zealand penniless, having been extradited from Australia and the confiscation of millions of dollars’ worth of assets shows clearly there is huge money being made by the gangs through drug deals and general crime, and sadly the use of guns for intimidation and their own defense is part of it all”. He says a quick count up of shooting instances including drive by shootings and tit for tat shootings shows just how they totally disregard the law and those charged with keeping the law”.

Dodd says he and his organisation are right behind the Police on this but do ask if Police can ever break the gangs and their hold on organised crime under the existing criminal law.

Is the law an Ass? Criminals (by definition) ignore them.

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Firearm laws are a lot like most other laws; essentially triumphs of hope over reality.  The hope is they will work! The reality, especially in the case of firearms laws is that they can’t work.

The idea is that they will reduce crime.  In fact they are only complied with by those who wish or need to comply with them (on pain of losing their firearm licence if they don’t, and get caught) and these people are NOT criminals.

So the real ‘target market’, potential criminal offenders, (NOT the licensed firearm owners), are neither affected by or even remotely influenced by firearm controls.  Their activities become curtailed only if they are detected, apprehended, tried, convicted and sentenced.  They may even go away for a while.  But they’ll be back as it is only in the rarest of cases are they reformed.

Meanwhile, the law abiding Licenced Firearms Owners, bedevilled by bureaucratic laws and pettifogging restrictions waste time, money and effort in order to try and comply.  True, these laws have some (minimal) public good in an economic sense – but only to the extent they generate work for loyal public servants. Remember, these laws are simply seeming to harass the already compliant.

The building of resentment at overly restrictive laws tends to invite non-compliance among even the law abiding which can lead to contempt for the law.  

Making the ‘law an ass’ is surely not the original intention of law makers, is it?

Support for stiffer sentences.

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As the frequency of criminals, invariably unlicensed, using illegal weapons to engage in shooting at police increases, there have been calls for stiffer sentencing for those involved.  Neville Dodd, president of Sporting Shooters Association of New Zealand Inc [SSANZ] says Police appear to have no knowledge of who has illegal weapons, and shootings will continue until illegal ownership is under control.

“ It certainly seems that some people are able to get whatever weapon they wish, and get ammunition for those guns, while licensed gun owners rightly need to provide a firearms license to purchase a gun and or ammunition”.

National call for stiffer penalties

He welcomes the recent announcement from National Party leader Judith Collins who is calling for stiffer penalties for anyone who shoots or shoots at Police officers.

“That would be a great start, but frankly that is just that, a start. The Police won’t be able to control these shootings until they get on top of where the illegal weapons are and who owns them”.

He reflects that a Select Committee Inquiry into illegal firearms carried out in 2017 failed to carry out any new research into where and how criminals obtain their weapons.

New Zealand a Regional Smuggling Hub

Dodd suggests that more weapons are recovered by Police every year than those reported stolen, which he says, proves that contrary to Police statements, illegal arms are imported into New Zealand by gangs. “Police recently put out a Regional South Pacific report that claimed New Zealand was a regional hub for drug and gun smuggling, so surely that suggests that they, the Police, are losing the battle and apparently have no idea what to do next”.

He suggests that the Courts need to help the situation by imposing stiffer penalties for these offences. This is where the Government should have acted rather than targeting law abiding licensed firearms owners.

Government Must Wipe Out Illegal Gun Trade

In the meantime, Dodd suggests that the Police and the present Government have a duty to wipe out the illegal gun trade and protect the innocent public, and imposing tougher rules for law abiding licensed firearm owners will not achieve this.

“It is only a matter of time before innocent people get killed by a drive past shooting or are caught in the crossfire of a Police shooting”.

He says stiffer penalties will help, but stresses that peace loving New Zealand is fast becoming akin to a war zone, as there are now those who are so confident that they are safe from the authorities that they think they will get away with using weapons indiscriminately.

Police Arms Training Falls Short

“Before we consider should our Police now be armed full time for their own protection, we must take into account to what extent the current Police access to firearms has precipitated criminals arming themselves? We know that Police firearms training falls woefully short of the standard that should be expected, so it has the potential for more cases of Police shooting innocent members of the public. When it has been suggested in the past, there has been a huge outcry against arming Police from the public.”

Royal Commission Report is just the start.

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The release of the Royal Commission of Inquiry report that looked into why the Police granted a gun license to the man who then committed the massacre on March the 15th last year is just the start, according to the Sporting Shooters Association of New Zealand [SSANZ].

