Student Sentenced To Two Weeks For BB Gun
A 22-year-old college student who admitted importing a prohibited weapon [BB gun] into Bermuda was sentenced to two weeks in prison yesterday [July 26].
Shaquille Crockwell has been in custody since July 12th when he first appeared in Court and pleaded guilty, so he has served his two weeks and will be released.
From the dock, Crockwell apologised for his actions and said that he would like to continue his education.
Crockwell had previously pleaded guilty to a charge of importing a prohibited weapon which consisted of two .25 cal BB guns, magazines, and ammunition].
In his first Court appearance, the Court heard that in April 2013, Bermuda Customs officers at the airport intercepted the items after they searched Mr Crockwell’s luggage.
Customs officers found the weapon parts and ammunition spread throughout his luggage. On further investigation by a Police weapons expert, the parts were found to complete two .25 cal BB handguns.
At the time of his guilty plea, Crockwell was supposed to fly out the following day to resume his education at an engineering college in the USA.
Read More About
Category: All, Court Reports, Crime, News
Curious to see if the US Authorities stop him from entering the USA now.
I don’t see any reason why they would place the dumb young man on the list. The BB gun is prohibited in Bda not USA. They sell for $100 I had one when I was college, but I wasn’t dumb enough to think about bringing it home.
Actually they sell for $20 – $30 and even a BB rifle is under $40 here at Walmart
BB Guns are illegal in SOME states of America just like Cannabis is. When someone in Bermuda is put on America’s list for a prohibition conviction here they say its looked at it as a criminal conviction. America is supposed to put anyone convicted of a crime punishable by prison on their list. Although I would not like to see another of many young Bermudians denied the right to travel for education at the same time it would be highly hypocritical for the consulate not to suggest this persons name on the list. Then again the list is a hypocrisy in itself since we do not name those who are convicted of crimes of a sexual nature so theirs no way for them to go on the list. I guess America would rather rapist & pedophiles visit their country then weed smokers.
A BB gun!!!! Something you can buy straight off the shelves, in the toy section of some stores, gets you put in jail in Bermuda. Insane!
So he was going to shoot sparrows/lizards or attempt to rob people/shops with the BB guns? I suppose if he held up a store he could/would wear a T-shirt that said – “It’s not a real gun – it’s only a BB GUN!” No wonder you are Triangle D…..
Like many Bermudians you really need to get out & experience some of the rest of the world beyond Disney or some sheltered cruise.
A BB gun looks nothing at all like a real gun. Start with the tiny bore. Toy guns look more real. Paint over the orange muzzle & you are good to go.
Because when a thug holds you up at night and demands your wallet, he will probably let you have a good look at the weapon he’s pointing at you, so that you can on the spot determine whether it’s likely to be dangerous or not.
how stupid are you??? if someone shoved it in your face the last thing you would look at is the small bore.
@sanity clause point a BB gun to your head and tell me what happens!? I will answer for you night, night! They are capable enough to kill you!! joker smoker!!
Me thinks you have been lost in the “Triangle” too long.
BB Guns are used in armed robberies, assaults, pistol whippings, intimidations et al.
They are considered prohibited weapons and rightly so.
ALL firearms are prohibited in Bermuda.
Get freekin real.
You can buy real guns straight off the shelves too, and pepper spray, and firecrackers and lap-dances and wh@res. This ain’t Murica! You might want to pay attention to the news headlines over the last few years. Unless i’m mistaken I think there has been somewhat of a problem with firearms. He’s lucky to get only two weeks.
You can buy an AK 47 in the US too….. doesn’t make it acceptable to have one here either!!!!
What a slap on the wrist! He should have been given 5 year sentence suspended for 2 years with probation and $2,000.00 fine. Once again a very poor performance from our Magistrates Court. I somehow think we will see this young man in front of the courts again one day for much greater charges as he now things he is “untouchable:….
how can you judge someone when you don’t even know them?
Very easily when he brings a prohibited weapon to the island. We are judging his illegal, stupid actions!
Well it is a fact and not ‘unknown’ that we have courts.
I rest my case my Lord.
Get it?
He deliberately smuggled a weapon here that he knew full well is absolutely illegal.
What more do we need to know? That he’s ‘very sorry’ and he’s ‘turning his life around’?
We can and always must judge actions. Are you implying that the judge who judged him cannot judge him because he doesn’t know him? Use your freaking judgement foo!
unknown is probably a family/enabler member!
He should have received 6 months and a fine of about $2,000. He definitely had knowledge due to the way in which the pistols were in pieces and scattered about his suite case.
All this fuss over a BB gun. Unbelievable! You can go into any one of a number of stores & walk out with a machete or some other far more lethal knife. Lets ban all kitchen knives. They can kill. There is no limit to absurdity in Bermuda sometimes.
