Criminal Defence
Weapons Charge Lawyers in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia
A weapons charge does not require a gun. Section 2 of the Criminal Code defines a weapon as anything used, designed or intended for causing injury, or for threatening, so a knife, a bat or a wrench can ground the charge, and the firearms offences add a licensing layer of their own. Both kinds go to a weapons charge lawyer at this firm, in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, and every file starts at the same place: how the thing was found.
The Common Charges Run From S. 86 to S. 95 of the Criminal Code
Possession of a weapon for a purpose dangerous to the public peace under s. 88 carries up to ten years. Carrying a concealed weapon under s. 90 and unauthorized possession of a firearm under s. 91 each carry up to five. Possession of a firearm knowing it is unauthorized under s. 92, possession of a loaded restricted or prohibited firearm under s. 95, and possession contrary to a prohibition order under s. 117.01 each carry up to ten. Careless storage under s. 86 carries up to two years for a first offence on indictment.
Possession Is the Fight in Most Weapons Cases
Possession means knowledge plus control, and the Crown must prove both. A firearm in a shared house, a knife in a borrowed car, a bag in a trunk with three people in the vehicle: none of these proves who knew and who controlled. The charge names everyone present. The trial sorts out whether that holds.
A Weapons Charge Lawyer Challenges the Search Before the Charge
Weapons are found in searches: a traffic stop, a pat-down, a house warrant executed for something else. Section 8 of the Charter governs every one of those searches, and evidence from an unreasonable search can be excluded. When the weapon is excluded there is usually no case left. The disclosure review starts with the grounds the officer claimed, and it is the most productive hour in the file.
A Conviction Usually Brings a Prohibition Order and Forfeiture
Convictions for many weapons offences carry a mandatory prohibition order under s. 109, and courts can impose a discretionary one under s. 110 in other cases. The order bars possessing firearms and other listed weapons for years, and the seized items are ordinarily forfeited. For a hunter, a farmer or a trapper the order can matter more than the sentence, and it is argued, not assumed.
Licensing Lapses Are Charged Under S. 91, and Honest Ones Are Still Offences
An expired possession and acquisition licence, an inherited rifle never registered to the heir, a move that broke the storage rules: each is chargeable without any bad intent. These files attract sympathy and Crown discretion, and the defence’s job is to package the honesty, the compliance since, and the ask.
Each Province Has Its Own Weapons Page
The Knife Was in My Car for Work
Section 88 requires a purpose dangerous to the public peace, and a tool carried as a tool does not have one. Context is the whole charge: where it was, when, and what was said. That is defended on the evidence, not conceded.
Will I Lose My Hunting Rifles?
A conviction risks a prohibition order and forfeiture, which is a reason to defend the charge rather than plead early to end it. Outcomes short of conviction avoid the order entirely.
The full practice is at criminal defence, and the charge these files often pair with at assault. Contact the firm before speaking to police about where the item came from.