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Sunday’s mass shooting on Toronto’s Danforth Avenue was just hours behind Toronto’s Mayor John Tory when he voiced a question sounding more heartfelt than calculated: “Why does anyone in this city need a gun at all?”

Whether that signalled a call for greater gun control or a possible municipal ban or just a frustrated man looking for answers, his question renewed debate of whether ridding Toronto of private guns would help, and whether it was even possible.

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In the wake of Tory’s question, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said the federal government is prepared to consider tightening handgun laws; Bill Blair, minister for reducing organized crime, said “every avenue” should be looked at to “focus on those guns that are getting into the hands of criminals.”

Could crime guns really be kept out of Toronto?

The stumbling blocks are many, perhaps first among them the truism that outlaws don’t follow the laws of the land, meaning a ban would only be as effective as the ability to enforce it.