Bring your Guns to Church in Detroit

[LaVere]

I just heard a News Cast from WJR AM Detroit.

Turn in guns, get cash back in Detroit

July 29, 2006

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060731/OPINION01/607310305/1068/OPINION
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060729/NEWS01/607290334

BY NAOMI R. PATTON

FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

About the buyback

*

Any gun can be exchanged anonymously for a voucher ranging from $50 to $200. The voucher can be redeemed at a bank. Buybacks will take place 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Here's the schedule:

• Tuesday: Detroit Police Northeastern District, 5100 E. Nevada; King David Missionary Baptist Church, 18001 Sunset.

• Wednesday: Detroit Police Southwestern District, 4700 W. Fort; Greater Apostolic Faith Temple, 4735 W. Fort.

• Thursday: Detroit Police Central District, 4747 Woodward; St. John's CME, 8715 Woodward.

• Friday: Detroit Police Western District, 1441 W. Seven Mile; City of Hope Church, 7565 W. McNichols.

• Aug. 5: Detroit Police Northwestern District, 11450 Warwick; Eastern District, 11187 Gratiot; Leland Missionary Baptist Church, 22420 Fenkell; Charity Lutheran Church, 17220 Kelly.

For information, go to: www.nationaltownwatch.org/nno.

The Detroit Police Department will launch a citywide gun buyback campaign next week.

Police Chief Ella Bully-Cummings, surrounded by residents and members of the Neighborhood Service Organization Youth Initiatives Project, announced the campaign Friday.

The program will start Tuesday in conjunction with the 23rd annual National Night Out, a crime-prevention event.

Bully-Cummings said the buyback is part of the city's multilayered approach to getting guns off the streets and reducing crime.

She also cited Operation TIDE (Tactical Intelligence Driven Enforcement), a program that unites city, state and federal law enforcement agencies to identify crime patterns, and the Joshua Project, a city and state collaboration aimed at curbing gun violence in Detroit.

She said some people consider gun buyback programs ineffective, but added, "Every gun that we can get off the streets is one less gun that we have to worry about and one less gun you have to worry about."

Area churches have volunteered to serve as gun collection sites; volunteers also will distribute literature about the program.

The campaign is being sponsored by Brinks Security and Comerica Bank.

Rhetorical

Now my question. Isn't it illegal to take a gun to church in Michigan.

Or can the chruch give special permission. Can that permission be turned on and off at will. Or once permission is given is it open forever? If on that day can't we all go to church with guns even if we don't want to turn them in ?

 

[bclark1]

i don't see why police departments sponsor these. maybe i'm lucky, but it seems like most good LEOs i've met are pretty avid shooters and have no qualms with gun ownership by law abiding citizens. detroit's crime rate might go down if lake erie rose about 150 feet, but even then i think the fish would be quite delinquent.

 

[Technosavant]

I'd LOVE it if people just brought guns to my church and dropped them off. My collection would expand rather dramatically (after they were checked to see if they were stolen, of course).

Methinks Preacherman would also enjoy this.

 

[rangermonroe]

My gun goes to church with me all of the time. I just take it home with me afterwards.

 

[Otherguy Overby]

America?

Police Chief Ella Bully-Cummings

This isn't in America, is it?

 

[Henry Bowman]

This isn't in America, is it?

No. It's in Detroit.

 

[HankB]

Any gun can be exchanged anonymously for a voucher ranging from $50 to $200.

Two questions:

1) Do you know in advance what gets $50 and what gets $200?

2) Do Lorcin, Jennings, or Bryco give volume discounts?

 

[erik the bold]

Ahh, Controversey and Conflict

* Bully-Cummings inherited a troubled department. It is under the supervision of U.S. District Judge Julian Abele Cook Jr. until 2008 due to a 2001 U.S. Justice Department investigation.
* She came out in support of Mayor Kilpatrick during the 2005 Detroit mayoral campaign in spite of him being ranked as the worst mayor in the U. S. by Time magazine.
* Was held in contempt of court in late 2005 for not reinstating four inspectors and three commanders, who were let go as a part of the restructuring of the police department to save money. A total of 150 police personnel were laid off.

You'd expect more from someone with a law degree and thirty odd years on the force, but maybe hangin' out wid the Kwame posse rubs off........

 

[#shooter]

I guess these things are monitored by the police…otherwise criminals could just steal the guns the church collects.

 

[Preacherman]

Technosavant, you bet!

I can see it now. . .

- Volunteer my church as a collection point.

- Line up vouchers provided by the PD.

- Take in guns from all and sundry.

- Make sure that any interesting/valuable/worthwhile firearms disappear into my gunsafe, and replace them with busted-up, wore-out old bangers collected from local landfills.

- Hand in resultant collection to PD.

- Go home and spend a few hours (or days, if I get lucky) cleaning my new acquisitions.

