Newtown Shooting Sparks Interest In Gun Buyback Programs Across U.S.
As the pastor of a church in East New York, a rough neighborhood of Brooklyn, N.Y., David Benke has had an up-close view of the suffering that gun violence can inflict on a community. “We’ve had parishioners who have been killed, we’ve had parishioners who have been held up at gunpoint, I’ve had guns pulled on me and we’ve had to do funerals of kids who have been shot and killed,” said Benke, who presides over St. Peter's Lutheran Church and also serves as bishop of the Atlantic District of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod.
For two years, Benke has sponsored a gun buyback program at his church, where residents can trade in their firearms for cash. In the wake of the horrific shootings Friday in Newtown, Conn., many members of the community have been asking to participate, Benke said. “I have been receiving calls from people now saying, ‘Can I come by today? I need to come by next week,’” he described. “We’re in the shadow of a terrible tragedy and something that affects each family in the United States right now.”
Throughout the country, the last two days have seen a spike in participation at such prescheduled buyback
For two years, Benke has sponsored a gun buyback program at his church, where residents can trade in their firearms for cash. In the wake of the horrific shootings Friday in Newtown, Conn., many members of the community have been asking to participate, Benke said. “I have been receiving calls from people now saying, ‘Can I come by today? I need to come by next week,’” he described. “We’re in the shadow of a terrible tragedy and something that affects each family in the United States right now.”
Throughout the country, the last two days have seen a spike in participation at such prescheduled buyback