Long Beach officials will be paying people up to $200 per gun to turn in their firearms on June 29 when they host a buyback event at Scherer Park.
The Long Beach Police Department has been ramping up its efforts to take guns off the street amid an increase in shootings and murders this year. The city averaged almost one shooting per day during the first four months of 2024.
“As we focus our collaborative efforts on issues contributing to gun violence, I am pleased to be partnering with the county on this upcoming Gun Buy Back,” LBPD Chief Wally Hebeish said in a statement.
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The department says it has also assigned more officers to patrol gun violence hotspots and put an emphasis on seizing weapons from people who shouldn’t have them.
The event on June 29, however, is completely voluntary.
Anyone who wants to turn in a weapon can get gift cards worth $50 for non-functioning firearms; $100 for handguns, rifles, and shotguns; and $200 for assault rifles, the LBPD said. They’ll also take weapons like 3D-printed ghost guns. Their value “will be determined at the event,” police said.
“We know that guns are the problem,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn, who is organizing a series of gun buybacks. Letting residents get rid of weapons safely, she said, will “help make their community safer.”
The event runs from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. June 29 at Scherer Park. Anyone who wants to participate should put the unloaded gun or guns in their car’s trunk and enter the Scherer Park parking lot at 4891 Atlantic Ave. where officers will secure the firearms while the people turning them in stay in their vehicles.