Sentencing following guilty pleas to careless use of a firearm, possession of a loaded prohibited firearm without licence or registration, and possession of a prohibited firearm while bound by a firearms prohibition order.
The offender discharged a round into the ceiling of an ONroute service centre in the presence of bystanders, then lay on the floor beside the firearm until police arrived.
The court applied the Anthony-Cook public interest test and accepted a joint submission, emphasizing denunciation and deterrence while also accounting for serious mental health issues, chronic substance abuse, harsh pre-sentence custody conditions, and a significant prior record including firearm offences.
A concurrent six-year penitentiary sentence was imposed, with maximum credit for pre-sentence custody, along with DNA, forfeiture, and lifetime prohibition orders.
