The following editorial originally appeared in The Seattle Times:
People debate the impact of gun buybacks, pointing out that there is no evidence they reduce crime. But an act that may look performative can still have great meaning.
In the past seven months, hundreds of gun owners in Everett, Mukilteo and Kirkland have lined up to hand over their firearms to local police departments in exchange for gift cards. The money, about $100 on average, was not the reason.
“It gets rid of some guns that shouldn’t be on the street,” Eila Pergiel told a Times reporter at the Dec. 17 buyback in Everett. “There’s way too many out there.”
Since June, these three Western Washington cities have gathered 479 firearms, including a dozen semiautomatic assault weapons and more than 150 handguns, according to police. All were taken anonymously, with no owner’s name attached, and each weapon was traced to determine whether it had been reported stolen. Once cleared, the guns were destroyed.
True, many were antiques, unlikely to have been used in robbery or assault. But gun violence through suicide or accidental shootings is the leading cause of death for young people in Washington. As Kirkland’s Deputy Chief Mike St. Jean put it, thinking about the three buybacks his department has held this year, the possibility of preventing even one of these deaths makes the entire program a success.
Kirkland also has been an example for other cities. After its buyback in June recovered 91 firearms, community response was so positive that the Eastside city held another the following month, and a third in October.
Kirkland plans at least one more gun exchange during the first quarter of 2023, though only city residents will be eligible for gift cards since the department is paying for them with local-taxpayer dollars.
Everett used federal COVID-19 relief funds to purchase its $25,000 in gun-exchange gift cards, which were gone within two hours.
But about one-third of the gun owners who were still waiting to turn in their firearms when the gift cards ran out did so anyway, without payment, said Officer Ora Hamel.
Buybacks have been popular since at least the 1970s, even in gun-friendly states, according to research from the Pew Foundation.
This summer, Houston gathered 845 guns through buybacks. In Wisconsin, law enforcement collected more than 500. Gun owners in Richmond, Va., turned in 474 firearms, and Spartanburg, S.C., collected 165.
You can debate cause-and-effect all day long. When hundreds of people wait in line for hours to hand over their weapons, it’s hard to miss the message. Many Washington residents are sick of gun violence and they’re endorsing every effort to stop it — symbolic or not.