 

[Carl N. Brown]

I got a Noble Model 40 "parts gun" I paid 8 (eight) bucks for
(yes octal 10 dollars). It wou;d be tempting to turn it in for
50 - 200 dollars. What good would that accomplish?

On the other hand, I would not be above directing a widow
with hubby's Winchester 97 duck gun to take it to Eagle
Arms and get a better deal.

 

[Technosavant]

Preacherman, I can see it now:

"Louisiana and Missouri churches working together to keep guns off the streets."

Their preachers were quoted as saying "There are far too many unloved and underappreciated guns out there, and we just wanted to give them homes where they will not live in fear of being used in crimes or being melted down to make ugly, self-important, and ultimately useless statues."

 

[James T Thomas]

seperation from guns, church and state

Police activities sanctioned by, and conducted within a cities churches!

And everyone is accepting of it? I would be concerned that they may next want access for another good and beneficial cause.

Not in my church!

 

[model 649]

What the sponsors of these actions are doing reminds me of an old tune (Cue it up...) "I think I'm turning Japanese, oh yes, I'm turning Japanese, I guess I think so" Cause that's all it really is. Oh well, My tax dollars at work(or not).
Josh

 

[Standing Wolf]

Maybe they should turn in criminals instead.

 

[American By Blood]

No, don't do that. Leroy's a good boy. He's just young. He'll learn. And anyway, he only attacks people from outside of the neighborhood.

The guns are to blame. Really.

 

[leadcounsel]

It's plainly obvious that these buyback programs are pointless.

I wonder if we don't give police enough credit. Maybe there is an alterior motive, such as an unsolved crime (like a gun dealer was relieved of many guns, and by getting a lead if one of those guns turns up; or if there is an unsolved murder involving a unique caliber or rifling etc.).

For example, years ago I read a story of police getting creative to capture some elusive criminals. The police sent out advertisements in the form of "Prize notifications" guaranteeing the recipients prizes such as cars, vacations, etc. The notices were posted in the neighborhoods where the criminals had relatives, sent to their relatives homes, etc. so word would get to the criminals. Surprisingly enough, a large number of the crooks showed up at the address and they were all identified positively, seated in this big gameshow room with many attractive prizes adorning the walls. Then the swat team busted in and arrested them all on warrants.

It was rather clever. Could these gun buybacks be along the same lines?

Johnny and company break into gunshop and steal 50 pistols. Johnny sells one of these to Terry. Terry feels he really has no use for it and his family forces him to get rid of it. Rather than sell it, he turns it in. Police track down Terry and question him, and he rats out Johnny. $50 well spent if you ask me, saving the police lots of work and saving us LEGIT gun owners the PITA that Johnny and his illegal gun trafficing ultimately create through shootings, which give the gun ownership world a black eye.

 

[Michigander]

The money for the buy-back is from Brinks Security and Comerica Bank.

Go figure.

 

[Technosavant]

leadcounsel,

I don't think that these "buybacks" have ever worked like that. The idea of those who do these things is that their purpose is simply "getting guns off the streets." They reason that if there would potentially be negative repercussions, guns would not be turned in; they would remain in circulation (never mind that the guns that are turned in are usually family heirlooms or other firearms that have never been used in crimes). Hence, they are always "no questions asked."

It's ludicrous to think that this will lead to less crime, they have never lead to less crime, but they keep wasting money on these things anyway.

 

[Sistema1927]

I actually did have a man and his wife "bring their guns to church" last December. They were moving to Spain the very next week, and while they had taken care of all the rest of their business, they had still not disposed of their firearms.

I offered to pay, but since I had helped them out of a bind earlier they gave them to me without charge that Sunday morning prior to Sunday School:

1) A Star Firestar 9mm that I sold to a buddy for $200.00
2) A S&W 19-4 .357 2.5"

Coupled with this they gave me a box full of reloading gear that I passed on to a FFL buddy for doing transfers to me.

Even when I reiterated my desire to pay, I was told that they knew that I would ensure that they ended up in good homes, and that this was a relief to them.

Sometimes these things happen, just like the widow who wanted me to have her husband's pre-64 Win 94 in .32 Special for doing such a good job at his funeral.

 

[Sean85746]

I TOTALLY support gun buy back programs!

Now before you all have a heart attack and break down my door...hear me out.

I had in my collection about 15 old crappy broken, non functional POS guns. From Jennings 22's to a couple of old single shot .22 rifles, to rusted out junk that had been given to me over the years...even a couple of those old home-build cap & ball guns. I mean just GARBAGE that had come through the gun shop I had worked at part time.

So...they had a buy back where they gave $55.00 per gun, no matter what condition.

I gathered them all up, took them down, left with my cash...yes, they used cash...and I went to one of my local gun shops...and bought a new USP 45Compact!

So, if you have a few junkers lying around....sell them to a buy back program, and use the money for a new gun!