Can the court stop me from having a gun or weapon?

Yes. In some situations, the court can stop you from having a firearm. This is called a weapons prohibition order. If you're given a weapons prohibition order, you're not allowed to have any of the weapons listed in the order, including a firearm.

Types of weapon prohibition orders

There are three types of weapons prohibition orders:

• A mandatory order means the judge must always give you a weapons prohibition.
• A discretionary order means the judge decides whether to give you a weapons prohibition.
• A preventative order means the judge gives you a weapons prohibition before you have a weapon to stop you from getting one.

How the court decides

The judge decides whether to give you a weapons prohibition order based on whether:

• you have a history of violence
• you have ever misused a firearm or stored one inappropriately
• you're likely to commit a crime in the future using a weapon
• you live with someone who is under a weapons prohibition order
• there are reasons to believe you may injure yourself or someone else with the weapons

What an order means

A weapons prohibition can be for a specific period of time or the rest of your life. The Criminal Code says you must be given a weapons prohibition order for specific violent crimes. If you've committed more than one violent crime, the period of prohibition will increase each time you're convicted.

After you've been given a weapons prohibition, if you're caught with a weapon, you can be charged with the criminal offence of possession contrary to an order.