'Full patch' Hells Angels member tries to get firearms licence back

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Some of the central tenets of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club were at the core of a recent case in British Columbia as the court decided whether a member should be allowed to have a firearms licence.

Earlier this week, the provincial Court of Appeal ruled on a case between the federal attorney general and Gaston Methot, who the court heard is a "full patch" member of the club.

The trio of justices was asked to decide whether Methot should be allowed a gun licence, a decision that began with a firearms officer, then bounced its way through the B.C. court system.

At the heart of the case was whether that initial officer was right to reject Methot's licence based solely on his involvement with the Hells Angels, which was determined through an investigation four years ago.

That officer turned Methot down, arguing that his membership would keep him from co-operating with police, "thereby endangering public safety."

This decision was made in 2018, when Methot's previous licence expired.

It's a decision the provincial court agreed with, so Methot took his argument on to the Supreme Court. There, an appeal was allowed, and the matter was supposed to go back provincial court, but at that point, the attorney general appealed, bringing it to the provincial appellate court for a November hearing and finally, to a decision on Monday.

The three justices weighed what they'd heard, including, as outlined in court documents, "the pre-eminent value accorded to loyalty to the Club by its members and the sanction of punishment for acts of betrayal against the club."

The justices mentioned too the "written and unwritten" rules of being a Hells Angel, as mentioned in an expert report, that include not co-operating with police.

Specifically, the expert cited by the court said Hells Angels members are not allowed to report to police if their guns have been stolen, lost or used in an offence.

The firearms officer said in his decision to Methot, "I find that you represent the Hells Angels and are bound by rules that allow for violence and criminal acts, and that the police are your adversary. You made this decision to be involved with an organization that has a reputation for violence and criminal acts."

The Court of Appeal weighed the arguments of the other courts involved, but said that Methot had time to "distance himself" from the reason his licence was rejected – the Hells Angels – and chose not to.

Given that reasoning, the court decided to reinstate the decision made by the firearms officer back in 2018, meaning Methot cannot legally own a firearm in Canada