President Neville Dodd says “The Dept of Internal Affairs on behalf of the Commission says “The Royal Commission’s report has been written so that it can be published in full without the need for redaction to protect national security or privacy or confidentiality matters.” We therefore question why the Minister is being so vague about the release date. What is concerning the Government so much that they are delaying the release of the report to ordinary New Zealanders?  

Dodd also says “there are also many questions Police need to answer, for example why don’t they know how many firearms are in New Zealand? They are given lists of firearm types and serial numbers for all firearms when they are imported.  This is a requirement imposed on firearms dealers.”  The dealers are required to notify the Police within 30 days of details, including serial numbers, of all firearms legally imported.

He also adds “Police do keep records of all reported stolen firearms, but it seems they aren’t making the list available as they prefer to destroy any weapons involved in court cases.”

“On that subject, Police are required by law to inform insurance companies of any recovered stolen forearms, but we understand Police ceased that several years ago”

Further to that, it seems that Police are destroying the stolen firearms that they recover instead of returning them to the rightful owners in an attempt to show the public and officials that they are taking a hard line on “illegal” guns.

Dodd says the Police clearly have a problem trying to account for illegally imported firearms.

“We understand that more firearms are recovered every year than those reported as stolen. If so, that refutes claims by the Police Association and Police themselves that gangs and other undesirables rely on theft from Licensed Firearms Owners for their supply of illicit guns.” It also points to there being an illegal importing pipeline in place for criminal gangs and Police are unable to put a stop to it”.

“Police recently put out a regional South Pacific report that claimed New Zealand was a regional hub for drug and gun smuggling” says Dodd, “That suggests to everyone that they are losing the battle and have no idea what to do next”

2020 Election

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Parliamentary Election – 2020 

Despite what you may think about the election result two good things for the firearm community has come about from the way you cast your votes.  SSANZ member and firearm advocate Nicole McKee now has a seat in parliament, and she is supported by ACT leader David Seymour and a caucus of 8  additional ACT MPs.

While ACT may not have a place on the government benches as we had hoped, a party of 10 MPs has a much stronger voice for asking hard questions and the ability to participate in Select Committees and other cross-party activities. As well as proposing sensible solutions to the many issues that face parliament in these post-Covid times.

What Does the Election Result Mean for Firearm Owners?

With Labour able to govern alone, with or without the Greens, there will be no reversal of the anti-firearm laws passed in June. And without NZ First in government, there will be no pressure to keep to the proposed Independent Authority to manage firearm administration. So what is on the statutes now will go-ahead for the next 3 years, bringing more pain and frustration to the firearm community as NZ Police come to grips with the monster they have created and implement the new rules and regulations.

We know there will be a second confiscation (buyback) of firearms declared prohibited in the most recent Arms Legislation Act. These include short semi-automatics, (those that were technically classed as pistols), Centrefire pump-action rifles with detachable magazines or magazines that hold more than 10 rounds, and any firearm that contains a centre fire lower receiver.

However speculation about further types of firearms being banned is as far as we know simply speculation, we have seen no evidence to suggest that is on the cards. One might also argue that the government has more things to worry about now with the Covid recovery than contemplate more tinkering with the Arms Act. In the present financial climate, it might even be prudent to shelve the expense of a firearm registry, which we all know will, at great taxpayer cost, serve no practical purpose other than making the government feel good.

Where to from here?

All firearm owners need to put aside their political and personal differences and unite in preparation for election 2023. We need to get behind and support those MPs who have supported us and sign up for those organisations that advocate for us. COLFO is the largest of these organisations, representing all 12 major shooting associations and SSANZ is part of that Council.  While COLFO represents the vast majority of club shooters, SSANZ, while having many club members, seeks to represent all those shooters, some 200,000, who belong to no club and give them a voice. 

We need firearm dealers to actively support these organisations

We need firearm dealers to actively support these organisations and we in turn need to support our local dealers. We are all dependant upon each other for our long-term survival.

SSANZ Is working hard to engage with local firearm dealers around the country and recruit new members from the many hunters and firearm owners who enjoy their sport outside of a club environment. 

SHOOTING IS A DYING SPORT – HELP US TURN THAT AROUND

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CALL TO ACTION

Shooting and firearm ownership are in decline in New Zealand but we can turn that around if we all play our part. As an example of what can be done,  Sporting Shooters Association of Australia (SSAA) has achieved a membership of 200,000 despite the draconian firearm laws in place since 1996.

