Grounds for the Warrantless Search
The accused was “carrying” a “weapon”
- Possession
- Weapon as defined in Section 2 – Obtain evidence from firearm or weapon expert that the weapons fits the legal description
The Weapon was concealed
- Concealed by Design – example: sword canes
- Concealed by hiding –
- The accused must hide the weapon so that it would not be observed or come to the notice of others – R. v. Felawka 1993 Supreme Court of Canada (available online)
- having a weapon in a pocket, backpack, purse, on belt line will NOT be considered concealed
- The mental element of this offence may be very easy to prove as this is a “state of affairs prohibited in law”, however, if lawyers are arguing the nuances of the concealment the actions and intent of the accused will often be key to the success of the file
Related Links:
Statutory wording for Concealed Weapon
Keywords: CCW