Ontario Court of Appeal Orders Bruce and Donna
Montague to Forfeit Entire Firearms Collection
Toronto, Ont. (June 3, 2014) In a stunning setback for
property rights, the Ontario Court of Appeal for Ontario
today ordered Bruce and Donna Montague to forfeit
ownership of their entire firearms inventory, an asset
valued at $100,000.
“This decision basically allows government to use
punitive forfeiture laws to help itself to the life savings
of Canadians who have violated the law, even when
the crime committed caused no harm to anyone,” says
Marni Soupcoff, executive director of Canadian
Constitution Foundation, which represents the
Montagues.
A talented gunsmith, Bruce Montague purposely let his
firearms business licence and firearms acquisition
certificate expire as an act of protest. He then
challenged the constitutionality of the gun laws until
he was finally charged and sentenced to 18 months
in jail and 90 days community imprisonment.
“Unfortunately, imprisoning Bruce wasn’t enough
for the government,” says Soupcoff, “The federal
government has been given the go-ahead to take
all his valuable firearms and sell them for cash.
"Seizing Bruce's life savings is an unfair and
disproportionate punishment for Bruce’s victimless
crime. Forfeiture laws are supposed to be about
preventing criminals from profiting from their
wrongdoing. Bruce has not profited a cent from his
offense. But if it has its way, the government will."
Bruce and Donna have not made a final decision
about whether to appeal this criminal forfeiture order
to the Supreme Court of Canada, but if they do, the
CCF will support them.
Read more about Bruce and Donna's fight:
Quietly Sacrificing For Liberty
The Canadian Constitution Foundation (“Freedom’s
Defence Team”) is a registered charity, independent
and non-partisan, whose mission is to defend the
constitutional freedoms of Canadians through
education, communication and litigation.
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