Here is a troubling statistic:

247,000 Licensed Firearm Owners (LFOs) represent just 4.9% of the population of NZ but only about 50,000 LFOs belong to one or more of the 12 major shooting associations that sponsor about 670 clubs and ranges. 

What is driving this decline:

Stricter firearm laws introduced in 2019 and 2020 will see some clubs and ranges close and many LFOs give up the sport as the red tape around gun ownership becomes more complex and invasive.  This is further exacerbated by the inability of the NZ Police to cope in a timely and efficient manner with the administrative issues surrounding the law changes.

Prior to the changes in Firearm Licence Testing 11,000 applicants annually passed the test with a 99% pass rate. Now the number of successful passes is 6,000 annually and a pass rate of 75%.

It has been demonstrated that mainstream media is biassed against shooting with some Newspapers refusing to display images of guns, dead animals, or children unless it can be used to sensationalise a story.

New rules around guns in schools has made it harder for many schools to participate in shooting sports despite this being popular with students. 

Young people are turned away from shooting by more easily accessible and exciting activities to engage in, in their free time.

What can we do to reverse the decline?

Vote for a party in the next election that promotes sensible and workable firearm laws.

ALL major shooting Associations should actively promote national shooting events and provide invitations to friendly media to report on these.

Shooting Associations need representation and promotion at all A & P shows and similar events, gun shows, and firearm auctions, to encourage LFOs and members of the public to get involved.  Co-operating and combining resources if necessary.

All shooting clubs could promote local events and invite coverage by local media sources and report on social media. And hold public open days.

We need to show the public that shooting is safe, fun, and can be enjoyed by all the family. Physical disability is no obstacle.

We need to invite friends along to our local club and show them what fun safe shooting is, while we still can.

We need the gun trade to get involved, join, support, and promote their local clubs.

We need grassroots members to get involved and volunteer their time and effort, you can’t expect a hand-full of volunteer committee members to do all the work that is necessary here.

Much of this can be achieved through a personal approach and contact.

If you are passionate about the future of shooting in New Zealand join SSANZ today and help make a difference.  

Changes to New Zealand Firearms Law (Part 2)

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6 month / December 2020 changes (Source NZ Police)

Overview of the changes

The changes which come into force 6 months after commencement (December 2020) are:

  • Individual licensing system:
    • Persons who are disqualified from holding a firearms licence (section 22G)
    • Application for firearms licence (section 23)
    • Health practitioner details (section 23(2A))
    • Issue of licence (section 24)
    • Fit and Proper clarification; (section 24A)
    • Inspection of premises (section 24B);
    • Decision review system, sections 62, 62A, 62B, 62C, 63, 64
  • Graduated Response to individual licence holders for breach of the Act or licence conditions:
    • Improvement Notices (section 60);
    • Temporary suspension of licence when Police are considering revoking the licence (section 60A);
    • Powers to seize firearms during surrender/suspension process (Section 60B).
    • Revocation and surrender of licence if holder becomes disqualified (se27B)
    • Revocation of suspended firearms licence (s27C)
    • Right of review of official decisions (s62, s62A)
    • Decision review system, sections 62, 62A, 62B, 62C, , 64,
  • Ammunition importing, buying and sales regime (sections 22C, 22D,  24C)
  • Health Practitioner reporting (sections 23(2A), 24(3) & 91)
  • Dealer Graduated Response to breach of the Act or licence conditions
    • Improvement notices (section 60)
    • Temporary suspension of dealer’s licence pending possible revocation (section 60A);
    • Effect of temporary suspension of dealer’s licence (s60C)
    • Revocation of suspended dealer’s licence (section 9A)
    • Right of review of official decisions (s62, s62A)
    • Decision review system, sections 62B, 62C, , 64,
  • Fines and penalties: There are new offences (and/or new penalties) that commence:
    • Restrictions on possession of
      • non-prohibited magazines and non-prohibited parts (s22A) (new offence)
      • ammunition (s22B) (new offence)
    • Restrictions on selling/supplying ammunition (s22C) (new penalty)
    • Failure of ammunition seller to keep records (s22D) (new offence)

FIREARMS ARE NOT A PROBLEM IN NEW ZEALAND

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While advocates of Gun Control NZ may not be interested in facts, as recently stated by their founder Hera Cook, we are.

