Sheriff's Department Collects 152 Guns In Buyback Event
EAST LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department collected 152 guns in a buyback event at Belvedere Park on Saturday.
Assault rifles, handguns, and shotguns were among those collected in the department's Gifts for Guns exchange, according to Sergeant Colin Matsumoto of the sheriff's East Los Angeles Station.
Those who turned in weapons received gift certificates to Target stores or Ralph's supermarkets.
At a press conference Wednesday, Sheriff Lee Baca said the department would offer $200 gift cards for assault weapons, $100 cards for handguns, rifles or shotguns and $50 cards for non-operational firearms.
Firearms are surrendered anonymously, and there is a "no questions asked" policy.
Some scholars question the effectiveness of gun buyback programs. A 2004 report by the National Academy of Sciences titled "Firearms and Violence: A Critical Review" found that the weapons typically turned in at such events are the least likely to be used in a crime.
The city's sixth gun buyback event, held in May, yielded nearly 1,200 weapons.
According to officials, the anonymous gun buyback program has removed 11,151 guns from the street during Villaraigosa's administration.
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