@ triangle drifter – I absolutely agree, it would be difficult to ban all things that have the potential to kill. That Bermuda has determined that BB guns are illegal is what it is, as is the sentence imposed by the courts. But for people to speak so harshly and on such a personal level without knowing this young man…wow! Why is it that people are so quick “to cast the first stone”? I really don’t get it. He committed a crime and was sentenced…let it be for goodness sake!!
Years ago, mid 1980′s, when buying a machete at a hardware store I had to sign a separte form. Believe it may have said was for agricultural use? Whatever, that I bought it was on record. Hardware store workers/shoppers may recall if form wording covered possible injury to others as well as self.
Kitchen knives and machetes serve a utility purpose just as bleach and poisonous chemicals. What is the utility purpose of a gun dumb@$$?
Maybe I’m mistaken but hasn’t the weapon of choice been GUNS for the majority of murders and robberies lately? Lets see you pull out your measuring tape and measure the diameter of a barrel next time Mr. Robber is kind enough to hold it up for you. Your dumbest comment us that a bb gun doesn’t look like a real gun. Newsflash nutball, it REALLY does fire REAL missiles, LIKE A REAL GUN!! The fact that you think you’re smarter than Bermudians is your blindspot to your own assininity and utter nincompoopery.
Must have been practicing for the real thing!
A bad time to have such a gun – even if it shoots BB’s. now he has to pay for the rest of his life for it’.
A $ 3000 fine would have been the best thing. – at this time I believe that we have the most stupid Judicial system in the World. — 2 weeks cost us about $3000 dollars that we really don’t have.
I doubt that anyone has ever been killed by a BB gun, which, by the way, like any air rifle, is illegal in BDA but is not a firearm. You might be able to blind someone with a BB gun but you could also blind someone with a water pistol. I’d agree that many toys are more threatening and machetes and kitchen knives and crow bars are far more dangerous. I believe that both the law and the sentencing are disproportionate.
Not all BB guns are made the same. Some are built to be restricted, with the BB very able to hurt someone.
Air Guns
There are two general types of air guns (also known as BB guns, pellet guns, spring guns or air soft guns):
air (pneumatic system), and spring (spring-air)
A third type, gas (CO2/nitrogen), even though they are not, strictly speaking, “air guns,” are subject to the same rules set out below. For purposes of the Firearms Act and the Criminal Code, air guns can be further divided into four categories:
1. Air guns that are firearms for purposes of both the Firearms Act and the Criminal Code
These are air guns with both a high muzzle velocity (greater than 152.4 metres or 500 feet per second) and a high muzzle energy (greater than 5.7 joules or 4.2 foot-pounds). The “muzzle velocity” is the speed of a projectile at the instant it leaves the muzzle of a gun, normally expressed in metres per second or feet per second. The “muzzle energy” is the energy of a projectile at the instant it leaves the muzzle of a gun, expressed in joules or foot-pounds. Air guns need to meet both standards to be classified as firearms for purposes of the Firearms Act.
These high-powered air guns are subject to the same licence and registration requirements as a conventional firearm. Owners and users are also required to store, transport, display and handle them safely in accordance with the regulations supporting the Firearms Act.
The manufacturer’s specifications are used to determine what muzzle velocity and muzzle energy an air gun was designed to have. This information may be available in the user’s manual or on the manufacturer’s website. If the information is not available, individuals can call the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Canadian Firearms Program (CFP) at 1-800-731-4000 and ask to speak to a firearm technician to find out if the air gun is considered to be a firearm for purposes of the Firearms Act.
High-powered air rifles are generally classified as non-restricted firearms. However, the classification depends on the exact design of the air gun. Air rifles manufactured to resemble an assault rifle could be non-restricted, restricted or prohibited depending on the exact model imitated. High-powered air rifles would also be prohibited firearms if fully automatic or if they have a sawed-off barrel. They could also be restricted firearms if they have a folding stock that reduces the overall length to less than 660mm.
2. Air guns that meet the Criminal Code definition of a firearm, but are deemed not to be firearms for certain purposes of the Firearms Act and Criminal Code
These are air guns with a maximum muzzle velocity of 152.4 metres or 500 feet per second and/or a maximum muzzle energy of 5.7 joules or 4.2 foot-pounds. Such air guns are exempt from licensing, registration, and other requirements under the Firearms Act, and from penalties set out in the Criminal Code for possessing a firearm without a valid licence or registration certificate.
However, they are considered to be firearms under the Criminal Code if they are used to commit a crime. Anyone who uses such an air gun to commit a crime faces the same penalties as someone who uses a regular firearm.
