Coroner's Finding: NB

Contributing factors

• depression with fluctuating severity
• Asperger's syndrome diagnosis
• relationship breakdown in 2017
• inconsistent mental health screening in firearms licensing
• failure to require medical verification of mental health status at licence renewal
• reliance on self-reporting without independent verification
• general practitioner unaware of patient's firearms licence status
• lack of communication between firearms authorities and treating practitioners

Coroner's recommendations

1. Firearms Services should give consideration to using consistent language in questions relating to mental health in applications for and renewals of firearms licences.
2. Once an individual has self-identified as suffering from, or requiring treatment for, a mental condition or emotional issues in an application or renewal of a firearms licence, and that mental condition or emotional issue requires ongoing treatment or monitoring, that the applicant or licence holder should be required to provide a report from a qualified medical practitioner that the mental condition or emotional issue is being properly managed and would not disqualify the applicant or licence holder from holding a firearms licence.
3. The Commissioner of Police should embark on an education program to remind general practitioners of their obligation under section 148 of the Firearms Act 1996 and encourage them to accurately identify firearms licence holders in patient records.