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Over 1,000 Guns Traded for Cash in Bronx
By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 27, 2010
Modified Jan 27, 2010
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By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 27, 2010
Modified Jan 27, 2010
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At four Bronx churches on Saturday, NYPD officials handed out $184,000 in exchange for 1,186 guns over the course of six hours. What does the government plan to do with all that firepower? Well, one day you may pick one of them up at the dry cleaner; they're being melted down to make coat hangers. "Much better use of them," remarked NYPD commissioner Ray Kelly. It was a record-setting cash-for-guns haul, besting last April's gun swap meet, when the city paid for 987 guns, turned in with no questions asked. Those who hand over their firearms receive a $200 prepaid bank card.
NYPD officials say they've taken 5,700 guns off the streets since the program began in 2008, but flying bullets still claim lives in the Bronx and elsewhere. "This is bittersweet," said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. yesterday. "These 1,200 weapons symbolize...another Sadie Mitchell...another Vada Vasquez. Perhaps we'll avoid another Vada Vasquez with these weapons being here."
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John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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