NZ Police have recently released a report on Homicide Victim Statistics for the period 2007 to 20017  

What this report shows is that over the 10 year period there has been little change in the incidence of homicide by firearm as illustrated in the graph here. Firearms account for about 11% of homicides in New Zealand.  Taking population growth into account over the period the figures equate to an average of 1.5 murders by firearm for every 100,000 population.

So we question why are the government and police so intent on removing firearms from society and passing ever more restrictive laws and regulations that make firearm ownership so onerous?

 

CHANGES TO NEW ZEALAND FIREARM LAWS (Part 1)

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CHANGES TO NEW ZEALAND FIREARM LAWS. (Source NZ Police)

As a result of the Arms Legislation Act 2020, passed in June this year, there have been significant changes to the law relating to firearms in New Zealand. These changes are far-reaching and will be implemented in stages over the next three years as Police develop policies for the administration. 

The immediate changes are:

A small group of firearms has been added to the definition of a prohibited firearm, (it is anticipated that there will be a buy-back scheme for these) including:

i. Short semi-automatic firearms (for example, because they have a short barrel or have a folding stock). This prohibition does not apply to collectors, curators of museums or employees of film companies. “Small semi-automatic pistols” are     excluded so that pistols commonly used for target pistol shooting disciplines are not prohibited; and

II. Centrefire pump-action rifles which are capable of being used with a detachable magazine or that have 1 or more non-detachable magazines capable of holding more than 10 cartridges.

iii. Any firearm containing a centrefire lower receiver that is capable of functioning.

  • The duration of a firearms licence for first-time firearms licence applicants will be for five years, rather than 10 years. This will also be the case if you are applying after your previously held licence expires, or is revoked or surrendered. Otherwise, the duration of a firearms licence remains at 10 years.
  • Endorsements granted for controlling wild animal or animal pests will have a changed duration and will need to be renewed before the firearms licence does.
  • Requiring an endorsed firearms or dealer’s licence enabling the person to possess a pistol in order to lawfully possess a pistol carbine conversion kit (which converts a pistol into a shoulder-fired firearm).
  • Additional regulation-making powers have been included to enable the Governor-General to make regulations specifying the security requirements for pistol carbine conversion kits, and for ammunition sellers.
  • Import permits will now be required to import ammunition, pistol carbine conversion kits, air pistol carbine conversion kits and all blank-firing firearms.
  • Changes to the penalties for many offences, eg the penalty for possessing a  non-prohibited firearm without a firearms licence is now up to 1 year imprisonment or a fine up to $15,000.
  • A Minister’s arms advisory group to be established with members from the firearm-owning and non-firearm-owning community.
  • Those who come to New Zealand who are issued a licence for up to a year (a ‘Visitors’ licence) will no longer be able to purchase firearms for possession or use in New Zealand. Those with a ‘Visitors’ licence can import their own firearm, lease, hire or borrow a firearm, or purchase a firearm for immediate export.

More information will be added as it becomes available, the new law and regulations are extremely complex.

RESEARCHERS NEED TO RESEARCH, NOT JUST BLAME

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Researchers need to research, not just blame.

Law-abiding licensed firearms owners are again taking a hiding from authorities because of a lack of accurate research on what is really happening in New Zealand’s underbelly. 

University Otago Wellington firearms researcher, Hera Cook, is saying that firearms are being smuggled into the country and that licensed firearms owners are either selling weapons on the black market or allowing them to be obtained through burglaries due to slack security.

Controversy continues to rage over the March 15th terrorist attacker being granted a firearms license when, in hindsight, he certainly should not have one, plus “leaks” from the Police department suggesting that some legal firearm owners are suppling weapons to unlicensed people.

The question needs to be asked; If the Police know about these people, why have they not been apprehended.  

Enthusiasts are applauding the general Policing of illegal firearms and are noting that on average, one gang member a day is being charged with firearms offences, however, there is a strong feeling amongst legal owners that they are being used as the whipping horse. 

With firearms laws being changed, with many saying in a knee jerks reaction, there is a spotlight on banning the use of as many firearms as possible by politicians wanting to make career gain from being seen to “be doing the right thing to protect New Zealanders” 

As the debate swings from one side to the other, the reality is that the innocent law-abiding folk are being restricted more and more when it is not them who are breaking the law and killing innocent Police and citizens. 

Please authorities identify those who are the problem and act accordingly.