When Halifax Regional Police announced that they’d be offering transit tickets for unwanted guns, many were quick to laugh the initiative off. But two weeks and more than 150 guns later, city officials are calling the program a success.
“I believe with these weapons off the street, it certainly increases public safety at large for Halifax Regional Municipality,” Ted Upshaw, the municipality’s public safety advisor, said at a press conference Monday.
“Anytime that steps are taken, how big or small, that increase public safety, it's never a joke.”
In total, police collected 152 unwanted or unregistered firearms during the two-week initiative, including 123 long guns like shotguns and rifles, 18 handguns and 11 pellet guns. A total of 6,400 Halifax Transit tickets were given out for the firearms, with a combined value of $12,800.
While police are happy to have the firearms of the city’s streets, they admit that these guns were likely not being used to commit crimes.
“In this case, what we've got is unwanted firearms in people's residences,” Insp. Jeffrey Dowling of the Halifax District RCMP told CTV Atlantic.
“It could be the owner has died or moved away; it's a family heirloom they no longer want. But handing them in decreases the chances that they would be stolen by a criminal and used in a crime. “
While the ‘Fares for Firearms’ campaign might be over, public safety officials hope that it has raised awareness about the fact that residents can hand over guns for disposal year-round. In 2015, without any incentives, 194 firearms were turned over to police in the city. A month-long 2009 campaign called ‘Pixels for Pistols’ saw over a thousand firearms exchanged for cameras.
Public safety officials say that gun amnesty programs are only one tactic for fighting violence.
“We'll continue on trying to address the overall violence,” Upshaw said.
“I think the conversations are helpful,” Halifax police Staff Sgt. Scott MacDonald told CTV Atlantic.
“I think the people who step forward throughout the year are doing the right thing.”
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Kayla Hounsell
