Firearm enthusiasts in Aylmer, Ont., question Liberals' aim on gun safety

Andrew Lupton · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 07, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hr ago

Douglas Lightheart feels the Liberals have misfired and taken purpose astatine the incorrect benignant of weapon proprietor successful their efforts to boost weapon information successful Canada. 

"As a firearm owner, I don't privation to beryllium villainized, I don't privation to beryllium presented to the nationalist arsenic a criminal," helium said. 

Lighheart is the president and weapon scope relation of the East Elgin Sportsmen's Association in Aylmer, Ont. About 1,700 members strong, the nine was archetypal incorporated successful 1955 and has grown steadily implicit the years. It present has 8 outdoor weapon ranges, on with a modern indoor weapon scope and archery ranges. 

It's a spot wherever members, immoderate from arsenic acold distant arsenic Barrie and Niagara Falls, travel to bask and stock the hobby of people shooting successful a controlled, harmless environment. The nine also, connected occasion, rents its scope abstraction to constabulary forces, including the OPP, the RCMP and the London Police Service. 

"It's a very, precise fashionable athletics and a very, precise fashionable club," said Lightheart, who admits he's truthful engaged with medication helium seldom gets clip to signifier his purpose connected the scope these days. 

No guns are kept connected site. Instead, members bring them to the nine to practice, which they tin bash immoderate clip they'd similar for an yearly rank of conscionable nether $300. 

Interest successful the hobby is growing. In fact, immoderate clubs person to the GTA don't person country to adhd much members, which is portion of the crushed wherefore galore are showing up astatine East Elgin. The club's "range nights" let those caller to shooting to effort it retired and instrumentality a weapon information people taught by certified scope officers in a controlled environment. 

"A batch of people, they don't person a licence and earlier they prosecute getting one, they privation to spot what shooting a firearm is each astir and spot however overmuch amusive it tin be," said Lightheart. 

And portion involvement successful people shooting is growing, Lightheart feels the hobby is becoming astir intolerable to participate owed to weapon laws helium said marque weapon ownership truthful hard and costly successful Canada, than galore find it much occupation than it's worth. 

"They've acceptable the rules up successful a mode that it perfectly volition dice out," said Lightheart. 

Liberals tightened rules astir guns

Citing a tendency to curb a emergence successful weapon unit successful Canada, the Trudeau authorities enacted Bill C-21 successful 2022. It enactment an extremity to the sale, acquisition and transportation of each handguns, which are a large portion of athletics shooting. Lightheart said the law, which besides bans galore hunting rifles, shotguns and antique guns, adjacent makes it amerciable to bid parts to repair a legally owned handgun.

The instrumentality sparked a surge successful handgun income arsenic radical tried to legally bargain guns earlier the caller rules came into effect.

Lightheart said helium supports the strict rules that are portion of the possession and acquisition licence (PAL) exertion for firearms, including the request that applicants indispensable walk a firearms information people and person a constabulary inheritance check. 

What he'd similar to spot is the Liberals displacement absorption and direct their efforts astatine criminals and illegally imported guns alternatively of instrumentality abiding weapon owners.

Bail reform, a cardinal absorption of Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, is besides thing Lightheart would similar to spot the Liberals absorption on. He said much restrictions connected ineligible weapon owners volition bash thing to curb the caller emergence successful weapon violence. 

Lightheart would besides similar to spot much absorption connected stopping amerciable handguns coming up from the United States. 

"The firearms I own, I purchased legally," helium said. "The radical you work astir ... these are not legally acquired firearms. They don't person trigger locks connected their guns.

"I don't privation an point that I legally purchased, I don't privation them coming and taking it from maine and presenting maine arsenic a occupation to the wide public. I americium not a menace to the wide public." 

On Friday, CBC News visited the nine for 2 hours. 

Two young men were connected the outdoor 50-metre scope practising with 4 antithetic guns, including a shotgun. 

Both declined to beryllium interviewed but made a constituent of saying however overmuch they bask the hobby and worth having a spot to signifier it.

Lee Lightheart is the club's treasurer. She's also frustrated astatine however the sermon implicit weapon information plays out. She wishes much lawmakers would driblet by a decently tally weapon nine for a first-hand look astatine what it's each about. 

"I would similar to invitation them retired truthful they tin spot however harmless we are," she said. "We're not the problem."