Gun Turn-in Montgomery Alabama: Trash and Treasures Turned In at "buyback"

Image from crimestoppers

The image above is of the 73 firearms turned in on the 30th of June, 2018, in Montgomery, Alabama.  While there are many inexpensive firearms on the table, there are some classic and expensive collector items as well.

I see a Hi Standard Model B .22, a Beretta pocket tip up model, a Smith & Wesson Victory model, and a Colt pocket auto.32.  One of the "assault weapons" is a Mossberg 715T, which is an straight blowback Mossberg .22, dressed in a plastic shell to make it look like an AR15 clone. 

There is an actual AR15 clone and Tec .22. There appears to be a pre-64 model 70 Winchester in 30-06. There are interesting old pocket pistols, and a classic model 60 S&W in stainless steel.

All of the pistols went for $50. Some of them look to be worth $500. The so called "assault rifles" went for $100.  It is hard to find a pre-64 model 70 for less than a thousand.    From alabamanews.net:

CrimeStoppers’ Gun Buy Back program paid people $100 for assault weapons and $50 for pistols.

“We’ve had everything from AR-15’s to 22 pistols, shotguns, some are guns that people want to get ride of because they had younger kids around the house,” says Garrett.

67 guns were turned in during last year’s 2 hour gun buy back. Serial numbers of the guns they are buying back so see if the gun was used in a crime.

Organizers of these events have become conflicted about how much they advertise them. If the event become well known, private parties show up to purchase the valuable guns, benefiting all concerned, but destroying the propaganda message of the event. I did not see any coverage of private purchasers at this event. That is likely why so many valuable guns were turned in for so little in recompense.

I found one announcement for the event. It was broadcast the day before the event at 9:44 p.m. Friday, from wsfa.com: 

MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) -

From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, anybody with unwanted firearms could sell them to CrimeStoppers for up to $100 cash per weapon.

Almost all of these guns were turned in by people who know nothing about guns. They inherited them. They have been propagandized by the media. So they turn in $500 - $1,000 guns for $50. From montgomeryadvertiser.com:

Tony Garrett, executive director of CrimeStoppers said most of the guns were from "residents who were not gun users and feared that the gun created an unnecessary risk around their children and/or could be used illegally if the gun(s) were stolen out of their home."

Garrett said the next gun buyback event will be held June 29, 2019.

Second Amendment activists near Montgomery can mark their calendars for next year. That event will be held on June 29th, the last Saturday in June. At least one person in Alabama is paying attention. From al.com, in the comments:

How much did they pay for each gun? Next time they do this I'll set up a stand next to theirs and offer five dollars more for each gun that I accept. Of course I reserve the right not to buy rusty junk--which is what usually is brought to these buybacks.

If private parties had been there, it is hard to believe they wouldn't have paid a couple of hundred dollars for that AR clone, the Smith & Wesson model 60, the classic Colt pocket .32, or the pre-64 30-06.

The research about these events show the police resources are better off being used to fight crime. From the Freakonomics" web site:

When it comes to gun buybacks, both the theory and the data could not be clearer in showing that they don’t work. The only guns that get turned in are ones that people put little value on anyway. There is no impact on crime. On the positive side, the “cash for clunkers” program is more attractive than the gun buyback program because, as long as they are being driven, old cars pollute, whereas old guns just sit there.

Having private purchasers show up at these events is cheap activism for Second Amendment supporters. It shows that guns are valued assets for many people in the community.

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

©2018 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

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