Dear Paul,

You say you accept that police need to have weapons yet in NZ they are not routinely armed nor in Britain or Japan.

I'm wondering if you see Australia as different and if so why?

Steele,

"This case screams lax gun laws and things need to change."

Which lax gun laws?

If you read the papers it would seem that there is a drastic shortfall in funding for family support where there are disputes over access/custody of children yet the Premier of NSW can sprout on about building stadia and the Lord Mayor of Sydney can find funds to finance protesters against a legal activity.
Then there is the New Years Fireworks Pollution Fest for which finance can always be found.

Tragedies, where children are murdered by one parent or the other in family disputes, can fairly be laid on the failure of Government to properly fund services, the means used in the killings is immaterial.

People, like yourself, that blindly focus on the means used are part of the problem.

Paul,

"...and target shooting heavenly controlled and supervised."

Oh! That it was always so, I often think that some of my best scores are a gift from heaven!!

Paul,

"Those who engage in illegal gun activity, for those the penalties should be severe, if not draconian."

Glad you see that you have come to realize that your Green mates in the NSW Parliament were wrong in not backing the SF&F Party when that party called for tougher penalties for criminal use of firearms.

Some people got the impression that the Greens were protecting their mates as in their earlier opposition to the use of sniffer dogs.

Hi (again) PAUL1405...

In principle I, and many other coppers would probably agree with you. I keep referring to police because they're supposed be the guardians of the law?

There's one question that I'd very much like to know the answer too...this alleged murderer had; 'no contemporary criminal record' - Let me be very clear Paul; if this fellow had any sort of criminal antecedents, a handgun licence, most assuredly would be denied to him by me! That's not to say, police may've refused him, but not the magistrate, on appeal?

I think this whole family were quite well off money wise, given the salubrious area in which they resided. *Best I not go there, I think*?

I'd really like to know the circumstances of him being granted a licence, at all? Paul, when you work in licensing, you're governed very precisely by the law, certainly not by your own prejudices or predilections. However a Licensing Sergeant does possess some 'limited' powers, only in regard to the machinery sections of the Act and/or the Regulations.

An example might be, the Club Captain or Armourer (both authorised persons pursuant to the Act) of a Pistol Club, might ring me and ask if I would extend the time a licensee is given to prove he's a regular attendee? So as Sergeant I might extend the time for the production of that certificate, essentially because he was running late with it. Nothing of any importance believe me, and well within the purview of the Sergeant and the Act and Regs themselves.

As I said, I'd still like to know, the circumstances of this man being granted a licence? Anyway, at the end of the day - nothing accounts for the lunacy of some, eh?

This case screams lax gun laws and things need to change.
Steele reedux,
The dumbing down of the nation & the treatment of the not dumbed down as idiots by our authorities has to be focussed on first then & only then can we start thinking gun control.
You can't get any sense into a mutt but once the mutt is house trained you can make him jump through loops & do his business outside.