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← Back to Law ExplorerLast verified: June 2026 · Source: laws-lois.justice.gc.ca
Weapons & FirearmsHybrid
§87

Pointing a Firearm

Pointing a firearm

Weapons & Firearms
Maximum Sentence

5 years (indictable) / 2 years less a day (summary)

Classification: Hybrid
🍁 Immigration Impact

Hybrid offence with a 5-year maximum on indictment. Because that maximum is under 10 years, it falls under criminality (IRPA s.36(2)) rather than serious criminality on the maximum alone; a conviction in Canada can still reach serious criminality under s.36(1)(a) if a sentence of more than six months is imposed. Hybrid offences are treated as indictable for immigration purposes even when prosecuted summarily.

🍁 In Simple Terms

Aiming a gun at another person, loaded or not. The Crown chooses the serious route or the lighter one, and the serious route carries 5 years. That stays under the 10 year line, so it usually registers as ordinary criminality rather than the serious kind.

Legal Text, Criminal Code s. 87

(1) Every person commits an offence who, without lawful excuse, points a firearm at another person, whether the firearm is loaded or unloaded. (2) Every person who commits an offence under subsection (1) (a) is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years; or (b) is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction.

Amendment History (2)
R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 87
1995, c. 39, s. 139
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