AG James: 138 Guns Turned In At Utica Gun Buyback

AG James: 138 Guns Turned In At Utica Gun Buyback

UTICA — New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced that 138 firearms were turned in to law enforcement at a gun buyback event held last Friday in Utica. The event was hosted by the Office of the New York Attorney General and the City of Utica’s Police Department. The Office of the New York Attorney General accepts — with no questions asked — working and non-working unloaded firearms in exchange for compensation on site.

“By providing a place to turn in unwanted, dangerous firearms, we help ensure that they do not fall into the wrong hands,” said Attorney General Letitia James. “My office remains committed in ensuring that all New Yorkers feel safe and are protected from gun violence. We thank the City of Utica’s Police Department for their continued partnership on this vital program.”

“We thank Attorney General Letitia James and her staff for their successful collaboration with our community and police department in another gun buyback event here in Utica” said Utica Chief of Police Mark Williams. “Some may question the effectiveness of gun buyback programs. However, I can state with certainty the 138 guns (including two assault weapons) that we’ve taken in will never be used to terrorize an innocent person, commit a tragedy, kill a curious child, or claim the life of a police officer.”

The buyback resulted in 138 guns being turned in, including 58 handguns, 53 long guns, 25 non-working or antique guns, and two assault rifles.

The Office of the New York Attorney General offers monetary compensation, in the form of prepaid debit cards, when a gun is received by law enforcement officers. Prepaid cards, with the appropriate amount, are issued after each unloaded gun is received and secured by the officers on-site.

The gun buyback program is entirely funded through criminal forfeiture funds that were seized from drug and gun traffickers by the Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force.

The Organized Crime Task Force has focused on taking gun traffickers off New York streets. The office developed Model Gun Show Procedures — a series of safety procedures for gun show operators in New York State — and announced new policies to help social media sites curb illegal sales of firearms on their platforms. In 2016, the Office of the New York Attorney General released a first-of-its-kind analysis of tens of thousands of “crime guns” recovered by law enforcement, illustrating gun trafficking trends that undermine New York’s sensible gun laws.

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