Gas for Guns Is a Success in Baton Rouge

A good crowd showed up for a “Gas for Guns” event hosted by the BRAVE program in Baton Rouge.

Residents turned over 74 handguns, rifles and shotguns in exchange for Circle K gas cards. It was a "no-questions-asked" program aimed at getting weapons off the streets that could be used to commit crimes.

At least two of the nine shotguns had illegally short, sawed-off barrels, and one of the 12 rifles was an AK-47 assault rifle, the weapon of choice for gang members and the kind of weapon officials were most concerned about collecting.

The remainder of the guns — the 53 handguns — were mostly old or cheap revolvers and semi-automatics, but several were expensive and collectible. If the guns can be matched to a crime, they will become evidence; if they were stolen, they will be returned to their owners, and the rest will be destroyed, officers said.

“I think it was a very successful event,” Capt. Todd Morris, of the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office told The Advocate of Baton Rouge. “Anytime we can get guns off the street, they are less likely to be used in a crime of violence."

Pistols smaller than .380-caliber were exchanged for $50 worth of fuel cards. Pistols larger than .380-caliber were worth $100, and the assault-style rifles were worth $300.

Authorities distributed $5,350 in Circle K gas cards in exchange for the guns that people turned in, according to BRAVE’s Facebook page.

“It was unbelievable. I really didn’t expect this number of people,” said District Attorney Hillar Moore III, as a line of vehicles waited to pull through.