Anonymous
Source: Coalition Against Gun Violence
When hundreds of guns are exchanged for $100 Smart & Final gift cards at Earl Warren Showgrounds on Aug. 21, homes and neighborhoods throughout the Central Coast will become safer.
Elected officials, law enforcement, and community leaders gathered at Santa Barbara City Hall on July 30 to encourage participation in the Coalition Against Gun Violence’s 6th Anonymous Gun Buyback and to spread awareness about the tragic impacts of gun violence in our communities. The five previous Anonymous Gun Buybacks have resulted in the voluntary exchange of nearly 1,200 weapons.
Santa Barbara Mayor Cathy Murillo and Police Chief Barney Melekian cited a January 2021 murder in Santa Barbara as a disheartening example illustrating the importance of removing guns from circulation. Murrillo pointed out that exchanging a gun on Aug. 21 could save the life of a depressed member of a household or prevent an accidental shooting. City of Santa Barbara is sponsoring the Gun Buyback and SBPD officers will safely handle the weapons.
First District Supervisor Das Williams said that a gun in a household is 22 times more likely to be used on someone living in the home than in defending the home, and if a family decides a gun doesn’t belong in their home, it needs to be disposed of properly. “These guns often find their way, through burglaries or other methods, to the street,” Williams said. “Guns that are used in the commission of a crime often start out as legal guns.”
District Attorney Joyce Dudley, State Senator Monique Limon and Erica Reyes of Congressperson Salud Carbajal’s Office all spoke to draw attention to the need to reduce the number of guns in circulation. Carbajal supports tighter gun restrictions and background checks at the federal level, Reyes said.
ABOUT THE 6th ANONYMOUS GUN BUYBACK:
The Coalition Against Gun Violence, the City of Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara Police Department are sponsoring our 6th Anonymous Gun Buyback at Earl Warren Showgrounds on Saturday, August 21, 2021 from 8 am to noon. Donors will receive a $100 Smart & Final Gift Card for each handgun or rifle and $200 for an assault weapon. Attendees should place unloaded firearms in their trunk before entering the Gun Buyback. Police officers safely remove the firearms and provide and tally the number of gift cards each vehicle receives.
A great time for anti gunners to walk the talk with their pocket book. Visit a local firearm store, legally purchase a firearm and then turn it in to the buy back program. As stated in the article. many legal guns make it to the illegal side. Do your part and then share your success story.
Interesting Mayor shows up for a photo shoot, but is always too busy to participate in any candidate debate or one on interview, nor has provided specific details of policy goals and plans
The mayor has intrinsic influence on choosing high level long term high level positions, which can be life long and permanent,(like city management )which could last decades.
There are a lot to fill with the exodus that have occurred during her tenure