Detroit PD “paying out hundreds of dollars”
The Detroit Free Press jumped on the feel good – yet probably does little good – band wagon, noting “The Detroit Police Department is paying out hundreds of dollars today and next week as part of a gun buy-back program that took 744 weapons off the streets.”
There is a tense issue with that sentence we’d like to point out, how can the event be ongoing “is paying” and continues “today and next week” and yet “took.” If it is ongoing it should have “taken 744 so far,” but that’s the least of the problem with this reporting.
As with many it implies these do “take weapons off the street,” which there is no proof. Crime in the city is high and we just wonder whether these events make any difference?
Detroit Buyback Yields Guns and Grenades
Just how bad are things in Detroit? In a recent buyback one man turned in two grenades. Now, this is interesting in several ways – several ways that the media doesn’t note. Hand grenades, at least those that work, are not the sort of thing you buy at a gun show, or a gun shop. In other words, these had to be obtained through a black market.
What the media doesn’t note is that if one can buy grenades, wouldn’t you think it is fairly easy to buy illegal firearms. The point is that tighter gun control won’t work, because this shows that in violent prone areas if criminals can get their hands on grenades somehow, guns won’t be much of an issue.
The story added a line we thought was interesting too:
“The guns bought will be melted down – meaning fewer will be on the streets and involved in crimes.”
This is misleading and we have to question the due diligence in the reporting. That line implies that the guns handed in may have been used in crimes, and were actually “on the streets,” as opposed to tucked in a closet, stored in a drawer or under a bed. What we are saying is that this particular sentence is practically a lie, it sounds good but there is no credible evidence to it. But this is true of all gun buybacks too. They sound good, but there is no evidence they do any good.
Detroit to Hold Gun Buyback
The Detroit News noted: “The Detroit Police Department is sponsoring a gun buy-back program from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Residents will receive $25 for long guns and nonworking guns; $50 for working handguns, up to $100 maximum; $100 for assault weapons, up to $200 maximum.”
We never like to hear about gun buybacks as these are efforts that can often cost tax payer money and have little in the way of results. Here is the City of Detroit, which is in a bad way, is paying peanuts for guns. The issue we have is that it is likely this could encourage people to steal guns to turn them in.
No criminal is going to hand in a handgun for $50. And what about those who have potentially value firearms? There are many residents would could use a lot more than $50 for a gun worth far more.
The South End: “What Gun Control?”
The South End of Detroit, offered an interesting op-ed piece that questions gun control. The piece misses a few points, beginning with this one:
“Unfortunately, we live in a city where people may want to carry guns for their own safety. We have citizens who get a license to purchase a gun to makes themselves feel safe. On the other hand, there are ‘thugs’ who feel they need to carry guns because they feel threatened by other ‘thugs.’”
It is because of those “thugs” that the citizens do get a license to purchase guns to feel safe. The “thugs” simply break the law, proving that gun control won’t work. If guns are banned, the citizens are unarmed and the “thugs” would still be armed. Read more
Open Carry Called for Detroit
Rick Ector, a Detroit native and a nationally accredited Firearms Instructor, has launched a blog on the Internet to encourage citizens to openly carry handguns. The blog is entitled “Detroit Open Carry.”
According to Ector, the time has arrived for city of Detroit to break ties with the racist roots of gun control.
“Gun laws have always been most strict in cities with large numbers of black people,” says Ector. “Detroit is no different in that regard. In 1925, Dr. Ossian Sweet was acquitted of defending his home from a mob of people who were upset with the gall of a black man who dared to integrate a white neighborhood.”
Ector, was referring to the Michigan court case which many have credited as being the genesis of the 1927 Michigan Firearms Act. This law created County Gun Boards, required the licensing of handguns, and made acquiring Concealed Pistol Licenses (CPLs) and handguns difficult for most black people.
Ector further concedes that there is another reason for pushing open carry in Detroit.
“Crime here is out of control and the local police department can’t be everywhere. A citizen wearing a firearm in a holster will serve as a visual deterrent to bad guys looking to rape, rob, and murder.”
