Springfi eld Gardens gun buyback event
takes 79 fi rearms off Queens streets
BY GABRIELE HOLTERMANN
There are 79 illegal weapons
off the streets of Queens as
a result of a gun buyback event
co-hosted by Queens District
Attorney Melinda Katz, New
York State Attorney General
Letitia James and the NYPD
on Saturday, June 12.
In return for an Apple iPad
— while supplies lasted — and
a $200 bank card, gun owners
were encouraged to surrender
their operable firearms at
St. Mary Magdalene Roman
Catholic Church in Springfield
Gardens between 10 a.m. to 4
p.m., no questions asked. Additionally,
owners of BB guns
or air pistols received a $25
bank card, and those in possession
of a rifle or shotgun were
handed a $75 bank card.
Standing behind three
tables loaded with guns ranging
from semi-automatic firearms,
revolvers, single-shot
and semi-automatic rifles to
BB guns and imitation pistols,
Katz emphasized the importance
of such events given the
steep rise in violent crimes
and shootings — not only in
Queens, but across New York
City.
Katz urged that the gun violence
in New York City must
stop, stressing that the message
to the younger generation
had to be that this can’t and
won’t be “the new norm.”
“It has to be unacceptable
that people cannot walk their
children to school, that grandparents
are worried about
going to any of their friends’
homes, that people would go
out at night and have to worry
about being an unintended target,”
Katz said.
She added that the partnership
with the attorney general’s
office and the NYPD was
vital to get firearms off the
street “so that these guns right
here, they are never going to
hurt anybody.”
James said she was glad to
see that 79 weapons were off
the streets and “will no longer
hurt children, hurt senior
citizens purged individuals innocently
who are walking the
streets of New York City.”
The attorney general pointed
out that 90 percent of firearms
in New York City come
through the Iron Pipeline from
states with lax gun laws along
Interstate 95.
She commended the state
legislature for passing the
gun manufacturer bill, which
would allow her office to go
after gun manufacturers who
fail to take steps to prevent
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the unlawful sale of firearms
in New York. According to the
bill, “those responsible for the
illegal or unreasonable sale,
manufacture, distribution,
importing or marketing of
firearms may be held liable for
the public nuisance caused by
such activities.”
Fearing that it would be a
“long, hot summer,” James reiterated
that she was committed
to “go after the individuals
who are responsible for gun
violence and those individuals
who put guns in the hands of
criminals.”
“We’ve got to do all that
we can do to reduce the gun
violence in the streets of New
York City and across the state
of New York,” James said.
Looking at the number of
weapons that were turned
in, NYPD Community Affairs
Chief Jeffrey Maddrey
said, “It’s imponderable when
you think about the amount
of damage and destruction
that these weapons can do out
here in our communities, and
unfortunately, we’re living
through it.”
According to the latest
NYPD crime statistics, so far,
the city has seen 602 shooting
incidents in 2021, a 68.2 percent
rise compared to the same
time period last year. There
have been 687 New Yorkers injured
or killed due to gun violence,
compared to 409 for the
same time period in 2020.
Maddrey explained that
while it was the job of law enforcement
to get weapons off
the street, it also was a moral
and ethical responsibility. He
reminded the community that
it was everyone’s obligation to
get guns off the street “because
we can not allow children, babies,
our babies to be harmed
in communities by gun violence.”
“We should all feel comfortable
walking outside of our
homes or spending time with
our families at barbecues, or
going anywhere in the city,
and not feel threatened by gun
violence,” Maddrey said.
Assemblywoman Alicia
Hyndman and Councilwoman
Selvena Brooks-Powers both
emphasized the importance of
community outreach.
Brooks-Powers, whose district
includes Edgemere, where
10-year-old Justin Wallace was
shot and killed on June 5, expressed
that his tragic death,
“reinforced the need for the
community to come together to
get these guns off the streets.”
She was happy to see how
many people surrendered their
weapons and said she was looking
forward to continuing her
partnership with Hyndman,
Gateway JFK, the DA’s office
and AG James “to ensure that
we’re doing everything we can
to create a safe environment
where our children can grow
and live and thrive.”
NYPD officers pack up the guns taken off the streets at a buyback event co-hosted by Queens District
Attorney Melinda Katz, New York State Attorney General Letitia James, and the NYPD in Springfield
Gardens on June 12. Photo by Gabriele Holtermann
New York State Attorney General Letitia James shows a small
handgun at the gun buyback event.
Seventy-nine guns were taken off the streets at the buyback
event.
Queens DA Melinda Katz inspects one of the 79 guns taken off the
streets.
/NS.COM
