Regina Leader-Post
Dalton Fisher, a Regina man who illegally manufactured and sold 3D-printed firearms in 2023, has been given a four-year prison sentence.
The penalty was imposed by provincial court Judge Noah Evanchuk, who delivered his decision on Dec. 18.
Fisher previously pleaded guilty to one charge of weapons manufacturing and one charge of firearms trafficking. The sentence he received fell between the eight years suggested as appropriate by the Crown and the conditional sentence sought by Fisher’s lawyers. After receiving credit for time served on remand, Fisher was left with 638 days on his sentence.
According to a factual overview of the case filed as an exhibit, Fisher came onto the radar of police for purchasing firearms parts kits from a seller in Montreal, as well as for an “alleged online threat” to federal politician Chrystia Freeland.
Police began surveillance of Fisher in early May of 2023.
An eventual search of Fisher’s home and workplace resulted in the seizure of, among other things, guns manufactured in part through the use of 3D-printing technology. He was 29 years old in June 2023 when police announced his arrest.
Fisher later admitted to manufacturing six 3D-printed “Glock-type” handguns and selling two.
In arguing the case, the Crown suggested Fisher had political and hate-based motivations for his crimes. Prosecutors spent time citing case material including Fisher’s electronic communications and evidence of his social media activities.
Evanchuk considered this, but concluded Fisher’s motivation was profit.
The judge said material referenced by the Crown was “evidence of a young man who needs to broaden his horizons” but not evidence of crime motivated by hate. Evanchuk also said the material did not show Fisher presenting a coherent and overarching belief structure.
“I do observe that the offender appears, like many young men of his generation, to feel alienated from society,” he stated.
The judge also said that some of Fisher’s comments toward “ethnic minorities” and “the LGBTQ+ community” were “uncomfortable in polite public commentary.”
Evanchuk said other expressions seemed “untethered by truth,” such as Fisher’s apparent understanding of “Ms. Freeland’s family and personal history” in relation to communism.
The alleged online threat against Freeland was a post made to Fisher’s social media that included a photo of the politician and a caption that the Crown suggested was an indication of a desire to kill her. Evanchuk said it wasn’t clear whether Fisher personally wrote the caption.
However, the judge nonetheless found that the gravity of Fisher’s offences was high, characterizing him as someone who — as a licensed gun owner — understood laws and regulations around firearms, but chose to flaunt them.
The judge said proliferation of illegal firearms, including 3D-printed guns, “adds a heavy burden on police forces, causes untold expansion of violence and creates and unneeded and unwarranted scrutiny on otherwise law abiding and safe owners of handguns for sport shooting and collection.”
That statement accompanied the judge’s comments on what he considered aggravating factors in the case.
He found it mitigating that Fisher is young, pleaded guilty, lacks a prior criminal history, has “strong” supports in the community, has a good work ethic, and has potential for rehabilitation and reintegration into society.
Fisher offered an apology at a previous court appearance, which Evanchuk considered mitigating as well.
The judge said Fisher “demonstrated insight and accountability in his statement of remorse,” noting he’d found the apology “compelling.”
Evanchuk noted he’d also considered Gladue factors pertaining to the background of Fisher, who is Metis and whose great grandmother attended residential school, according to a pre-sentence report.
In addition to imposing prison time, Evanchuk made orders for Fisher to not possess weapons, not contact Freeland, and to submit a DNA sample for forensic purposes.
bharder@postmedia.com
