Last night there was a disturbing news report on KGMB with an exclusive investigation performed by Keoki Kerr. Please see the report below:
EXCLUSIVE: HPD will destroy 2,300 old guns worth $500K: Exclusive: HPD to Destroy 2,300 Old Guns Worth 500k
It is very important that you voice your concerns about the way the city is handling the situation as soon as possible. Contact Mayor Caldwell by phone: 808-768-4141 and via his “Contact the Mayor” website: https://www.honolulu.gov/mayor/contactthemayor.html
Contact Council member Ann Kobayashi: Akobayashi@honolulu.gov 808-768-5005
Contact your district council member, you can find their contact information here.
Contact HPD: honolulupd.org.
I will be sending this letter to the mayor to voice my concerns:
Mayor Caldwell,
After viewing the story on KGMB about HPD wanting to destroy $500,000.00 worth of fully functional guns rather than recoup some revenue on them, we at Lessons in Firearms Education (LIFE) and the Hawaii Rifle Association (HRA) were quite dismayed. In these times of lean budgets and continual cost cutting to needed city services, to throw away a half million dollars seems senseless.
The reason your office and HPD gave for not selling to the public seemed to be a slight on those legal gun owners who would have purchased them and who supported you during your election. You should be ashamed for suggesting that the good citizens of Hawaii cannot be trusted with buying HPD’s surplus guns for fear of them falling into criminal hands when record numbers of firearms have been bought by those same citizens for the last 10 years without any such problems.
To claim that selling these guns was going to “put them on the streets” as if to infer they were destined to fall into the hands of criminals seems a bit irrational and alarmist considering the rigorous processes that are currently place for the sole purpose of preventing that type of diversion and that law abiding citizens go thorough each and every time they purchase handguns. In conformity with Hawaii law, HPD’s surplus firearms could only be sold using this process, which includes mandatory training, a background check, and a 14 day waiting period.
We at LIFE and HRA offer our assistance in finding a way to sell these fully functional guns to responsible gun owners.
We at LIFE and HRA respectfully request the decision to destroy these fully functional guns be reversed.
Bill Richter, President Lessons in Firearms Education
Harvey Gerwig, President Hawaii Rifle Association