OH:Cheap Gun Opportunity Cleveland 6 September, 2014

There will be a gun turn in event in Cleveland, Ohio on Saturday, 6 September,  2014.  While these events are commonly labeled with the propaganda term "buyback" the guns were never owned by the people attempting to buy them.

I have not been able to find any definitive information about where the event will be held, how much will be offered for what firearms, or what the starting and ending times are.  It appears that the event will only collect handguns.   From newsnet5.com:

At the handgun buyback event, people can exchange guns for gift cards, no questions asked. The guns are tagged and checked and eventually melted down.

There is no hint of objectivity by Newsnet5.com.  They are actively promoting the event.  There would not be a problem with this if the event were politically neutral.   The event obviously is not.   It promotes the idea that guns are bad and should be destroyed.

Between noon and 8 p.m. today, we are holding a phone bank to help the Cleveland Police Foundation raise money for the Foundation's handgun buyback event set for Saturday, September 6. The phone bank phone number is 800-658-5370.

Private sales of firearms in Ohio are legal, and Cleveland cannot override state law.  Last year some private buyers were successful.   From the ohioccwforums.org, :

I bought a Colt Agent revolver last year in almost new condition. I believe a Python was purchased also.

After some initial friction last year, the police recognized the right of private buyers to be there.

Yup, a bit of an interaction in the morning as they got their crap together, then we were free to operate. One of the officers was actually reassuring citizens bringing in guns that they could sell to us without issue.

Last year, the location was on Payne Avenue.  Here is last year's (2013) information from newsnet5.com:

CLEVELAND - The 2013 City of Cleveland Gun Buy-Back was held Saturday, June 15 at Public Safety Central on Payne Avenue. 

In all, 352 firearms (311 handguns and 41 long guns) were surrendered to police.

In exchange for operable handguns or semi-automatic rifles (Assault Rifles), citizens were given a either a $100 (handguns) or $200 (semi-automatic rifles) Target, gas or food gift card and two tickets to an upcoming Cavaliers and Lake Erie Monsters game.

In addition, they were entered into a raffle with a chance to win up to $1,000.

You might want to read the insider story by private buyers in Jacksonville Florida to see how things were handled there.

Be prepared for a percentage of people who refuse to talk to anyone but police. All the private buyers that I saw at gun turn ins were polite and let ideologically driven people turn in their guns for a fraction of what they would be worth on the open market.

Signs are helpful, as are good grooming, cash, and a friendly attitude. Dale Carnegie's advise for dealing with people works very well. Risks of purchasing stolen guns are small. You can read about them at this article.

Across the country, communities, police departments and churches are sponsoring gun turn-ins to get "guns off the street". At many of these events, private buyers are showing up, offering cash for the more valuable guns. These private additions to the public turn-in are effective, no doubt, in getting more guns off the street, because they add to the resources that are available to those who want to get rid of guns for something of value, be it a grocery card or a number of twenty dollar bills.

You can help make the turn-in in your area more effective by standing on the curb with your "Cash for Guns" sign, or at a folding table, willing to offer more than the gift card for firearms that are more valuable. It would be best if numerous private parties were available, as more good guns could then be transferred into responsible hands.

This action serves many useful purposes. It stretches the turn-in budget so that more guns can be taken off the street. It helps keep fearful widows from being defrauded of most of the market value of the gun they are turning in. It prevents valuable assets from being destroyed by bureaucratic inflexibility. It is a win-win-win situation. The ideal situation for those organizing the turn in would be to allow private buyers to purchase the valuable guns, while having the organizers take the cheap guns "off the streets". As these events are ideologically driven, that seems unlikely, but it might be worth an attempt at outreach. All parties would benefit.

Private buyers dispel the pernicious message that guns are bad and should be destroyed.

Link to potential legal risk of buying a gun at one of these events

Link to article with numerous examples of private sales at gun turn in events

Link to an article about private buyers at Detroit event

Link to Phoenix Article: pictures of private buyers

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