In general, it is legal in the state of Michigan for a person 18 years of age to display his own registered pistol in a completely visible holster without a special permit, as long as he does not venture into a state designated pistol-free zone.
Rick Ector is a Detroit based grassroots gun rights advocate and a National Rifle Association (NRA) credentialed Firearms and Personal Protection Trainer, who provides Michigan CCW Classes training in Detroit for students at his firearms school – Rick’s Firearm Academy of Detroit.
Successful Dinner Organizer To Solicit Detroit Police Department’s Position On Handgun Open Carry
From our friend Rick Ector:
Rick Ector, a local Detroit gun rights activist, will ask the Detroit Board of Police Commissioners – during the public comment section of the agenda – if they are aware of the fact that the open carry of a handgun is legal in the state of Michigan.
This past Monday, Ector promoted and conducted a successful dinner event at the BluePointe Restaurant in Detroit whereby all of the diners openly and lawfully displayed a handgun.
At this event Ector was contacted by several citizens who alleged that they were harrassed, unlawfully detained, or arrested by Detroit police officers for no other reason than the fact that they openly displayed a handgun. The purpose of the inquiry is to determine if Detroit police officers need training on the legality of open carry or if there is a disconnect between police department policy and the conduct of some of their officers on patrol in Detroit.
In the state of Michigan, it is legal for a person 18 years of age to display his own registered pistol in a completely visible holster without a special permit, as long as he does not venture into a state designated pistol-free zone.
Rick Ector is a National Rifle Association credentialed Firearms Trainer, who provides Michigan CCW Classes training in Detroit for students at his firearms school – Rick’s Firearm Academy of Detroit. Ector is a recognized expert in firearm safety and has been featured extensively in the national and local media: Associated Press, UPI, NRAnews, Gun Digest, The Politics Daily, Fox News Detroit, WDIV News, WXYZ News, WWJ Radio, WJR Radio, The Detroit News, WJLB, WGPR, and the UrbanShooterPodcast. For more info about the Open Carry and Detroit Michigan CCW Classes
Rick’s Firearm Academy of Detroit
Gun Control Myth Two: Firearms Restriction Reduce Crime
Gun control advocates have claimed for years that laws which restrict firearms ownership reduces violent crimes. The United States has over 20,000 different gun laws, most of which are at the state and local level. Since the 1960’s states and cities have passed stricter firearms laws intending to reduce violent crime but more often than not violent crime increased. Read more
Detroit Michigan CCW Classes Instructor Calls For Transparency In Police Gun Buy-Backs
Our friends at Rick’s Firearm Academy of Detroit are calling for transparency in police gun buybacks in the city.
Detroit, MI – Detroit Michigan CCW Classes Instructor Calls For Transparency In Police Gun Buy-Backs.
Rick Ector, a National Rifle Associated (NRA) Credentialed Firearms Trainer based in Detroit Michigan, has publicly challenged the Detroit Police Department (DPD) to demonstrate transparency in its controversial firearm buyback program.
Since September, the DPD has bought an estimated 1,100 guns from the general public at buy-back events on a “no questions asked basis” and according to Ector has failed to deliver a consistent message to the public what it does with the guns. Read more
Did Detroit Police Harass Legal Gun Owners at Buyback
Time and time again we hear about buybacks and we have wondered why doesn’t someone go and offer more money than the police or church is offering? The reason is that in many cases permits are required. This wouldn’t so simple in New York City, Chicago or other major cities. But in Detroit private sales aren’t banned.
That still didn’t stop the Detroit police from harassing those who did try to step up and offered more money than the police were offering.
Rob Reed of Detroit Gun Rights Examiner has the full story: “Detroit Police harass legal gun owners at ‘Gun buyback.’”
More Question Detroit Gun Buyback
Do gun buybacks really do any good? We continue to ask this question, but now others are joining. Michigan Radio (91.7 FM Ann Arbor/Detroit) noted that Eric Lambert, chair of the Wayne State University Criminal Justice Program is among those noting that legitimate gun owners are usually those who turn in guns, and not criminals.
In speaking about gun trafficking, Lambert was quoted as saying, “I think $20,000 is a drop int eh bucket to the overall problem of availably of guns throughout Metro Detroit.”
