Gun buybacks: Helpful or not?

Impressive shots of troves of weapons turned in by nameless individuals and laid out in neat arrays make for excellent visuals for the eager TV folks.

But one thought continues to linger: How many of those pistols, rifles, shotguns and assault weapons were handed over (for payment) by gang members, vigilantes, trigger-happy militia participants, career criminals and other violent offenders? It’s far from clear.

Kristina Bell, San Carlos Bureau chief for the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office, said there is no way to tell how many, if any, people who turn in weapons are law-abiding or not. Are good citizens disarming themselves and, by doing so, ending up benefitting criminals who retain their firearms?

“The buy-backs are anonymous,” she stated recently. “We can’t make any assumptions. We just don’t know. ... The Board of Supervisors just wants guns off the streets.”

Identification analysis for guns that are turned in for cash is performed via a national data base, she offered. So it’s possible to determine if a particular weapon has been stolen. In the end, though, the guns are destroyed and recycled, she said.

Last month, the Sheriff’s Office conducted its most recent gun buyback in concert with South San Francisco authorities; a total of 392 weapons was turned in, Bell said. Those included seven assault rifles and 12 “ghost” (privately assembled) guns that lack identification. The rest were handguns, rifles and shotguns.

The total payout for all of the weapons was $41,800 (paid for with public funds). Owners of assault rifles and ghost guns received $200 for each weapon handed over; the payout was $100 each for all other guns.

Bell said the next local gun buyback event will be held Dec. 3 in San Carlos.

THE HORSE IS OUT OF THE BARN: Still on the subject of guns and their presence in society, estimates tend to vary regarding the number of weapons, legal or not, in the hands of the citizenry nationwide.

But a workable number seems to be 400 million, just over one per person. It’s an indication that reining in gun ownership in any major way is pretty much a lost cause at this point. The horse, as it were, is out of the barn.

Using that figure as a benchmark, it would be reasonable to project that there are easily hundreds of thousands of weapons in the hands of San Mateo County’s 750,000 residents.

Given that this summer’s buyback event in South San Francisco produced 392 guns, it would not be out of line to state that the haul barely put a dent in the county’s total supply.

Nonetheless, the feeling among Peninsula officials seems to be that buybacks are better than nothing.

HELLO, DR. STRANGELOVE: If you pay attention to the daily avalanche of bad news, you can be excused for being a bit paranoid.

There is a lot not to like, especially with war raging in Eastern Europe and an aggressive China on the rise. So it’s not out of the question to wonder if a handy bomb shelter would be a wise option at some worrisome juncture.

Fortunately, there is an increasing supply right there in front of us: Underground parking structures. These massive concrete caverns appear to be tailor-made (with a secure tweak or two) to protect the public in case of the unthinkable.

A prime example can be found in downtown Burlingame. The site of the town’s former main post office is being converted into a mixed-use development which features a deep, impressive parking pit.

Hello, Dr. Strangelove.

THREE MORE MERIT WINNERS: A small, final batch of National Merit Scholarship winners has been announced.

Included were three more high-achieving San Mateo County high school grads in the Class of 2022, upping the grand total here to 34.

The three newest awardees, all county residents, are: Colin Gursky, Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory (San Francisco); Greta Hachigian-Krueutzer, Woodside High School; Camille Lu, Crystal Springs Uplands School.

Email John Horgan at johnhorganmedia@gmail.com.