Pockwood Pond man Cordell O’Neal was sentenced this week to serve seven years and 10 months in prison for possessing multiple illegal firearms and ammunition.
Some viewed the sentence as harsh, but similar punishments could be the norm if legislators pass the proposed Firearms and Airguns (Amendment) Act 2015, which was introduced in the House of Assembly last week.
The law calls for a minimum penalty of five years imprisonment or an $80,000 fine for possessing prohibited firearms, which include deadly weapons such as machine guns, shotguns and rifles, but also non-deadly weapons such as stun guns and paintball guns.
The law also sets out an eight-year minimum prison sentence for firearms dealers and a 15-year minimum for people who use guns while committing other offences such as drug trafficking, robbery or kidnapping.
“The bill seeks to increase the penalties in order to combat the rising tide of firearms offences in the territory,” according to the bill’s “objects and reasons” section.
Under the law, magistrates would have the power to hand down lighter sentences in cases where the offender is unfit to serve the minimum sentence, or when the penalty “would be arbitrary and disproportionate,” according to the draft.
See the March 19, 2015 edition for full coverage.
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