Gun turn in for a safer Lanett

BY JOHN BRICE

THE LAFAYETTE SUN

LANETT — Local residents were encouraged to turn in unwanted firearms to the Lanett Police Department beginning on Friday, June 26. Announcements were posted on social media regarding the new “Gun Turn In” program which assured citizens that no questions would be asked about how they were obtained, no names would be taken and no records would be kept. Police Chief Denise McCain shared details on the new project.

"What we are trying to do is get what these kids have," she said. "Not the people who legally own guns who are over 21, who went out there and bought them. We wanted to get the people who know that their 14 or 15 year old kids are carrying or have them in their rooms. Those are the ones that we want to get off the streets. That is what we wanted."

McCain explained how the effort had been undertaken initially. 

"We posted it on Facebook," she said. "We had several of our ATF agents that went out and tried to get everything coordinated to see what we have to do. We won't keep them, we destroy them. We want to get them off the streets. We don't get any money back. We send them to the ATF and have them destroyed. They can come up to the police department Monday through Friday and turn one in, completely anonymous. We got with a couple of other agencies to see what they did. Sometimes they do it once a year or every other year. We went ahead and got with the ATF and the other agencies."

McCain said the goal of the program was to work to reduce violence in Lanett.

"Everybody wants to stop the violence," he said. "The way that the community can help is by getting with the grandkids or knowing. Legal gun owners, we don't want your guns. When you were 21, and you bought that gun. We know you bought that gun. It is the kids that we are trying to get those guns from. That is what we are asking the community, to come together and get those guns to us."

Many of the firearms used in the commission of crimes have been found to be stolen according to McCain. "Between the glock switches, the ARs. How did you even get this? They won't say. We run them through ATF to find out who purchased it. Then they will be like 'I did not know it was gone, it was stolen.' They have already been reported stolen. A lot of times they break into cars and people, like the investigator was talking about. Don't leave [guns] in your cars. Because if someone breaks into your car and there it is, they are going to take it."

McCain said the day was designed to reduce the troubling trend of minors carrying guns and using them for violence. 

"If they are 14 or 15 years old, they do not have any right to be carrying a gun," she said. "We have seen 12 year olds carrying a gun. We always have the wannabe gangsters. They always want to claim something. We work really well with Lee County, Troup County, Lagrange and West Point. We are gathering information to try and connect all the dots. They are all over Facebook, they are posting themselves with guns in their belt or up in their hand. It is all over, you know they have them. You have to find them. Search their room."