Christopherson allowed semi-automatic weapons to be issued to officers in late 1993."New guns for police estimated at $17M", Financial Post, 22 October 1993, p. 51. See also "Solicitor General announces new handgun and training for police", Canada NewsWire, 27 January 1994. This was supported by many in the police service, but was criticized by some in the legal community on the grounds that the new weapons were not safer than the .38 models they replaced.Robert Sheppard, "Ready, aim and hope for the best", Globe and Mail, 31 January 1994, A11. Christopherson also introduced new guidelines for targeting hate crimes, and mandated stricter standards for police investigations of spousal assault."Guidelines on hate crimes issued", Globe and Mail, 23 July 1993, A4; "Hate crime, wife assault crackdown launched", Financial Post, 20 January 1994, p. 55. Early in 1995, he announced that police would soon be given the right to warn the general public about sex offenders released into residential neighbourhoods."Sex offender warnings", Globe and Mail, 10 February 1995, A2.
