150 Unwanted firearms turned in during first Middlesex regional gun buyback initiative
MEDFORD, Mass. – 150 unwanted firearms were turned in during the first regional gun buyback initiative held in eastern Middlesex County, officials announced today.
The “Safer Homes, Safer Communities” initiative was a collaboration of the Arlington, Belmont, Cambridge, Somerville and Watertown Police Departments, the Middlesex Sheriff’s Office, together with faith- and community-based organizations. The initiative launched June 11 with buyback sites in Arlington, Belmont and Cambridge, continued June 18 in Watertown and concluded June 25 in Somerville where 33 unwanted firearms were turned in for destruction.
Among the firearms turned in during the three-week program were handguns, shotguns and rifles, including an AR-15 style weapon.
“This initiative was focused on providing residents with a way to safely and securely remove unwanted firearms from their homes,” said Middlesex Sheriff Peter J. Koutoujian. “Time-and-again we heard from those turning in weapons that they simply wanted them out of their homes – some because they now had children in the house, others because they had inherited them, and still others because of recent tragedies in the news. I want to thank all our tremendous partners for their incredible work.”
Nationwide each year, nearly 20,000 individuals commit suicide by firearm and 16,000 sustain non-fatal injuries related to unintentional shootings. According to the most recent data available from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, here in the Commonwealth 115 residents died as a result of a firearm-related suicide in 2013. And, between 2009-2013, 98 Middlesex County residents died as a result of a firearm-related suicide.
"This year's gun buyback event was incredibly successful," Somerville Police Chief David Fallon said. "Thanks to the collaboration with the Middlesex Sheriff's office, residents were able to remove potentially dangerous and unwanted weapons from their homes. Events such as this inherently make our community safer."
“After Cambridge had success with its inaugural gun buyback last year, we recognized that there could be a greater impact if we collaborated with our regional partners,” said Cambridge Police Commissioner Christopher J. Burke. “The results of this year’s regional initiative reflected that impact and, more importantly, will help create safer homes in each of the participating communities.”
“The Arlington Police Department is proud to support gun buyback initiatives, as every unwanted firearm we can take out of circulation is another potential tragedy avoided,” Arlington Police Chief Fred Ryan said. “Thank you to Sheriff Koutoujian and his staff for helping to organize this great partnership.”
"Again, I want to reiterate what has been said. I think this was a great opportunity not only for our residents here in Belmont, but also for the other communities as well. The bottom line is we have safer homes and safer communities as a result of this regional gun buyback event,” said Belmont Police Chief Richard McLaughlin. “I too would like to thank our regional law enforcement partners, the Middlesex Sheriff’s Office, all the faith-based partners, as well as the financial donors.”
“Watertown was very pleased to collaborate with our regional partners in this gun buy back program,” said Watertown Police Chief Michael Lawn. “The success each community had has only made our entire region a safer place to live.”
“The success of this multi-town initiative has shown that individuals, community organizations, and houses of faith can work with law enforcement to create safer homes and safer communities. We do not have to stand helpless in the face of the thousands of unintended gun deaths and injuries,” said Lori Lander, founding organizer at Many Helping Hands, one of the many community-based organizations involved in supporting this year’s initiative.
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