The simple possession, acquisition and use of these air guns for lawful purposes are regulated more by provincial and municipal laws and by-laws than by federal law. For example, some provinces may have set a minimum age for acquiring such an air gun. For more information, please contact your local or provincial authorities.
These air guns are exempt from the specific safe storage, transportation and handling requirements set out in the regulations supporting the Firearms Act. However, the Criminal Code requires that reasonable precautions be taken to use, carry, handle, store, transport and ship them in a safe and secure manner.
3. Air guns that are replica firearms
These are air guns not powerful enough to cause serious injury or death, but designed to resemble a real firearm with near precision. Replica firearms, except for replicas of antique firearms, are classified as prohibited devices.
In particular, some air guns commonly known as air soft guns may fall into this category. These are devices that have a low muzzle velocity and muzzle energy, and that usually discharge projectiles made out of a substance such as plastic or wax rather than metal. Airsoft guns with a muzzle velocity below 111.6 m/s (366 fps), and resembling with near precision an existing make and model of a firearm, other than an antique firearm, are replica firearms and therefore are prohibited devices.
Although replica firearms are prohibited, individuals may keep those they owned on December 1, 1998. It is not necessary to have a licence to possess them, and they do not need to be registered. However, an individual cannot import or acquire a replica firearm. If a replica firearm is taken out of Canada, it will not be allowed back in.
The Criminal Code sets out penalties for using a replica firearm or any other imitation firearm to commit a crime.
Some devices may resemble a real firearm in terms of their shape, but are made of clear or brightly coloured plastic, or have significant dimensional differences. Many of these devices need to be assessed on a case-by case basis. As a general rule, however, devices significantly smaller or larger than the real version are not classified as replica firearms.
4. Air guns that are neither firearms nor replicas
These are air guns that are not powerful enough to be classified as firearms and that do not resemble a real firearm closely enough to be considered a replica. An example would be a harmless air gun made out of clear plastic or a device that is obviously a child’s toy.
They generally fall within the definition of an “imitation firearm” and may be subject to some penalties under the Criminal code.
This might be from a different country. But it’s not just a BB gun.
My initial reaction was “really? 14 days for a bb gun?? Seems harsh”. But upon reading the article, it was clear that he was intentionally trying to smuggle them in, given they were in pieces. He knew it was wrong or he wouldn’t have tried so hard to conceal it. So with that in mind, 14 days seems light. This was not an accident but a clear intent to defy the law.
One blogger writes in answer to that: “Gun laws are just for the ‘little people.’ This writer says: Gun laws are just for ‘Black people.’
Black people get locked up for gun possession–pink people don’t. Black people get locked up for killing pink people–pink people don’t get locked up for killing Black people. No justice for Black people!
Case in point:
NYC’s Michael Bloomberg accused of ‘hypocrisy’ for arming security detail in gun-free Bermuda
By Cheryl K. Chumley The Washington Times Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Bloggers are taking New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg to task, accusing him of hypocrisy for pushing strict gun control onto Americans but simultaneously seeking gun-carry exemptions for his security detail when he travels to Bermuda, where firearms are largely prohibited.
The New York Times first reported of this disparity in 2010, stating that the mayor uses taxpayer dollars to pay for two armed city officers to accompany him on get-away jaunts to Bermuda. But before he can fly them in, he has to obtain special permission so they can keep their guns: Bermuda is so anti-gun that even its own police force isn’t armed, The Times reported then.
Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/mar/26/nycs-michael-bloomberg-accused-hypocrisy-arming-se/#ixzz2QqFmaHd2
Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter
Times reported then.
——————————————————————————–
SEE RELATED: Background checks for gun transactions shoot up; all 50 states report increases
As Mr. Bloomberg ratchets up his Second Amendment clampdown, and spends millions of his own dollars to push for stronger gun controls through Capitol Hill, the online community is reigniting this story.
Bloggers are questioning why Mr. Bloomberg on one hand pushes for tight gun control, but on the other, finds the need for gun control exemptions for his personal protection.
“Guns are largely forbidden in Bermuda,” writes Walter Olson, of Cato, quoting a New York Times article. “But Mayor Bloomberg of New York, one of the nation’s most famously anti-gun politicos, has a dispensation for armed bodyguards from his own NYPD.”
One blogger writes in answer to that: “Gun laws are just for the ‘little people.’ Those who command millions of dollars and political capital don’t have to obey gun laws since they can hide behind their ‘need for security’ because of said wealth and political connections.”
And another writes on the blog Weazel Zippers: Mr. Bloomberg is guilty of “hypocrisy.” The story highlights “another [case of] ‘some animals are more equal than others.’ “
why do you all think he was really sentenced??
really, come on do i need to go there?