More than 3,000 guns exchanged in New York in gift card exchange

More than 3,000 guns, including more than 180 assault rifles and more than 1,650 handguns, were handed over in one day in New York during the weekend, with the state hosting gun buyback events in exchange for gift cards.

The collection of more than 3,000 guns on Sunday included 185 assault rifles, 1,656 handguns, and 823 long guns, according to New York Attorney General Letitia James. It continues an effort from James and state law enforcement to curb gun violence.

There were nine gun buyback events in the state at the same time on Sunday, marking the most aggressive buyback effort in the state yet. James said since 2019, her office has removed more than 7,000 guns from communities in New York.

“Gun violence has caused so many avoidable tragedies and robbed us of so many innocent New Yorkers,” James said in a statement.

The state announced the events earlier this month, saying it would accept both working and nonworking unloaded firearms in exchange for gift cards with “no questions asked.” 

Crime in New York City has been cast into the national spotlight as House Republicans in Washington have tried to zero in on the issue as an example of Democratic mismanagement in large cities. The House Judiciary Committee held a field hearing in New York City earlier this month, focusing on the “victims of violent crime in Manhattan.”

In 2021, New York was among the five states with the lowest rate of gun-related deaths, according to the Pew Research Center. States with the highest rate of gun-related deaths included Mississippi, Louisiana, New Mexico, Alabama and Wyoming.

The gun buybacks also come as shooting violence in the U.S. has made national headlines over the past few months, including mass shootings in Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama. The tragedies have reignited a familiar debate in the U.S. over gun control.