And The Purpose of Gun Buybacks Is...What?

And The Purpose of Gun Buybacks Is...What?

The May 11, 2009 Los Angeles Daily News has one of those news stories that reminds of the story of the guy sent to drain the swamp--and has gotten so lost in other issues that he has forgotten his original purpose:

A Los Angeles citywide gun buyback program was called an unexpected success after nearly 1,700 firearms were collected Saturday from owners who'd been promised anonymity, "no questions asked" and - very important - $100 gift cards.

In a way, the effort proved too successful: So many people showed up at collection sites with handguns and rifles in their trunks that organizers ran out of the Ralphs and Visa gift cards in the first two hours.

Some people went ahead and turned in weapons without the financial incentive. But an untold number of drivers left in a huff.

City Councilwoman Wendy Greuel emphasized the good news, noting the removal from L.A. homes of hundreds of guns that "will be melted down and no longer can be used in a crime."

The haul was reported to include more than 100 assault weapons, which are illegal for general possession in California.

No, that's not true. As long as the weapon was registered by the appropriate date, they are completely legal to possess. But the bigger problem is the "no longer can be used in a crime." And that would be because criminals are turning in guns for the lure of the $100 gift card? An armed robber prepared to take some risks can probably make that much in one liquor store robbery, and certainly in two. More importantly, police were very clear about what sort of people were turning in guns:

"It's like Jack in the Box, the drive-through," said LAPD Lt. Stephen Carmona, who ran the Canoga Park collection site.

Carmona reported no trouble.

"It's a pretty good-looking group of citizens," he said. "We didn't expect any gangsters."

Detective Bill Flannery, busy identifying the guns collected in Canoga Park, said he was surprised by "the number of guns that little old ladies are bringing in."

So, how are guns being turned in by little old ladies going to reduce crime?

Gun buybacks have been criticized as feel-good publicity stunts that barely dent the U.S. gun supply and take weapons only from the law-abiding.

But L.A. police and city officials say every gun turned in Saturday and destroyed is one that no longer can be stolen and used in a crime or contribute to an accident.

I see. The police in Los Angeles have reached the point where they have decided that it's more effecive to prevent gun crimes by making sure that there are fewer of them to steal, than by identifying and arresting burglars? That makes loads of sense.

And the "no questions asked" idiocy means that if someone does have a stolen gun--they no longer have to risk fencing it. The police will pay you $100 for it, no questions asked! I don't know what a fence would typically pay for a stolen handgun, but I'm guessing that $100 is on the high side. And some of the guns turned in, if you are to believe the news story, are major federal felonies to even possess:

Having waited 45 minutes, Steve and Donna Stone of Winnetka stayed to hand over a sawed-off shotgun he said he had received in exchange for some cabinet work.

Maybe the reporter saw an 18" barreled shotgun, and assumed that it was "a sawed-off shotgun." But if it was indeed less than an 18" barrel, the Stones violated both state and federal laws by receiving it, and by possessing it, without a state permit and a federal National Firearms Act tax stamp.

The madness continues:

The LAPD said it will destroy all of the guns collected Saturday, even ones as potentially valuable as a World War I-era chrome-plated Luger that showed up in Northridge.

Let's see, what else could they do with such a collector's piece? They could sell it to a collector, who would lock it in a safe where its risk of being stolen and used in a crime was almost zero--and probably raise many thousands of dollars to spend on gun buybacks--or even, you know, police work: trying to arrest and convict the criminals that commit felonies. Or they could find a museum that would want this rare and perhaps desirable historical artifact. But that would require something other than the kneejerk insanity that has become a city where I used to live.