A Wilson Creek woman faces several weapons charges after police responded to reports of gunfire and screaming early Monday morning in a residential neighbourhood. It was around 3 a.m. when police received several 911 calls from the Wilson Road neighbourhood, off Field Road. According to the Sunshine Coast RCMP report to Crown counsel, when police arrived at Wilson Road, they found a woman in a neighbour's carport, screaming hysterically, smashing a window and holding a pistol. Police said as they approached she spun around and pointed her gun at an officer, using a two-handed grip, but when the officer ordered her to drop the gun, she did so.Fay Cornish, 53, was arrested and spent a night in jail before being released on bail Feb. 17. She is charged with possessing a loaded, restricted firearm, pointing a firearm at a police officer, possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose and mischief. She has no criminal record.
In Sechelt provincial court, Crown prosecutor Trevor Cockfield argued that Cornish was a danger to the public and should remain in jail. He said the gun was an older revolver with an eight-bullet capacity, and when it was seized from Cornish it contained five live, 22-calibre bullets and two spent shell cases. On searching Cornish's bedroom, police found a leather pouch containing a holster and a zip-lock baggie of 22-calibre bullets. That evidence, said Cockfield, creates a "reasonable inference" as to who fired the two shots.
Cornish's lawyer argued that Cornish fired the shots in self-defense after two people broke into her house, and she was banging on her neighbour's house in an attempt to get help. The gun belonged to a former boyfriend of Cornish's, he said.
Judge Doug Moss agreed to release Cornish on bail, with orders to attend counselling as required and have no contact with the neighbour whose window was broken.
"You're lucky you weren't shot. The officer had his gun out, as did other officers," said Moss. "These are serious charges. If there's a hint of violation of these [bail] terms, you can expect to be held in custody."
Cornish's preliminary hearing is set for Aug. 10.
